The White Minority in the Caribbean

the white minoriry in the caribbeanThis collection of essays by historians, anthropologists and political scientists locates a discussion of the white minority in the Caribbean within the mainstream of the social science literature on the region. This is especially important because white minorities — particularly in their elite dimensions — continue to exercise a political and economic influence disproportionate to their numbers.

The involvement of white women in entrepreneurial activities, the political divisions and inter-ethnic relations within the white community, and the rise and fall of the white elite are among the fascinating topics discussed in this volume. The territories surveyed include the insular Caribbean as well as the mainland countries of Belize and Guyana.

This book focuses not only on the white elite class, but also on the poor whites, who constitute their own underclass.


Howard Johnson (University of Delaware) is the author of The Bahamas in Slavery and Freedom and The Bahamas from Slavery to Servitude: 1783-1933.

Karl Watson (University of the West Indies, Barbados) is the author of The Civilized Island, Barbados: A Social History 1750-1816.