Gerald Morin, born in 1961 in Green Lake, Saskatchewan, is a Métis politician and lawyer, former president of the Métis Nation–Saskatchewan (MNS) and the Métis National Council (MNC). Raised in Green Lake, a traditional Métis community, and heavily influenced by his grandfather Leon Morin, he decided in grade school to dedicate his life to advancing Métis rights. While attending Law School at the University of Saskatchewan, he was president of the Native Law Students Association of Canada. Having received his LLB in 1987, he was called to the Saskatchewan Bar in 1988. In 1989, after articling for a year, Morin entered politics and was first elected MNS provincial secretary and then, from 1992 to 1995, president. In this capacity he strengthened the bilateral process with the provincial government, and advanced a Métis rights agenda that included restoring the Métis’ Indigenous hunting and fishing rights and creating a permanent Métis land base in the province. In 1994, he was the main plaintiff for the northwest corner of Saskatchewan in the MNS’s land claim filed against the federal and provincial governments. In 1993, Morin was elected MNC president, a position that he held until 2003. In this capacity he initiated the “Métis Nation Agenda,” which through strategic partnerships with government and, if necessary, litigation, attempted to provide the Métis with “Aboriginal” animal harvesting rights, properly honour Louis Riel and the Métis’ place in Confederation, establish a national Métis definition, enumeration and registry, and strengthen Métis self-government.
Darren R. Préfontaine