The Role of Education in Forming
a Strong Sense of Nationalism in the Caribbean
I hope that this introduction
is beneficial to you. I hope to add more information, links, and closer
examination on specific countries as my research continues. I am developing
this page in a format that would benefit me in teaching social studies
to middle and high school levels. Please inform me if a link no longer
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Brief History
of the Caribbean
The first people
to arrive in the Caribbean islands between 3,500 to 400 B.C. came from
the Yucatan peninsula and Central America. They settled the islands of
the Greater Antilles. A second wave of migration started in South America
as groups migrated into the Caribbean via the Lesser Antilles and up into
the Greater Antilles in 250 B.C. These two groups were divided into the
Ciboney and the Taino Arawaks. The Ciboney were largely hunters and gatherers.
On the over hand, the Arawaks were more highly advanced in social structure
consisting of a cacique (chief) who lead religious ceremonies and maintained
peace within the village. They were followed by a more aggressive grouped
called the Caribs from northeast South America who largely remained in
the Lesser Antilles.1
These three groups make up the indigenous populations of the Caribbean.
Franklin W. Knight,
The
Caribbean, describes the Caribbean most accurately:
"Geologically, most of the
islands are limestone with granite and coral. Some islands, as well as
parts of many others, have steep, rough, and disconcertingly inhospitable
terrains...Barbados and Antigua are flat...Central and western Cuba present
broad vistas of gentle undulating hills...Rainfall is constant...rainy
season from May to November...dry, often hot "winter" months running from
December through March...Temperatures, which at sea level fluctuate between
seventy and ninety degrees Fahrenheit throughout the year, combine with
the rainfall to provide a long growing season...physical hazards of life
in the Caribbean: the frequent destructive hurricanes, the prevalence
of endemic and epidemic diseases, the violence of earthquakes and volcanoes,
the constricting limitations of physical size, the savage fury of floods
which accompany the hurricanes, and the dense clouds of insects [that plague
people even today]..."2
World Atlas, Version
5 3
European expansion
reached the Caribbean islands in 1492 with the arrival of Christopher Columbus
in the largest island of Hispanola. The European powers of Spain, Holland,
Britain, and France expanded their empires between the 1500's up until
the early 1700's.4 Colonialism brought European diseases which devastated
the indigenous populations. Slavery greatly further reduced their populations.
European's needed
a great supply of labor for their sugar and tobacco plantations on the
islands. The transatlantic slave trade supplied approximately 5 million
or more people from Africa to Central America, the Caribbean, and North
America in its 350 year existence.5
This was the world's worse case in history of forced migration. Africans
were uprooted from their society, sold into slavery, and transplanted into
the Caribbean without a chance of ever gaining their freedom. They would
be consumed by the harsh and hazardous working conditions at the plantations.
Many different
tribal groups from Africa came into contact with one another and encountered
the indigenous populations of the islands. They adapted to the new way
of life on the plantations by learning from each other in order to survive.
Creolization lead to African slaves blending their cultural traditions
with the new ways of both the indigenous and the Europeans. It appears
that they did not posses a written language, but maintained their beliefs
through song, dance, and storytelling.
Further knowledge
was gained as slave owners began to educate a select few in written and
spoken European languages. Slave owners could then delegate more responsibility
onto the cheap labor they possessed. English, French, and Spanish were
the most common among the islands. Each island has its own history due
to occupation. For further information on this topic, look at the Caribbean
Amerindian Centrelink web site.
In short, displeasure
among enslaved peoples and a European movement to end slavery proved successful
in the Caribbean islands by the end of the 20th. century.
Colonial Occupation Between 1600-1713
Harper Collins, Atlas of World History
Storytelling
Richard Price,
First
Time: The Historical Vision of an Afro-American People, has researched
Storytelling among the Saramakans in Suriname. Storytelling in First
Time "...relates to larger and older collectives, most often clans
that trace their ancestry matrilineally back to an original group of rebel
slaves...[A] Saramakan collective identity is predicated on a single opposition:
freedom versus slavery...preservation of its knowledge is their way of
saying 'Never again.'"6 Stories are passed down
between men and are gathered through much time and patience by the student.
The student has to earn the respect and assemble bits of knowledge over
time. Stories are to remember, respect, and to come to terms with the past--"The
ignoble acts of the dead intrude daily on the lives of the living, who
must learn to accept them and to handle evils they engendered. Any illness
or misfortune calls for divination, which quickly reveals the specific
past act that caused it. And in the lengthy process of making things right
once more, the ancestor speak, the gods dance, and the past comes alive,
palpable and visible."7
Saramakan storytelling evolved out of group betrayal between African tribes
in Africa due to slavery and many years of wars. It serves as the basis
for traditional moral behavior in Saramaka.8
Yet, in is threatened by the possibility of dying out in the 20th. century.
Storytelling takes a great investment in time for a young man to acquire
which is an indulgence they can no longer afford. They must work in order
to help support their families.
Further information
on Suriname history may be obtained at the Suriname
web site.
Vodou
Vodou is another
example of an African cultural tradition that survived among the enslaved
peoples. It is quite often misunderstood by stereotypes from American films
and television. Vodou is described in Karen McCarthy Brown's book Moma
Lola as combining "...the skills of a medical doctor, a psychotherapist,
a social worker, and a priest."9
Vodou is practiced in strict secrecy due to negative religious stereotypes;
however, the religion itself is very adaptable to other cultures symbols
and saints. A process of creolization whereby many aspects of other religions
or cultural phenomenon are absorbed into Vodou. Vodou has proved to be
very adaptive in many environments and serves to firmly connect people
in Africa, the Caribbean, and the Americas. Particularly, vodou in Haiti
has blended Catholicism into its belief structure, which has emigrated
to New York, Chicago, and Boston. "It is no exaggeration to say that Haitians
believe that living and suffering are inseparable. Vodou is the system
they have devised to deal with the suffering that is life, a system whose
purpose is to minimize pain, avoid disaster, cushion loss, and strengthen
survivors and survival instincts."10
Vodou may be examined
more closely at these websites: "The
Sacred Art of Haitian Vodou" at the American Museum of Natural History
and The Temple of Yehwe.
A Sense of Nation
A strong sense of nation develops over time.The slaves of the Caribbean
were a blend of many types of people--indigenous, European, African, and
West Indies. Yet, within a short period of time, a collective need to be
able to rule themselves and rid the islands of slavery. Nationalism began
in the Caribbean with slave resistance against the harsh form of slavery
they had been forced to endure. The fight for freedom brought the slaves
together. Once the process of emancipation began, the highly segregated
class structure of the plantation economies could not stop it. The slave
populations were quite large on the islands, and there was not any stopping
their determination to gain a better life for themselves and their children.
The islands suffered from stark social inequalities even after emancipation.
Former colonies gained independence, but they were still dependent on assistance
from the outside. European and American powers feared leaving the islands
to their own development. They wanted to ensure the formation of sound,
democratic governments and continued commercial benefits with exclusive
trade agreements. Colonialism shifted to a new phase in the 20th. century:
territories rather than colonies. The people of the islands often owe allegiance
to many groups--their own island/government, their territorial support,
and the region called the Caribbean.
Education
Learning
begins right at birth. As people grow, they learn more about themselves,
the world around them, and their possibilities. Those around us shape our
perceptions of learning. Knowledge comes from family, friends, and our
environment. What we perceive is shaped by our own perceptions and understanding
of the world.
The people of
the Caribbean have experienced many generations of change. Indigenous populations
were greatly reduced to even extinction in some areas. Colonialism brought
the largest forced migration from Africa transplanting many tribal groups
to new lands. Cultures of many different groups blended to make new ideals.
People adapted as best as they could to learn and gain control over their
situations.
Education played
an essential role for slaves to quicken the abolition of slavery. Education
at first passed traditions and stories down between men and young boys.
Learning increased as slaves learned new languages and social codes. Knowledge
lead to freedom and the development of many new nations among the islands.
A strong sense of nationalism has not only evolved via a process of gaining
freedom, but, also, the continuing support from former colonial nations.
Today, we see
vast opportunities for education in the Caribbean. Colonial governments
once sought to erase the islanders' past and transform them into European
speaking and thinking peoples; however, there currently is a large support
for the development of Caribbean cultures and vocational opportunities.
The
British Council--Caribbean and the Commonwealth
of Learning--Caribbean Region.
Many web sites
seek to encourage the children of the Caribbean to start looking at career
opportunities early on. Cariblife's Education
in the Caribbean lists
the world's top ten career choices that show demand for workers and solid
salaries in the future. It, also, lists possible careers that are island
oriented--agriculture, environmental studies, and information & technology.
Cariblife provides a list of active university web sites on the bottom
of its page.
Cooperation between
Latin American and the Caribbean governments has created the Regional
Educational Development Program. They
divide their efforts into Basic Education, Education for Work, and Secondary
& Higher Education. Their purpose is to increase the standard and quality
of living through education. Improved living standards does not come from
exporting a manufactured good, but through having a diverse economy in
services and some manufacturing. High added value is the key to prosperity.
Learning is not
only encouraged within the island communities, but organizations, also,
seek to educate the outside world on issues happening within the Caribbean.
The Americas Society seeks
to educate its United States neighbors on issues and politics confronting
the Caribbean, Canada, and Latin America. Its goal is to increase awareness
and appreciation for the rich cultural heritage of its neighbors. The vast
size of America and its culture often creates a tendency for the common
person to forget the outside world. The Americas Society web page serves
as a good link to keeping abreast of situations that their local news stations
do not provide.
Further research on the Caribbean may be done through any of the following
web sites. They list collections of publications, studies, and archives
on Caribbean issues. The Commonwealth
of Learning and Inter-American Development
Bank Publications publishes their articles on education and opportunities.
The Creolist
Archives Home Page seeks to preserve the Caribbean culture. It publishes
articles in many Creole languages, including: Pidgin and Madjoumbe'.
Environmental
education has become an important issue on the islands. The Caribbean is
located in an area of many natural physical hazards. The soils are delicate
and the land is limited. Human-environment interaction has lead to much
degradation of its resources. The Caribbean
Conservation Association serves as a good tool in educating and preserving
the islands' future.
The Caribbean
has access to foreign aid and military protection to help its people. However,
the Caribbean suffers from corrupt governments, drug trade, trade deficits,
and limited domestic production of goods. The Caribbean islands have had
less than 100 years to stabilize their cultures, economies, and governments.
Each island is unique in its needs. Knowledge, time, and confidence will
shape a stronger Caribbean. Patience and limited guidance from the outside
world is all that is necessary.
World Atlas, Version 5
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ames 4/26/99
last updated 8/9/99