A Conversation with Beatrice Mosionier

I actually never planned to write. I decided to write after the second suicide in my family (October 1980). Both of my older sisters committed suicide. I decided to write a book where I would try to figure out the answers as to why my parents became alcoholics; why we had to grow up in foster homes; why all of the racism in our lives; and, of course, why the suicides happened.

Looking back on In Search of April Raintree, do you now see this as an important book for youth to read?

Absolutely. I’ve been to schools where the majority of students are Aboriginal, and to schools where the majority was not. Both groups are so open to trying to do more positive things in their lives and that includes what we now call cross-cultural awareness. My book gives them the chance to put understanding and compassion before negative judgments.

Why did you develop the dynamic between April and her sister, Cheryl?

As a Metis person, I’m part Aboriginal and part white. I wanted one sister to represent my Aboriginal side. When I was young, I was really proud to be part Indian. Then in grade 5, after learning about our history and it was so negative – that combined with television shows - that I became ashamed of being part Indian.

April’s character was the part of me that wanted to be all white. Through her I could show what main stream society sees when they look at Aboriginal people without understanding the whole picture. For April, it takes Cheryl’s suicide for her to reclaim her Metis heritage. For me, it had taken a second suicide in my family.

Do you wish you could have read a book like In Search of April Raintree when you were young?

Now I do, but way back then when I was in high school I was torn between accepting who I was, mostly because of my brother, and rejecting my native-ness. We used the word ‘Native’ back then, rather than status Indian, non-status Indian, Metis and Eskimo. Today Aboriginal people are the Indian, Metis and Inuit. Indian people often call themselves First Nations.

A lot of Metis people grew up hiding their Aboriginal roots and many have told me that because of my book, they have reclaimed their heritage. And many others have told me that this story is their story. They went through the same things. They grew up in foster homes, and experienced alcoholism in the family, forced assimilation, and racism.

Now it’s 25 years later. We’ve seen some racial issues change. Some got worse. Some stayed the same. Where do you see Canada 25 years from now in this regard?

To be honest, I think we’re going to be so involved with what’s happening globally with the environment, that we may not have time to worry about racism. But if we didn’t have the environmental issue looming over us, I would like to see people talking to one another with compassion and understanding. When you have compassion - not pity - everything else comes easier.

When I wrote the book, I came up with the term ‘cunning trickery’, because I didn’t know of systemic racism. Aboriginal people experience a racism that is different from what ethnic people experience. There’s a generational guilt and thus resentment that’s attached to the racism we experience. I think it would be similar to the black people in United States, whose ancestors were slaves.

How does nature and spirituality impact your writing and other aspects of your life?

It’s really important for us to maintain our spirituality. It’s been our source of strength through really harsh times. And when I meet Aboriginal people who live in different parts of North America, they all seem to share a spiritual bond with the land, the waters and the animals.

You are currently writing a book entitled, Come Walk with Me, a Memoir. Do you view writing as an outlet for the trying times in your life?

The trying times in my life are usually because I’ve made mistakes, taking the wrong path kind of thing. I’ll expose those mistakes if it will benefit others. In spite of the mistakes I’ve made in my life – and when you make them, you feel all alone – I can still do what I do today with the writing and speaking engagements. Publicly, I very much enjoy the sense of community and family I’ve gained. At the same time, I’m still very much a loner.

The other trying times come from outside factors and because I have to deal with those, too, I try to handle them in my writing.

Who are you trying to reach with your writing?

Everyone.

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