Powley Day

Powley Day recognizes the landmark decision made by the Supreme Court of Canada in the R. v Powley case.

In 1993, Steve and Roddy Powley shot and killed a moose near Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, without a license or tags. They were charged with unlawfully hunting moose and breaching the Game and Fish Act. The Powleys plead not guilty, saying they were harvesting meat for the winter and that, as Métis, they had a right to hunt for food under Section 35 of the 1982 Constitution.

Section 35 states that Aboriginal rights, including Métis rights, are constitutionally protected, but leaves the definition of specific rights up to the courts. At this point the Métis right to hunt had not been established in court, so the Métis Nation of Ontario financially supported the Powley’s case.

In 1998, the Powleys were acquitted after the trial judge ruled that their right to hunt was protected under Section 35. The Crown appealed this decision several times, eventually bringing the matter to the Supreme Court. The decision was unanimously upheld, and the Powley’s community in and around Sault Ste. Marie gained a protected right to hunt.

The case also brought about a selection of criteria now known as “The Powley Test.” This test is a process that can be used to assess whether the claimants are entitled to exercise Métis rights. The criteria include:

1. The characterization of the right claimed (e.g.: was it hunting for food?),
2. Whether the claimant is a member of a contemporary Métis community,
3. Identification of the historic Métis community
4. Identification of the contemporary Métis community,
5. The historical time-frame of the practice,
6. Whether the practice is integral to the culture of the claimant,
7. Whether the proposed practice is continued by the Métis community,
8. Whether the right was extinguished,
9. Whether the right was infringed upon, and, finally,
10. If the right was infringed, can that infringement can be justified.

Although the Powley test can be problematic, like any sort of identity criteria, it has shaped recent discourse on Métis issues. Legal experts and Métis historians believe the Powley Case has the potential to expand into an even bigger rights discourse. For example, the Métis right to self-government and self-determination.

This September 19, we remember the victory, its impact, and celebrate Métis history and culture.