STORIES / Okara’shòn:’a
Forcibly removed
The people of Kanehsatà:ke were brutalized by the Seminary of St. Sulpice. The sulpicians were a society of priests from France, rich blue bloods filled with evil and greed. They were so rich that they could hire their own security forces to go in to violate and harass our people. Their goal was to get our people to leave our land.
Those are our orders
One night, we tried to get in after work and there were big crowds of like 200 people at all the checkpoints. We didn’t even try coming in, so we went back to Valleyfield and found a parking lot to stay in. Maybe two or three in the morning, we heard knocking on the window and we were surrounded by the SQ.
Always something
There was another time when it was a hot day, and our bus was taking us down St. Germain Road to the back of the monastery where we were supposed to be meeting government officials for another day of negotiations. When we arrived, the SQ was there waiting for us.
It keeps going on
As a kid, I was so confused with my mom. I never knew what she went through. I couldn’t say anything about it. If I had known the way she grew up, then I would’ve understood better. She didn’t tell us what she went through. All she would do is start crying when she mentioned the school.
Now it’s ours
They said it is Terra Nullius - uninhabited land. So now begins the idea of superiority and dominance over Indigenous people. That’s right in Genesis. Pick up a catholic bible and read genesis, what does it say after God created men? “So therefore, ye shall be fruitful, multiply, and subdue the world and have dominion over everything.”
Hide my medicine bag
When I go to Europe, I put my hair inside my hat and I hide my medicine bag. That’s so they don’t recognize me because they could be problematic sometimes.
Discredit the women
In Ganienkeh, they talked about women’s rights. Women are not treated equally around the world. Most cultures don’t treat women very well.
Send the injun
I’m a mountain climber. Well, I used to be a mountain climber. As a matter of fact, I filmed the first Canadian ascent of Mount Everest, which was a flop.
Abusive indian day school
I went to Indian day school, and we had non-Native teachers that were very abusive towards us. You know, calling us mostly “sauvage,” or “f’in Indians,” different stuff like that, getting smacked and getting hit and saying “you’re stupid” or “you’re a dirty savage,” everything.
Less fiction in journalism
People in the community know me. Just look for the stick with the feathers and you’re sure it’s me.