Letter from an Elsipogtog mother

Hello, my name is Annie M. Clair. I was born and raised in Elsipogtog.

I have four children and three grandchildren. (I am Junior (Germain) Breau’s mother.)

I would like to share this with you: how it’s really been difficult to go sleep at nights and to think about my son in jail for such a long time.

Going to his court days a few times was even harder then I thought it would be.

So I decided to stop going to his court dates. As days went by all I could do is think about how he was making out, hoping that he is eating well, or wondering, Are they being good to him and treating him fair in jail?

Being a mother of Junior Breau, I wouldn’t never have thought that my child would be put in jail for trying to Protect the WATER and the women & elders & children.

My son Junior has a huge heart and is a very caring person. During his time as a warrior he did what any other warriors would do: protect everyone. People are proud of him for what he did for them. I miss him dearly.

Seeing Junior in jail for the first time was heartbreaking… not being able to hug & hold him in my arms and wipe his tears, sharing how he missed his daughter. It was really hard for him not to be able hold his daughter in his arms and give her a kiss on her face when he looks into his daughters eyes, tell her how much he loves and misses her.

At the same time, it was sad for me to look him in his eyes without me crying and tell him how proud I am to be his mom, and honored to call him my son… how much I wanted him home with his family, and to let him know that everything is going to be alright.

Deep down in my heart, I know my son will be out and he can be with his family and friends & daughter Khloe again.

When I go to bed at night, I think about how my son is feeling in jail and felt like my heart was ripped out of my chest. The pain I felt was so hard to bear, and to see him in so much pain and hurt himself, I would go to bed crying myself to sleep at nights.

So I would pray that the Creator keep my son safe and protected by our ancestors & angels; to keep him from being too angry; and to stay positive… that he knows there are people out there that love him and are waiting for him to get out.

As PROTECTORS we stay strong and do our best to Protect our children, families, and elders from these huge companies & industries that are destroying our lands and water & gardens where we grow our food for our families. We can’t drink oil or gas and grow money. The huge companies or the govenment don’t care but the People do.

POWER TO THE PEOPLE … let’s make a change and Protect Mother Earth, because she Protected us. So let’s help her out. Let’s give Peace a chance.

When this S.W.N. company came to New Brunswick, the people didn’t know what was coming to their neighbourhood. It was all a shock to them to learn: not only is it going to destroy the land, but the water we drink and that our land & home are going to be worth nothing when they put all the pipes and gas through the grounds.

In other parts of the country and in the States, it’s worse then it is here. This is just the beginning. So people, you need to wake up and think twice before letting this industry destroy our beautiful country we love and cherish. Let our children have a good future down the road.

Learn more about this monster S.W.N. Let your children know so when they get older they know what to expect, and stop them before they step foot on our land and soil. They are the ones that are going to be here when we are gone.

Teach them now while they are young, giving them what they need now so they can make a change for the future.

– A proud mom, Annie, for her son (Germain) Joseph Junior Breau. I LOVE YOU SON.

Editor’s Note: Annie Clair, a member of the Elsipogtog First Nation, is Germaine (Junior) Breau’s mom. Junior is up on 19 charges related to the RCMP raid of an anti-shale gas encampment in Rexton, New Brunswick, on October 17th. Junior and Aaron Francis (up on 12 charges), have been incarcerated since October 17th. Their trials are scheduled between mid-March and April, 2014. Visit times for both men are restricted to Sunday and Thursday afternoons.

First published by the Halifax Media Co-op.