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“It’s not like I’m more Indigenous there and I’m less Indigenous here.”: urban Métis women’s identity and access to health and social services in Toronto, Canada

Renée Monchali, Janet Smylie, Cheryllee Bourgeois

2020 Canada

Colonial policies and identity debates have resulted in major gaps in access to culturally safe health and social services for Métis Peoples living in Canada. To address the Métis health service gap, this qualitative study explores urban Métis women’s identity and their experiences with health and social services in Toronto, Canada. Métis women (n = 11) understand Métis identity as having connection to community, intergenerational identity survival strategies, a learning journey, and connection to land. Building Métis community determined understandings of Métis identity into urban health and social services may be one step toward addressing existing culturally safe health service gaps.

Métis, urban, gender, identity, health, access