STORIES / Okara’shòn:’a
Black and blue
Ti-bert used to dream out loud in Mi'kmaq, which they called the devil’s language. And if you spoke in Mi'kmaq, or even in English, you got beaten. Every night Ti-bert would miss his grandmother and would dream about her. So of course, he spoke in his sleep in his language because his grandmother didn’t speak French or English.
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.”
Candy, soda and ice cream
We went to church in New York when we were kids. Every Sunday we used to go. After a while, our mother stopped going but she still used to make us go.
Brick house by the riverside
My father built that house in 1925. It was there 1925 to 1955. They took it away for the Seaway in 55’.
The Baptism Book
My mom baptized me, but when I got older, I re-learned my culture, my history and my language. So me and another friend of mine, we went to the church to go talk to the priest.