Breaking in a New Holiday
A guide to Louis Riel Day
Matt Abra, Volunteer
Apparently someone woke up and realized that rodents’ shadows and Hallmark capitalism are yesterday’s news. Traditionally the month of February has been about groundhogs and Hershey’s kisses; however, this year Manitoba has followed in Saskatchewan’s trend-setting footsteps and passed legislation on a brand new holiday. On the third Monday of February, Manitobans will now celebrate what is humbly called Louis Riel Day.
Since the title was announced, some people have been confused about what this holiday is supposed to mean for Canadians. Is it a general nod to our heritage, or should we actually make something of it? When the idea for a new holiday was conceived, the intention was for it to be celebrated as a “family day,” so where does our allegiance lie: with family or with willful patriotism? The name itself was actually nominated in a contest for school children across the province. More than 100 schools proposed names, everything from Bison Break to Winnipeg Jets Day to Spirited Energy Day. Eleven of the schools suggested Louis Riel Day, and eventually the MB4 Youth Advisory council, a group that advises the government on issues relating to youth, sat down and officially elected the name. So it would seem that the notion of honouring Riel himself had almost nothing to do with the designation of a new holiday.
But that was before. This is now. And who’s to say what great things were potentially set in motion the moment some fourth-grader saw a random name in his textbook and thought it sounded cool or perhaps mystifying — in the sense that most history transforms into mythology a couple generations down the road. I, for one, am choosing to recognize both family and history when Feb. 18 arrives, because the province has handed us a glorious opportunity to shape what Louis Riel Day will entail for generations to come. Here, then, is a guide to what the day is and what it could be. First chances only happen once, so let’s not fall back into the usual sense of apathy and sloth that can come from the prospect of just another day off school. Let’s truly create this beast and turn Christmas into a dried-up celebrity that spends all its time yearning for the glory days. Louis Riel Day, it’s your turn to shine.
Hero or traitor, friend or foe, Louis Riel was one of the more interesting and tragic figures in Canadian history. Now that there is a holiday named for him, what does his story suggest we make of it in terms of celebration?
Traditions and values
Every good holiday has its conventions: Easter has its eggs, Christmas has its presents, and St. Patrick has his booze. Heck, even Labour Day has its depressive summer withdrawal, so for Louis Riel Day, let’s set our sights high. First off, I’m proposing a mass ice-skating marathon on the Red River to commemorate the rebellion. This may be about provincial heritage, but there’s nothing wrong with letting a bit of basic Canadiana creep into the mix. Let’s all head down to the Forks, strap on our skates and proceed with an epic “every man for himself” stampede of pride, essentially the “Winter-peg” equivalent of Spain’s running of the bulls.
As for the family side of things, I have always enjoyed seeing complete pedestrian domination of an otherwise “unwalkable” area of the city. Here’s my vision for the day’s events.
Families could just go for walks in the park, but where’s the danger, where’s the “rebellion.” Instead, they could do it down the very middle of Portage Avenue. Eventually you will hit the MTS Centre. Turn North on Donald Street and make your way to the Louis Riel Hotel, where family sweets will be going for the cheap. Settle in for a comfortable stay and then make your way down to the raging celebration that has been going since 12:01 a.m. the night before, with beer for the adults and presents for the kids, or better yet, just presents for the adults that is beer. There’s no shame in recycling ideas, so long as we’re borrowing the best aspects from other holidays. And don’t forget to put your name in for the door prize: an all-expense-paid trip to illustrious Montana, where you will enjoy a six-night stay in Louis Riel’s former home — if, of course, it hadn’t been turned into a fancy sports car dealership.
Finally, every holiday also has its proper attire: green clothes for St. Patrick’s Day, reindeer sweaters for Christmas, and for Halloween, you name it. For Louis Riel Day we could dress like Métis settlers, or even like a raging buffalo, to embody the true character of Manitobans from 150 years ago. If instead you just want to celebrate present-day Manitoba, I have an even better suggestion. A couple years back a friend of mine showed up at a Halloween party dressed as “spirited energy.” Don’t even ask what that entailed, but I will provide that it involved a cape. Use your imagination on the day in question, just be sure to convey both the spirit and the energy. As for myself, I’ll be there dressed as a black stallion that never runs out of steam.
Catch phrases and well-wishes
At Christmas we tend to say “Merry Christmas,” and at Halloween “Happy Halloween,” but for Louis Riel Day, how should we express our festive spirit? With festive spirit. This is Manitoba, after all. So, for our well-wish, I suggest “good spirit.” It’s simple, it’s pleasant, and it’s positively reinforcing. This will be our good-spirited day.
As for the countless catch phrases that get drawn into every holiday, deciding upon a fitting one could pose a challenge. Naturally for Halloween there is “trick or treat,” for Christmas there’s “Actually, I’m not Christian,” and for Thanksgiving there’s “Thanks.” But what festive lines could possibly spawn out of Louis Riel Day? I can only suggest one: “Do you want to hang with me?” Sorry, that’s all I got. But there is meaning to be found in there somewhere. When one person says to another, “Do you want to be my valentine?” technically they are asking, “Do you want to be a Roman martyr?”
Movies and television
It’s pretty unlikely that many Louis-Riel-Day-based movies will be coming out in the near future; therefore, I suggest embracing both the family and spirit angles when trying to decide on film and television options. Horror films have their own holiday, as do chick flicks, and Christmas movies are pretty much their own genre, but luckily there is no exclusive holiday attached to the “family film.” Some film titles that feature the word “family” include Family Business, The Family Stone, Swiss Family Robinson, and Porno Valley: Family Values. Furthermore, there are countless titles on movie shelves that tell the story of the human spirit, like Chariots of Fire, The Terry Fox Story, The Shawshank Redemption, and Dirty Dancing: Havana Nights. There’s nothing that says all of these options can’t become instant holiday classics after only one Louis Riel Day.
On the TV front, thus far there is no Charlie Brown Special dedicated to Louis Riel Day, although when the day comes, I’m picturing Linus at the piano doing his very own rendition of “Louis Louis.” In the meantime, naming all the shows about a family would require this entire newspaper, so let me skip that and just suggest sitting down to take in a viewing of the newest edition of Family Feud, featuring that guy who played J. Peterman on Seinfeld. Sorry Al from Home Improvement, you just weren’t cutting it.
Get some culture
In all seriousness, what are you going to do on Louis Riel Day? By all means, spend time with family, but do it while getting some culture in the process. Lower Fort Garry, our historical site turned provincial park, is closed from October to May, but economics be damned, they should open their doors for this one day and let Winnipeg have a festival there.
Or maybe experience Manitoba in all its historical glory, by visiting the Manitoba Museum, a place that describes itself as “a unique journey through the province of Manitoba, the world and the universe.” Let’s not squander this opportunity, Manitoba. If a single museum can give us the chance to experience the universe, then with enough creativity and effort, we can certainly make our new holiday universal!
