Métis Elder Lois MacCallum (left) and MNO Honourary Senator Reta
Gordon took part in the Ottawa Aboriginal Coalition’s video profiles of
urban Indigenous community members. Click here to view a larger
version of this picture.
Submitted by Elena Abel, Ottawa Aboriginal Coalition Community Developer
Two Métis community members were recently interviewed by the Ottawa Aboriginal Coalition (OAC) for a series of videos profiling Ottawa’s urban Indigenous community.
The OAC reached out to Métis Nation of Ontario (MNO) Honourary Senator Reta Gordon and Elder Lois McCallum to take part in the project.
The short films will highlight the city’s cultural landscape using stories from community artists, Aboriginal student centres, interviews from the leadership of local service organizations and elders.
Gordon hosted the OAC in her home and she and McCallum told wonderful stories of the development of the Métis community in Ottawa. Both women expressed pride in the young people who are connecting with their culture and who are willing to share it with others.
They spoke of the change they’ve seen in Ottawa, with the growth of the community, and the number of organizations here to support them.
The OAC is grateful to Gordon and McCallum for sharing their stories. For more information about the project, visit www.ottawaaboriginalcoalition.ca.
Established in 2001, the Ottawa Aboriginal Coalition is an alliance of Aboriginal delivery organizations that provide front-line programs and services to Aboriginal people living in the National Capital Region.
Posted: Aug. 23, 2018