The Treatment of Collaborators

Heroes Remember

The Treatment of Collaborators

Transcript

I had an experience with, in, when we were in Lille in France. There were these people that went into this village and they were cutting these women’s hair off, you know, because they’d been associating with the Germans. And they were, they’d just get their hair and they’d just clip it all off and then they’d get a razor and make them all bald-headed. And they were stuffing this stuff down this little boy’s shirt, the hair. I say, “Why are they doing that?” because they couldn’t talk very much, and this one guy could talk pretty good English and he said, “Well, that kid had informed the Germans that there was some paratroopers, that had our air plane had been shot down, and these people had bailed out and he told the Germans where they were.” So he said that’s why they were cutting these women’s hair off because they had associated with the Germans. He said, “You want to cut their hair?” I said, “Not really, no.” You know, it’s not my problem. You know, after all, those guys, you know, those people had been there for four years, and I suppose if somebody offered you a loaf of bread or whatever, you know, to eat, food, I suppose you would associate with them too. I don’t know, I’m not... Like you’re talking about moral standards. I don’t know, you know. If you’re starving, I suppose you would.

Description

Mr. Bruce discusses the treatment of collaborators and expresses some sympathy for them as oppressed civilians were faced with starvation.

Robert Bruce

Robert Bruce was born on February 11, 1922 at Sturgeon Valley, Saskatchewan. He was the second youngest of eight children. After they were forced to sell their farm when his mother was widowed, the community built Mr. Bruce’s family a new house across from the local school. He left school at fourteen, didn’t qualify academically for the air force, and eventually joined the army, where he served as a truck driver. Mr. Bruce served in post D-Day Europe from France to Germany. After the war, he returned to Canada and worked on the railroad.

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