Louis Riel Day

The City of Toronto commemorates Louis Riel Day on November 16. Louis Riel is remembered as a great Métis leader, a founder of confederation, a political and spiritual leader and an advocate for the rights of equity-deserving people.

We recognize Louis Riel’s contribution to Métis communities and acknowledge the contributions the Métis make to Toronto. The City is committed to supporting Indigenous communities and to working together toward fulfilling Louis Riel’s vision and advancing reconciliation with Indigenous people.

View the 2022 proclamation.

I will perhaps be one day acknowledged as more than a leader of the half-breeds, and if I am, I will have an opportunity of being acknowledged as a leader of good in this great country.

– Louis Riel

Learn more about Louis Riel and his legacy

• Watch Did You Know? – The History of Louis Riel and Louis Riel: A Canadian Hero videos on YouTube
• Read more famous quotes attributed to Louis Riel
• Read CBC’s “5 things you may not know about Louis Riel“
• Download education and cultural resources to learn more about Métis people
• Watch stories of the lived experiences of Métis community members (via Community Story Collective, in partnership with the Toronto & York Region Métis Council and Indigenous Education Network)

City of Toronto apology to the Métis

On August 19, 2022, Mayor John Tory offered an apology to the Métis people on behalf of the City of Toronto for its role in contributing to the militarized action against Métis people during the Northwest Resistance of 1885, led by Louis Riel, in what is now Saskatchewan. Read the full apology or watch the video: