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Canada's most famous Inuit entertainer, Susan Aglukark, opens the door to her personal life tonight in CBC-TV's Life and Times.
Susan Aglukark: Polarities, at 9 p.m. on GJF, explores how the singer has coped with the effects of being sexually abused as a child, as well as the pressures of being the daughter of a pastor.
She vividly recalls being left alone in her Rankin Inlet home while her parents travelled to minister to others. A local man came into her home and abused her.
Dealing with that horrible event drove her to consider suicide. Sadly, when Aglukark admits this, the documentary doesn't follow up.
Such is the case with a few topics.
Though there are several pictures of Aglukark with her young son Cameron, her "white record producer" husband is never discussed and the only glimpse of him is in a fuzzy wedding photograph.
Not afraid to talk are Aglukark's parents, brother David Jr. and sister Esther. Esther's story of how her parents took away her baby because they considered the 18-year-old too young to be a mother will break your heart.
Ironically, the baby girl was named Kathy after a cousin who committed suicide and was the inspiration behind Aglukark's song Kathy 1.
The most raw moment comes when the singer is told of her father's words of regret regarding how he put the church before his children. These words shock and confuse her.