O'Toole, "The Red River Jig Around the Convention of "Indian" Title: The Métis and Half-Breed Dos à Dos"

Since the constitutional status of the Metis people has been recently in the news, it's a good time to note that I missed posting about an article in the summer 2012 issue of Manitoba History, Darren O'Toole of the University of Ottawa Faculty of Law, "The Red River Jig Around the Convention of "Indian" Title: The Métis and Half-Breed Dos à Dos." 

Here's the abstract:

The article discusses the Manitoba Act, 1870, which incorporated the District of Assiniboia into Canada as the Province of Manitoba, and issues concerning the Indian title of the Métis and the so-called "Half-Breeds" of the region. It analyzes the acceptance of the juridical convention of Indian title by the "Half-Breeds" and the Métis' challenging of it, noting the influence of the coalition between these two groups. The author examines the political environment of the District of Assiniboia in 1869 and the "speech-acts" of spokespersons including Reverend Noël-Joseph Ritchot, who negotiated the land grant outlined in section 31 of the Manitoba Act.