This article examines how Miami's significant presence of Anglo Caribbean blacks and Spanish-speaking tourists critically influenced the evolution of race relations before and after the watershed 1959 Cuban Revolution. The convergence of people from the American South and North, the Caribbean, and Latin America created a border culture in a city where the influx of Bahamian blacks and Spanish-speakers, especially tourists, had begun to alter the racial landscape. To be sure, Miami had many parallels with other parts of the South in regard to how blackness was understood and enforced by whites during the first half of the twentieth century. However, I argue that the city's post-WWII meteoric tourist growth, along with its emergence as a burgeoning Pan-American metropolis, complicated the traditional southern black-white dichotomy. The purchasing power of Spanish-speaking visitors during the postwar era transformed a tourist economy that had traditionally catered to primarily wealthy white transplanted Northerners. This significant change to the city's tourist industry significantly influenced white civic leaders' decision to occasionally modify Jim Crow practices for Latin American vacationers. In effect, Miami's early Latinization had a profound impact on the established racial order as speaking Spanish became a form of currency that benefited Spanish-speaking tourists even those of African descent. Paradoxically, this ostensibly peculiar racial climate aided the local struggle by highlighting the idiosyncrasies of Jim Crow while perpetuating the second-class status of native-born blacks.
Among the 3.2 million unsafe abortions in young women 15–19 years old, almost 50% are in the Africa region. 22% of all unsafe abortions in Africa compared to 11% of those in Asia (excluding Eastern Asia) and 16% of those in Latin America and the Caribbean are among adolescents aged 15–19 years.
Reviews the book "Women's Activism in Latin America and the Caribbean: Engendering Social Justice, Democratizing Citizenship," edited by Elizabeth Maier and Nathalie Lebon.
A longstanding assumption posits that white ranchers from the French Caribbean colony of Saint-Domingue, now Haiti, provided the knowledge to establish the first cattle ranches in Louisiana in the mid-eighteenth century, that blacks merely provided the labor, and that the herding ecology involved was the same as that of the Acadian ranchers who followed. Reconstruction of the locations of the first major ranches and the backgrounds of their owners and slaves, however, reveals that none of them came to Louisiana from Saint-Domingue and that the ranches occupied the western margin of the Atchafalaya basin, an environment quite different than the prairies of southwestern Louisiana later inhabited by Acadian ranchers. While the sources cannot yield a complete account of the process through which cattle ranching became established, they do suggest that none of the white ranchers brought relevant experience from the Caribbean or France, that some of the blacks might have brought such experience from Africa, and that people of African, European, native, and mixed origins all contributed knowledge and creativity, as well as labor, in founding a distinctive herding ecology that differed substantially from that of the subsequent Acadian ranches.
On 11 August 1831, St Vincent was struck by the Great Caribbean Hurricane. Ninety-two out of 96 sugar estates on the island experienced damage to buildings and crops. Destruction varied, however, according to location and the type of structure at risk. Worst affected were the northerly regions of St David and Charlotte's parishes, while slave villages suffered more than mill works or great houses. As a result of the storm the colony's exports fell by nearly 50 per cent, reflecting disruption to the infrastructure supporting overseas trade as well as a sugar crop shortfall of more than 25 per cent. In contrast to the hazard's large impact on plantation agriculture, relatively few casualties occurred. St Vincent also suffered less acutely than Barbados, a similar sized island, equally dependent on sugar and slavery. A plausible explanation for the hurricane's differential impact between the two colonies lies in localised vulnerability of place. While the enslaved population did not take advantage of the disaster to mount a challenge to white authority, shortages of provisions and timber strained relations on some estates. St Vincent's plantation economy, however, recovered relatively quickly, demonstrating considerable disaster resilience. Although slaves and the free black and mixed-race population received little direct government support, grant-in-aid was allocated to agents primarily responsible for coordinating supplies of food, clothing and shelter. The speed of recovery questions whether natural disasters weakened planter resistance to emancipation across the British West Indies. Conceptualisation of the Great Caribbean Hurricane as an existential threat to British colonies also obscures the extent to which responses to climatic hazard were shaped by the imperial relationship and the interests of largely absentee owners.
This study examines African Americans', Black Caribbeans', and non-Hispanic Whites' perceptions of closeness to other racial and ethnic groups. The study uses data from a national probability sample, the National Survey of American Life (N = 6,082), and provides the first investigation of this topic among Black Caribbeans. Study findings reveal both similarities and significant differences between African Americans and Black Caribbeans in their levels of closeness to other groups. African Americans and Black Caribbeans were similar in their levels of closeness to Whites, American Indians, and Asian Americans. African Americans felt significantly closer to Black people in the United States than did Black Caribbeans. Conversely, Black Caribbeans felt significantly closer than African Americans to Black people from the Caribbean, Spanish-speaking people, and Black people in Africa. Non-Hispanic Whites felt significantly closer to Asian Americans than did either African Americans or Black Caribbeans. These and other findings are discussed in detail and reaffirm the continued importance of race in American life and intergroup relations.
Dwayne is a Grade 6 student who came to Canada from Jamaica at the age of seven. Upon arrival in a new school Dwayne had to adapt to a new culture. In addition, Dwayne was identified as having severe behavioral problems and learning difficulties, and it was recommended within the first month of school that the boy be medicated in order for him to cope. His mother refused. Through interviewing Dwayne's mother and his teacher, a case study details Dwayne's experiences of schooling. The story of Dwayne illustrates how experiences of disablement are interrelated with experiences of migration and racialization.
Williams,David R. (Author), Haile,Rahwa (Author), Mohammed,Selina A. (Author), Herman,Allen (Author), Sonnega,John (Author), Jackson,James S. (Author), and Stein,Dan J. (Author)
Format:
Journal Article
Publication Date:
2012
Location:
African American Research Center, Library, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Objective. To explore levels of perceived racial and non-racial discrimination and their associations with self-esteem and mastery in the USA and South Africa. Design. We used ordinary least square regressions to test the cross-sectional associations between discrimination and psychological resources using two national probability samples of adults: the National Survey of American Life and the South African Stress and Health Study. Results. Levels of perceived racial discrimination were higher in the USA than in South Africa. In the USA, both African-Americans and Caribbean Blacks have comparable or higher levels of self-esteem and mastery than Whites. In contrast, South African Whites have higher levels of both self-esteem and mastery than Africans, Coloureds, and Indians. Perceived discrimination, especially chronic everyday discrimination, is inversely related to self-esteem and mastery in both societies. In South Africa, stress and socioeconomic status (SES) but not discrimination are important determinants of racial differences in self-esteem and mastery. Conclusions. In two racialized societies, perceived discrimination acts independent of demographic factors, general stressors, social desirability bias, racial identity, and SES, to negatively affect the psychological resources of self-esteem and mastery.
Based on research conducted on Jamaica's hotel industry, this study sought to determine if there are any advantages to both employers and employees in use of short-term incentives in that industry. Using theories of motivation and the concepts governing incentive compensation to construct a theoretical framework, the article sought to make the link between short-term incentives, motivation and employee productivity.
Focuses on the role of young women in the development of Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC). Mentions the pregnancy in LAC is caused by the low socioeconomic situation of young women. States that the lack of information on sexuality education and an inclusive system for health and social protection will increase the chance of poverty.
The intimate relationships between white men and women of color in antebellum New Orleans, commonly known by the term plaçage, are a large part of the romanticized lore of the city and its history. This article exposes the common understanding of plaçage as myth. First, it reveals the source of the myth in a collection of accounts by travelers to the city in the decades leading up to the Civil War. Next, it uses a database of information on hundreds of white male-colored female relationships during the period to provide a more accurate account of the people in and nature of these relationships. Finally, it explains the purpose served by the myth by identifying three traditions that shaped its development.
Argues that neoliberalism carries out its agenda of privatization through public spaces that are never fully dismantled. Draws on empirical research into spaces that exemplify the usefulness of our reading of neoliberal privatization, including aspects of post-Katrina New Orleans and a more thorough case study of a pre- and post-earthquake Haiti and its highly privatized education system.
Explores the link between long-lasting relations within the family and intra-familial violence perpetrated against women in Latino households in South Florida. The results indicate that among abused women, the effects of long-lasting relations within the family differ depending on the type of relationship between the abuser and the victim and the degree of closeness the victim feels towards other family members.
An analysis of interviews with representatives of global governance institutions and international nongovernmental organizations conducted between 2007 and 2010 in the Latin American and Caribbean region and at the headquarters of relevant international organizations in Geneva. Argues that because the discourse on migrant women's rights and their labor exploitation is framed predominantly in the context of trafficking, little headway is made in advancing migrant women's labor and social rights.
Reviewing the 22 years that have elapsed since Gifford's 1989 report labelled Liverpool as racist, the authors focus on the fact that in a city which has had a British African Caribbean community for over 400 years, there is minimum representation of that community in the city's workforce.
Focuses on the slow progress of Haiti after two years of earthquake in Canada. Offers information on the reconstruction failure of the organization Canadian Red Cross and other communities even after providing the financial help and donations. Also discusses the reasons where the Canadian Red Cross is lacking to improve the condition of Haiti.
Explores contestations over the reality and complexity of educational underachievement and whether this relates to broader political–economic marginalization (or privileging) of boys. Argues that boys’ underachievement should neither be ignored nor be the exclusive focus of attention and that a move from ‘boys’ underachievement’ to a broader analysis of ‘gender and education’ is needed, to place the debate in a gender relational context.
Investigates the interface between gender, color/race and public health in Brazil, focusing on the importance of reproductive health for the formation of a black feminism in the country, between the years 1975 to 1993.
Drawing on field experiences with the organisation GOAL from the Haitian post-earthquake and cholera epidemic emergencies, provides a brief analysis of what systems worked well to support international non-government organisations and where and how greater support could be provided in a future emergency.
An essay on the gendered aspects of war and revolution in Cuba and Nicaragua. According to the author, militarized violence in these states was hierarchical and ultimately created alternative privileged masculinities despite revolutionary movements' ideological commitments to equality. Details related to racial and gender binaries are also presented.
Read in the context of the Americas and the plantation system, Jean Rhys's fiction is a global vision of modernity. The vision appears through colonialist stereotypes of idle and lazy West Indians displayed in dynamic interaction with scenes of actual toil and servitude that appear everywhere in Rhys's fiction. Focuses on Voyage in the Dark (1934), the short story ‘Temps Perdi’ and Rhys's last novel Wide Sargasso Sea (1966).
Discusses the impact of the global financial crisis in late 2008 on social welfare, specifically to mother's ability to provide for their households' needs. Mentions the continuous unemployment, rise in food prices, and decline in Overseas Development Assistance and Foreign Direct Investment.
Author discusses the complexities of identity representation in terms of her Afro Caribbean/"third" world background and her historically African-American university (HBCU) affiliation. Notes how her academic identity marked by her first and third world educational experiences as a Caribbean person of color in the U.S. positions her between the borders of insider/outsider.
Argues that patterns of gender exclusion occur on multiple levels from the transnational to the local, and identifies gender-specific obstacles in the recovery and reconstruction period. In Haiti, these include meeting family survival needs, violence and exploitation, and class and racially based stigmatization.
Uses data from the National Survey of American Life to investigate explore ethnic heterogeneity among black Americans, with a sample of 2,953 African Americans and 1,140 Caribbean Blacks. For African Americans black group evaluation, self-esteem, and mastery reduce depressive symptomatology. For Caribbean Blacks racial identity and psychosocial resources were all directly and inversely related to depressive symptoms.
Argues that Haiti must begin immediately to lay the foundations for a society that will improve significantly on that of the last two hundred years, that two of the critical groups in that process will be women and young professionals, and therefore that high quality human rights education is needed to assure their political, economic and professional empowerment.
Conditional cash transfer (CCT) programs have spread throughout Latin America and beyond based on the claim that they are an effective social policy tool to combat poverty. Gender relations are shaped by these policies. Recognizes the potential for CCTs to transform gender relations should mechanisms allowing childcare facilities and encouraging male participation in domestic labor become an integral part of these programs.
Analyzes both independent films that challenge the status quo by portraying openly lesbian characters and mainstream films that insist on denying autonomy to same-sex love. Argues that gender-queering functions as a symbolically transitional stage toward lesbian visibility and inclusion.
Investigates Haitian women''s most pressing health needs, barriers to meeting those needs and proposed solutions. The impetus for the study was to get community input into the development of a Family Health Centre in Leogane, Haiti.
Focuses on the retrospective accounts of Caribbean-born adults who as children were serial migrants, joining their parents in the UK following a period of separation. Considers aspects of their relationships with their siblings and with their mothers and fathers.
Authors conducted a thematic analysis of 650 photographs of Haitian women in the Associated Press Photo Archive in the years 1994–2009. Emphasizes the impact of these images on the identity of Haitian women and Women of Color, as well as on the attitudes and behaviors of media consumers toward these groups.
The story of Carmen (Mérimée 1845, Bizet 1875), the (in)famous Gypsy from Spain, is the second most adapted narrative in the history of world cinema with more than eighty global versions officially recognized to date; however, one significant and critical version has been overlooked, the controversial 1991 film María Antonia (Cuba), by Afro-Cuban filmmaker Sergio Giral.
The 2010 earthquake in Haiti and its aftermath have highlighted inherent but understudied transnational governance and socio-legal complexities of disaster recovery and displacement. This paper examines the key transnational governance and socio-legal issues that have arisen in the South Florida region for four distinct groups: (i) displacees and their related legal, social, cultural, and economic issues; (ii) host communities and governance, legal, and monetary complexities associated with compensation payments (e.g., to hospitals for their services to earthquake survivors); (iii) immigrants within the United States and related legalization and citizenship issues; and (iv) diaspora communities and socio-legal issues related to dual citizenship and their ongoing struggles to have a louder voice in the future of Haiti.
Discusses aspects of violence in Jamaica and the efforts to improve the life of women in the country. Cites that the country has one of the highest per capita homicide rates in the world and that gender stereotyping is extensive and pronounced.
One out of three people (25% of men, 38% of women) in Curacao have experienced some form of domestic violence at some point in their adult lives. The most significant risk factors for domestic violence in Curacao are the female gender, a young age, low education, and experiencing domestic violence victimization in childhood. Divorce, single parenthood, and unemployment increase the risk for women, but not for men.
Compares sexual prejudice in Jamaica to that in Britain and investigated the relationship between contact and sexual prejudice in both countries. Jamaican participants reported more negative attitudes toward gay men than did British participants, but contact was more strongly associated with reduced sexual prejudice for Jamaican participants than for British participants.
Tests for the relationship between foreign direct investment and economic growth among some developing countries distributed between three geographic areas, over the period 1990-2005. Findings show that foreign direct investment do positively affect economic growth in Africa and Latin America/the Caribbean.
Blinder,V. S. (Author), Murphy,M. M. (Author), Vahdat,L. T. (Author), Gold,H. T. (Author), Melo-Martin,I. (Author), Hayes,M. K. (Author), Scheff,R. J. (Author), Chuang,E. (Author), Moore,A. (Author), and Mazumdar,M. (Author)
Format:
Journal Article
Publication Date:
Aug 2012
Published:
Netherlands: Springer Science+Business Media
Location:
African American Research Center, Library, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Employment status is related to treatment recovery and quality of life in breast cancer survivors, yet little is known about return to work in immigrant and minority survivors. The authors conducted an exploratory qualitative study using ethnically cohesive focus groups of urban breast cancer survivors who were African-American, African-Caribbean, Chinese, Filipina, Latina, or non-Latina white. Overall, there were we few differences between the different ethnic groups. These results have important implications for the provision of support services to and clinical management of employed women with breast cancer, as well as for further large-scale research in disparities and employment outcomes.
Child trafficking, under the guise of intercountry adoption, is a form of human trafficking that is often misunderstood by policy makers, governments, the media, and nongovernmental organizations. Uses the 2010 abduction attempt of Haitian children by American missionaries as a case to demonstrate how existing policies are insufficient to provide protection to victims and to prosecute perpetrators of this form of child trafficking.
"Dominican culture and society can be characterized as a hybrid whose nature is expressed in various domains. For example, folk or popular Catholicism, the religion of some 90 percent of the national population, is in summary a cultural amalgamation. But deconstructed, it can be seen to retain elements of the various contributors to its eclectic configuration: Spanish of different regions, classes, Catholic religious orders, and even religions with regard to Judaic and Islamic features retained in Spanish folk Catholicism; West and Central African of various ethnic origins; continuities of native Taíno beliefs and practices; and other origins, such as the possible East Indian origin of the vodú deity of the “black” Guedé family, Santa Marta la Dominadora." -The Author
Explores the way writers address the formation and fate of the contemporary American working class in an age of neoliberal globalization. Specifically, the essay examines Russell Banks's 1985 novel Continental Drift, which interweaves the stories of two characters who pull up stakes and head to Florida in search of a better life: an oil furnace repair man from New Hampshire and a young, single mother from Haiti.
In many of the lesser developed areas of the world, regional development planning is increasingly important for meeting the needs of current and future inhabitants. Illustrates how matrix assessment methodology was applied to produce a landslide-susceptibility map for the Commonwealth of Dominica, an island nation in the eastern Caribbean, and how with a follow up study the relative landslide-susceptibility mapping was validated. A second Caribbean application on Jamaica demonstrates how this methodology can be applied in a more geologically complex setting.
