Two Saskatchewan representatives have been named to the Metis National Council’s delegation heading to the Vatican.
Elder and Michif language advisor Norman Fleury and Ile a la Crosse Boarding School survivor Anne Lafleur will represent the MNC at the Vatican visit.
Six others will represent the national council including president Cassidy Caron.
According to the national council, delegation members met with the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops Working Group to begin discussing the message they want to present to the pope.
“Grounded in the stories of our Metis survivors, families and communities, delegates will convey the deep, lasting intergenerational trauma that residential schools inflicted upon the Metis Nation, as well as the need for the Church to provide reparations to the Metis Nation, including financial support for community-led healing and community rebuilding initiatives,” read a statement by the national council posted on Wednesday afternoon.
The statement also says the MNC believes an upcoming papal visit to Canada must include an apology.
The MNC also says the delegation will be holding additional conversations in the coming weeks with survivors and elders to further develop their statement brought before the Vatican.
The Vatican visit is slated for December.