The Caribbean

Introduction Complex colonial history (Spanish, British, French, Dutch, and U.S.) Plantation America (eg. Sugarcane) Ethnicity of African origin Isolated proximity Isolation: cultural diversity, limited economic opportunities Proximity: transnational connections, economic dependence

Environmental Geography

The rimland: biological diversity; sparsely populated The Antillean islands The rimland The Antillean islands: separate the Caribbean sea from the Atlantic ocean; densely populated The rimland: biological diversity; sparsely populated

The Antillean islands Can be divided into Greater Antilles and Lesser Antilles Greater Antilles Four large islands: Cuba, Jamaica, Hispaniola (Haiti, the Dominican Republic), and Puerto Rico Majority of population High mountain ranges Look at Atlas p.97 for topography

The Antillean islands Lesser Antilles Double arc of small islands stretching from the Virgin Islands to Trinidad Footholds for rival European colonial powers Inner arc: mountainous islands of volcanic origin (eg. Montserrat) Outer arc: low-lying islands with volcanic base  ideal for growing sugarcane (eg. Antigua, Barbados)

Tectonic plates in the Antillean islands Heavier North and South American plates go underneath the Caribbean plate Creates subduction zone, and high mountains with volcanic activities Caribbean plate: limestone + volcanic rocks South American plate: sedimentary rock eg. Trinidad and Tobago are on the South American Plate: sedimentary rock  oil reserves

Rimland States Belize The Guianas Low-lying, limestone  Sugarcane, citrus The Guianas Rolling hills of the Guiana Shield Rain forest  Timber Eg. The Tropical Rainforest in Suriname Crystalline rock  poor soil; metal extraction

Climate and Vegetation Warm all year Abundant rainfall  can support tropical forests Antilliean islands: removed for plantation Rimland: intact Seasonality is defined by changes in rainfall When is the rainy season? Islands: July ~ November ( Hurricane) The Guianas: January ~ March ( Shift of ITCZ to the north in winter)

Hurricanes Forms off the coast of West Africa Picks up moisture and speed as they move across the Atlantic Westward-moving low-pressure disturbances 75 mph ~ 100 mph July ~ November Affects Lesser Antilles, Greater Antilles, Central America, Mexico, southern North America

Biome – wet zones Tropical forests Palm savannas Remains exclusively in the rimland Palm savannas Tropical savanna (Aw) zones Adapted to agriculture Eg. Hispaniola, Cuba Coastal mangrove swamps Leeward shores Not suited to human settlements, but vital marine habitant Cleared to create open beaches  exposed to increased erosion Mangrove tree

Biome - arid zones Thorn-scrub brush, cactus Netherlands Antilles (Aruba, Bonaire, Curaçao), Anguilla, the Cayman Islands Not adequate to agriculture; salt, goat Since 1960s, developed as world-class resorts

Environmental issues – Ecosystem For nearly five centuries, an area has been so completely reworked through colonization and global trade Extinction of Caribbean plants and animal Extreme human modification of environment

Environmental issues - Deforestation Covered in tropical rain forests prior to the arrival of European Forests were cleared to make a room for sugarcane to provide the fuel to turn the cane juice into sugar to provide lumber for housing, fences, and ships The newly exposed tropical soils easily eroded, and thus land becomes unproductive

Environmental degradation and poverty in Haiti What was once considered France’s richest colony now has a per capita income of $460 Colonial period: deforestation for sugarcane production Independence (1804): slave uprising U.S. occupation (1915-34): economic dependency Duvalier dictatorships (1957-86): social inequities Early 1990s: economic sanctions

Environmental degradation and poverty in Haiti Dominican Republic Haiti 70% subsistence farming  Reliance on biofuels

Managing the Rimland forests Belize eg. Coca Cola Corporation attempted to purchase the land for juice concentrate in 1980s First jaguar reserve in the Americas Guyana Boa Vista to Georgetown Governments: Highway construction Conservationists: National park

Protecting environment is not a luxury but a question of economic livelihood

Population and Settlement

Densely settled islands and rimland frontiers

Fertility decline Cuba Barbados Education of women Availability of birth control and abortion Barbados Out-migration of young Barbadians overseas Preference for smaller families

Rise of HIV/AIDS On average, 2% of the Caribbean population between the ages of 15 and 49 has HIV/AIDS Relationship between HIV/AIDS transmission, international tourism, and prostitution Highest rates (between age 15-49) are in Haiti (5%) Bahamas (4%) The Dominican Republic (3%) Guyana (3%)

Caribbean diaspora Economic flight of Caribbean peoples across the globe Driven by regions’ limited economic opportunities Began in the 1950s Emigrated to other Caribbean islands, North America, and Europe

Caribbean diaspora Former colony Economic opportunities & proximity Barbadians (Britain), Surinamese ( Netherlands) Puerto Rican ( U.S.) Economic opportunities & proximity Jamaican ( U.S.) Cuban ( U.S.) Dominican ( U.S., Puerto Rico) Haitian ( Dominican Republic, U.S., Canada, French Guiana)

Settlement patterns Reflects the plantation legacy Plantation agriculture in the arable lowlands Subsistence farming in marginal lands Villages of freed or runaway slaves in remote areas of the interior Cities that serve the administrative and social needs of the colonizers – few and small Ancestors of former slaves work their small plots and seek seasonal wage-labor on estates  matriarchal social structure

Houseyards in the Lesser Antilles Owned by a woman, her extended family of married children lives here Rural subsistence Economic survival Matriarchal social structure

Caribbean cities Since the 1960s, rural-to-urban migration 60% urban best explained by an erosion of rural jobs 60% urban Cuba (75%), Haiti (35%) Major cities are Santo Domingo Havana Port-au-Prince San Juan

Caribbean cities Vulnerable to raids by European powers and pirates  walled and fortified Santo Domingo (1496) Havana: was essential port city for Spanish empire due to the strategic location Transforming from ports for agricultural exports to tourism-oriented cities Old Havana

Cultural Coherence and Diversity

Cultural imprint of colonialism Neo-Africa in the Americas Creolization

Cultural imprint of colonialism More intense demographic collapse of Amerindian populations (3 millions) within 50 years after the arrival of Columbus in 1492 Plantation-based agriculture dependent on forced (Africa) and indentured (Asia) labor Need to understand the term Plantation America

Plantation America Antigua (1823)

Plantation America Cultural region that extends from midway up the coast of Brazil through the Guianas and the Caribbean into the southeastern U.S. Ruled by a European elite; dependent on an African labor force; coastal Mono-crop production (a single commodity) Engendered specific social/economic relations Unlike other plantation system, it depends on FOREIGN labor since the demographic collapse of indigenous population

Plantation America – forced labor 1451-1870 10 million African landed in the America More than half of these slaves were sent to the Caribbean

Plantation America – indentured labor By the mid 19th century, labor shortages due to the abolition of slavery Governments sought indentured labor from South and Southeast Asia Workers contracted to labor on estates for a set period of time Legacy of indentured arrangements Suriname: 1/3 South Asian descent, 16% Javanese Guyana: 50% South Asian ancestry Eg. 2001 president election Trinidad and Tobago: 40% South Asian ancestry

Neo-Africa in the Americas – Maroon societies The Caribbean is the area with the greatest concentration of African transfers in the Americas Maroons (communities of runaway slaves) have formed during the colonial period eg. The maroons of Jamaica in the forested mountains of the islands’ interior eg. Bush Negros of Surinamese in the interior rain forest Influence of African in the America is ubiquitous – religion, language, and music as well as demographics

Neo-Africa in the Americas – African religions Transfer of African religious and magical systems to the Caribbean Voodoo in Haiti, Santeria in Cuba, Obeah in Jamaica Diffused in other regions by immigrants Santeria in Florida, New York Obeah in Panama, Los Angeles

African religious influences in the Americas

Neo-Africa in the Americas – Creolization Blending of African, European, and even some Amerindian cultural elements into the unique sociocultural systems found in the Caribbean Garifuna (Black Carib) Descendants of African slaves who speak an Amerindian language Unions between Africans and Carib Indians on St. Vincent Relocated in Belize and Honduras

Neo-Africa in the Americas - Creolization - Language Dominant languages are European Spanish (24m), French (8m), English (6m), Dutch(0.5m) However, many of these languages have been creolized Papiamento in Netherlands Antilles French Creole or patois in Haiti Creole European vocabulary + African syntax, semantics

Neo-Africa in the Americas - Creolization - Music Reflects a combination of African rhythms with European forms of melody and verse Reggae(Jamaica) Bob Marley Calypso(Trinidad) Merengue(Dominican, Haiti) Rumba(Cuba), Salsa Celia Cruz Calypso

Geopolitical Framework

Colonialism Neocolonialism Independence

European colonialism Economically, European viewed the Caribbean as a profitable region (eg. sugar, rum, spices) Geopolitically, European powers attempted to check Spanish hegemony Spanish: Cuba, Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico British: Jamaica, Belize, Barbados, Trinidad, Guyana French: Haiti, French Guiana Dutch: Suriname, Netherlands Antilles Unlike Latin America, Spain’s grip on the region was tentative Many territories, especially islands in the Lesser Antilles, changed hands several times Some islands in the Lesser Antilles still remain as dependent territories

Colonial affiliation in the Lesser Antilles French and British traded islands several times Many of these territories gained independence in the 1960s through the 1980s

U.S. neocolonialism Monroe Doctrine (1823) Spanish-American War (1898) Panama Canal (1903) It’s not until 1999 that Panamanians gain a control over canal U.S. troops occupation in the Dominican Republic (1916-24), Haiti (1913-34), Cuba (1906-9, 1917-22) eg. military base in Guantánamo, Cuba Business interests overshadow democratic principles eg. U.S. company bought the best lands

Border disputes Contested colonial holdings produced contemporary border disputes Belize – Guatemala Guyana – Venezuela Guyana – Suriname French Guiana – Suriname

Contested colonial holdings produced contemporary border disputes

Puerto Rico Ceded by Spain to the U.S. (1898) Became the commonwealth of the U.S. (1952) So Puerto Rican is a U.S. citizen Independence movement throughout 20th century But opinion is divided Eg. U.S. Navy’s bombing exercises in Vieques (east coast) Industrialization since the 1950s Implemented program called “Operation Bootstrap” Petrochemical and pharmaceutical plants

Cuba Colony of Spain since the 1500s American neocolonialism at the first half of 20th century Fidel Castro seized the power (1959) Nationalized American industries Established diplomatic relations with the USSR Economic hardships in the 1990s after the fall of the Soviet Union

Independence movements Haiti (1804) The Dominican Republic (1844) Cuba, Puerto Rico (1898) – but U.S. involvement Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago, Guyana, Barbados (1960s) Bahamas (1973), Grenada (1974), Dominica (1978), St. Vincent and the Grenadines (1979), St. Lucia (1979), Antigua and Barbuda (1981), Belize (1981), St. Kitts and Nevis (1983) Suriname (1975)

Present-day colonies British colonies: Cayman Islands, the Turks and Caicos, Anguilla, and Montserrat Department of France: French Guiana, Martinique, and Guadeloupe The Dutch islands: Curaçao, Bonaire, St. Martin, Saba, and St. Eustatius

Regional integration Experimented with regional trade associations since the 1960s Goal – improve employment rates, increase intraregional trade, and reduce external dependence CARICOM (Caribbean Community and Common Market) by English Caribbean (1963)

Economic and Social Development

Dominance of agriculture Shift away from mono-crop dependence Tourism, offshore banking, and assembly plants Haiti – coffee: 70%  11% The Dominican Republic – sugar: 60%  20%

Agriculture Sugar Coffee Banana Throughout the region Cuba has produced 60% of world export till 1990s Soviet Union subsidized market Coffee Planted in the mountains of the Greater Antilles Eg. Jamaica’s Blue Mountain coffee Grown on small farms unlike sugar; Price instability Banana The Lesser Antilles (Dominica, St. Vincent, St. Lucia) Grown on small farms in contrast to Latin America

The Banana Wars Small farms in the Caribbean versus Plantation in Latin America Small farms in the Caribbean has the preferential access to the European market using colonial ties 1996 U.S., Ecuador, and some Central American countries took E.U. to WTO court  it’s unfair agreement, so eliminate it by 1998 Now E.U. is under pressure to drop the preferential treatment given to the former colonies Increased global competition has forced many rural laborers to find employment elsewhere

Assembly-plant industrialization Free trade zones (FTZs) Duty-free and tax-exempt industrial parks for foreign corporations Taking advantage of Proximity to North America Cheap labor Export-led development policies Now manufacturing accounts for 15% of GDP in Jamaica, and 20% of GDP in the Dominican Republic

Free trade zones in the Dominican Republic Currently 16 FTZs are operational with foreign investors from U.S., Canada, South Korea, and Taiwan

Assembly-plant industrialization Opportunities Create new jobs Economies are diversifying Challenges Foreign investors may gain more than the host countries Little integration with national supplies Low wages Increase in competition

Offshore banking Appeals to foreign banks and corporations by offering specialized services that are confidential and tax-exempt Bahamas The Cayman Islands Attractiveness Demand-side: proximity to North America Supply-side: financial service as a way to bring hard currency to resource-poor states

Offshore banking Risk Offers little employment Vulnerable to political instability Attracts drug money (eg. money laundering) Drug consumption Corruption of local officials Drug-related murders Less uncertain whether this will improve local earnings and standards of living

Tourism

Tourism Contributing factors Countries Environmental: dry season matches winter in the U.S. Locational: proximity to the U.S., colonial ties Economic factor: employment, environmentally less destructive Countries Puerto Rico, the Bahamas, the Dominican Republic, Jamaica, and Cuba hosted 70% of 14 million international tourists Cuba used to be the largest host by the 1950s, but with the rise of Fidel Castro, it has been neglected. Currently Cuba is reviving tourism. Cuba does not receive U.S. client because of U.S. sanction

Tourism Pitfalls Subject to the overall health of world economy and political affairs Recession Heightened fear of terrorism Local residents confront the disparity between their own lives and those of tourists Capital leakage: huge gap between gross receipts and the total tourist dollars that remain in the Caribbean

Social development In contrast to the inconsistent record of economic growth, most Caribbean show strong measures of social development with the exception of Haiti Cuba’s accomplishments in health care and education Excellence in education except for Hispaniola and the former British colonies (Jamaica, Belize, and St. Lucia)

Brain drain Outflow of professionals Occurs especially between former colonies and the mother countries Jamaica (60%) Barbados, Guyana, Dominical Republic, and Haiti (20%) Can negatively impact local health care, education, and enterprise Stronger economic performance has slowed this process

Remittances Migrants’ sending money back home is also an important source of income in this region eg. Remittance income is the second leading industry in the Dominican Republic Often returnees can introduce positive economic and political changes, but their impact is too fragmented to represent a national development force

Status of women Matriarchal basis of Caribbean households Rural custom of men leaving home for seasonal employment tends to nurture strong and self-sufficient female networks With new employment opportunities, female labor force participation has surged (eg. Bahamas, Barbados, Jamaica, and Martinique) Cuba’s educational and labor policies yielded the most educated and professional women in the Caribbean eg. Female doctors outnumber their male counterparts

Supplemental web resources http://lcweb2.loc.gov/frd/cs/cxtoc.html