|
Note: Please visit our Style Guide to see the accurate layout for this article. |
Aluk is a member of the Mi'kmaq people and the father of Ka'kwet. He is portrayed by Brandon Oakes.
Appearance and Personality[]
Aluk is a tall and strong, with a kind face and gentle mannerisms. He wears two long braids, a brimmed hat and a traditional coat (possibly a blanket coat) in the winter. He is often seen with his daughter Ka'kwet walking around the area of Avonlea, which is near his family's village. He makes hockey sticks to sell to the local boys.
Aluk is friendly and warm, though reserved. He recognizes that things are changing as more settlers come to the area and is unsure about Ka'kwet attending school to learn how to read and write English. He is proud of his native heritage and encourages his daughter to take pride in her heritage as well. Aluk has mutual trust with Anne, which shows when he and Oqwatnuk go to Green Gables for help.
Story[]
Aluk first appears at a local hockey game with his daughter Ka'kwet, where he sells his handmade hockey sticks. Despite facing racism and disrespect from Billy Andrews, Aluk teaches his daughter to be safe by not engaging with him. When he meets Anne, he is hesitant at first to allow her to see where they live, but she gains his trust with the idea of promoting his sticks in the Avonlea Gazette.
When the Canadian government opens a residential school in Halifax, Aluk and Oqwatnuk disagree about whether or not Ka'kwet should be allowed to go. While it may be helpful for their daughter to adapt to the changing world by learning English, Aluk is afraid that her heritage will be stripped away if she attends. After some convincing, Aluk allows his daughter to go to school.
After months of physical abuse, isolation and ethnocide in Halifax, Ka'kwet runs away from the residential school and finds her home village. It is clear to her parents that her experience was traumatic and they do not want to send her back when government authorities come back for her. In a struggle to raid the village and take the Mi'kmaq children, the government men shoot Aluk in the arm and take Ka'kwet.
[1] Aluk and Oqwatnuk hope for Ka'kwet to be released.
Aluk and Oqwatnuk travel to Green Gables for help. They first experiences some resistance from Marilla, though she relents when she understands the pain of having a child who was taken. Aluk and his wife, along with Matthew and Anne, set out for Halifax where they will get Ka'kwet back. After a long journey, the parents approach the door of the residential school and are told to leave. When Anne and Matthew approach the door, it becomes clear that Ka'kwet is being closed off and kept in school unjustly. As a next option, Aluk again pleads with them to release Ka'kwet and offers money to trade for her freedom. As tensions rise, the government authorities appear again and threaten Matthew, Anne, Aluk and Oqwatnuk with guns. They are told that Ka'kwet cannot be released without the permission of the head priest, who is not there. Aluk breaks down in grief as the head priest eventually comes and tells him that their children should assimilate, and they are trespassing and will be arrested if they don't leave the school.
The series ends with Ka'kwet's parents camping outside the school grounds until they can get her out, though the series does not depict her ever being freed. Meanwhile, their home village moves closer to the coast to protect the children who have not been taken.
Episode Appearances[]
Season 3
- Ep. 1: A Secret Which I Desired to Divine
- Ep. 3: What Can Stop the Determined Heart
- Ep. 4: A Hope of Meeting You in Another World
- Ep. 5: I Am Fearless and Therefore Powerful
- Ep. 8: Great and Sudden Change
- Ep. 9: A Dense and Frightful Darkness