Was Louis Riel a hero or a traitor? Well, some say he was a hero, and others say he was a traitor. Personally, I believe that Louis Riel was a hero because he was the ancestor of Manitoba, which is a province of Canada. The fact that he was a persuasive politician and spiritual leader also made him a hero. Finally, he defends the rights of indigenous people. Others, like the British, considered him mostly a traitor, because they failed to understand that Louis Riel simply needed the Canadian government to treat his people fairly and that he was willing to do anything for his people. Instead, the government thought he was violent and evil, therefore a threat to them. Most people who had seen him as a traitor realized that he did everything for his people...after he was hanged. My first reason for saying that Louis Riel was a hero is that he was the founder of Manitoba, which is why he said things like "I know that by the grace of God I am the founder of Manitoba" or "And the province of Manitoba? Without our provisional government, this would not work...