Commemorative Ceremony for Louis Riel at the Manitoba Legislature

On Thursday, November 23rd. In 2023, the Manitoba government, under the leadership of Premier Wab Kinew, introduced a bill to give Louis Riel the honorary title of “First Premier of Manitoba.” Kinew shared that the introduction of the new legislation “marks the first step in resetting the relationship between the Manitoba government and Indigenous governments as partners and leaders in the province.”

Following this was a commemorative ceremony for Louis Riel, part of which was held outside behind the Manitoba legislature and part of which was held inside of it. Federal, provincial, municipal, and Métis leaders were among the crowd that gathered around the statue of Louis Riel. His Grace, Archbishop Richard Gagnon, was also in attendance.

Archbishop Gagnon shared the following about the event:

“During the commemorative ceremony outside the legislature, I was pleased to have been invited by the Manitoba Metis Federation President, David Chartrand, to say a few words and offer a prayer. I expressed the need to be grateful for God’s many gifts, especially the gift of our culture and the values and faith passed down to us from those who came before us and that we need to be responsible for sharing these gifts with others. We need to be peacemakers who seek to build a better world with our neighbours, whoever they may be.”

Click here to view a video recapping the day’s events!

Enjoy photos from the indoor portion of the celebration below: