Caribbean Freedom: Economy and Society from Emancipation to the Present

This reader of nearly 60 articles covers major events in the Caribbean struggle for freedom from emancipation to the present – from Toussaint’s Haiti to the more recent revolutions in Cuba, Grenada and the Dominican Republic. The range of coverage is comprehensive calling attention to the variety of post-slavery experiences in the Spanish, Dutch, English and French Caribbean.

Three broad themes are identified: the slow disintegration of the slave system which was not completed until 1886; the attempts by resistant social groups and imperial agencies to accept and adjust to freedom; and the maturing of nationalist consciousness in terms of constitutional and cultural independence. Among the areas covered under these themes are popular revolts and aborted revolutions; the sugar industry and economic diversification; peasants and planters; immigration from Europe, India and China; the role of women; labour movements; independence and nationhood.