Susan Shacter

A little bit about me – I was born into a little Métis community on the edge of Hinton, Alberta, but mostly grew up in Battleford. My family is from the Bresaylor, Langmeade and Bjelde Creek areas, but they travelled far and wide after leaving Red River in the 1880s and I have family ties to many areas including Northern Saskatchewan and British Columbia. I’m a citizen of the Métis Nation — Saskatchewan (MN-S) and a proud member of Gabriel Dumont Local 11 (GD11).

I’m currently pursuing an MA in Political Studies at the University of Saskatchewan (USask), with a focus on Indigenous Self Governance. Prior to this I earned a graduate certificate in Economic Analysis for Public Policy with the Johnson Shoyama Graduate School of Public Policy (JSGS), and a B.A. (Hons) in Sociology from USask. During this time, I also completed certificates in Indigenous Justice and Criminology (IJC) and Indigenous Governance and Politics. In a previous career path, I completed a diploma with SIAST in Computer Information Systems, after which I worked as a computer programmer for more than 13 years.

I currently work as a policy analyst with the Métis Nation — Saskatchewan (MN-S), in the Office of Policy & Research. In this role I am part of a team that is currently working to review and reform the Constitution of the MN-S in consultation with Métis people within Saskatchewan. As part of my role, I am grateful to support the work of the Tribunal, acting as a liaison between this team and the MN-S.

Having previously worked with the Elizabeth Fry Society, the topic of justice for our people is near and dear to my heart. In the role of Indigenous court worker, I witnessed daily the impacts of colonization on Indigenous people living within Saskatchewan. I am hopeful that a Métis Tribunal will have the capacity to better support the Métis people within Saskatchewan who are so overrepresented in the Canadian criminal justice system.