Skip to content

Controlling Lives and Relationships Family and Humour — Transcript

Antoinette: I was taken away from my real mother when I was a baby. And I do not know my real father. But I know my mother would have told me but I was too young to know what was going on.

Sue: And how old were you?

Antoinette: I was only a baby, I guess. New, about one year I think, when I was taken away from the Children’s Aid

Sue: Do you know why they took you away?

Antoinette: No, I do not. They didn't say, but it was hard on me. And I was always asking about my sisters when I got older. I said, Where's my sisters? Because I knew I had two real sisters. Because they wrote it in a letter to me, but I don't know where I put that letter. I think I lost it. But, you know, from moving, you lose a lot of things. And I know it was hard on me, but now I'm so happy I have Marie. I didn’t know nothing else, but I’m so happy I have my sister.

They wouldn't let the parents to come and visit the children. They say, “oh, they're going to be out…” The Children’s Aid said that. They say, “we're gonna take them to the school, and they're going to be happy. You don't need to come and see them.” But good, somebody spoke up to them, and told them off, and I'm happy that Marie closed that place down.

Sue: Do you think people cried themselves to sleep every night? Or did you get like,

Antoinette: Oh yeah.

Marie: I'm sure the did.

Antoinette: I saw a lot of them crying. Because I went over to one and I said, “Please don't cry and make yourself sick. Let them think that you're smart. You know what to do. Even though you have problem with your reading and that. It's not your fault. It happens to anybody.” To anybody, can have trouble learning, slow learners, but you don't go and beat them up.

Sue: It sounds like you guys surviving what you survived.

Antoinette: Oh, yeah, we really survive. I said to Marie. Thank God I'm around to tell this story and another thing, thank God I have you. Because if I didn't have Marie, I would be alone, and I wouldn't know any family of mine. I wouldn't know nothing. Children’s Aid did not want to tell me.

Marie: And to me, that kind of suffering that we went through was totally unnecessary. Uncalled for, there was no reason for it. Except for the fact that their reasoning was what we're not like them. So we need to be punished for it. Well it didn't solve anything, did it? We were still the way we are.

Antoinette: That's right Marie. Sue, anytime you need our help, we will help you. We want people to know our story. And we want them to know that we’re not lying about it.

Marie: No, we’re not, can I make a little joke?

Sue: Yeah.

Marie: We’re not lying about it, we’re not lying we’re sitting.

[Antoinette laughs]

Marie: What do you think of that? We’re not lying about it, we’re sitting.

Antoinette: We’re sitting about it and talking about it.

Sue: Oh, my gosh, we’re not lying about it, we’re sitting and talking about it.

[Sue laughs]

Marie: Yeah

Sue: You’re funny, look at that, you can even joke about it. Oh my gosh, you’re so amazing.

Marie: Yeah

Back to Video ↩