Allan Stevens- It Was Hard, Old Sun
What I’m going to start talking about happened at Old Sun School Residential School. Long time ago, well not too long ago. Okay what I’m going to start talking about is school when we went to residential school.
Some boys were bad, some boys were bullies. I had younger brothers, two of them. It was bad, my younger brothers would sit there and cry because we were getting beat up. It was bad. I told my uncle about it, my uncle said just fight back or they will keep doing it like that if you don’t fight back. Then we would fight back and they left us alone. It was hard, Old Sun.
Okay the same thing, playroom, the principle knew who spoke Blackfoot. They just wanted us to speak English in school. The principle put, from his office to the playroom, maybe the girl’s side had them, speakers that hear, that go to the principle’s office. If somebody spoke Blackfoot the principle understood all, he recognized our voice. He’ll just talk into it, he’d say “Matthew, Allan or Randy, come up here!” Then we got strapped in the office because we spoke Blackfoot.
– Allan Stevens
Notes:
Oral interview with Allan Stevens. Conducted, translated, and transcribed by Gwendora Bear Chief. Old Sun Community College, March 23, 2022.
