Métis Lands in Manitoba

David R. Hutchinson is a consultant in Saskatchewan’s Indian and
Métis Education Branch.

Métis Lands in Manitoba is a compilation of historical data designed to
disprove federal government irresponsibility and negligence in
administering sections 31 and 32 of the Manitoba Act. These particular
sections detail procedures for distributing 1.4 million acres of land to
the Métis “heads of families” and their children. At the outset,
Flanagan—a professor of political science at the University of
Calgary—informs the reader that his book represents the culmination of
research he was hired to compile and analyze on behalf of the federal
Department of Justice, in preparation for a land claims case initiated
by the Manitoba Métis Federation and the Native Council of Canada.
Flanagan undertakes the difficult task of unravelling the web of federal
and provincial legislation supporting the Manitoba Act; in addition, he
examines surveyors’ records, judicial commentary, and the opinions of
prominent politicians, land agents, and speculators. As a result of his
investigation, Flanagan concludes that the federal government
overfulfilled its land allotment obligations to Manitoba’s Métis, and
was in no way involved in widespread fraudulent activity.

Yet there is something disturbing about Flanagan’s argument. First,
although he assumes a posture of objectivity and the ability to access
historical truth, Flanagan’s primary sources and analysis fall
squarely in defence of the federal government. Second, the author makes
much of Métis “illiteracy” and “fraud” in explaining the
development of circumstances that ultimately saw much of the Métis
allotments sold to speculators. Flanagan continues to blame the victim
by suggesting that closeknit Métis extended families, coupled with a
traditional hunting-and-trapping lifestyle, prevented individual Métis
families from settling on land issued by lottery. It is as if the
language and culture of the Métis are suspect or at fault.

To his credit, Flanagan acknowledges instances of fraud and theft by
Dominion land agents, yet there is little discussion of the federal
government’s refusal to allow a Métis enclave in Manitoba. Certainly
one could argue that a thorough review of the governmental paperwork
indicates a just administration of Métis land allotments; however, John
A. Macdonald’s refusal to legislatively recognize and establish a
Métis nation cannot be overlooked. The issue is not whether the federal
government properly administered sections 31 and 32 of the Manitoba Act;
rather, the issue is the motives behind developing land allotment
procedures that geographically divided Métis families and required
Treaty Indians to extinguish aboriginal title.