Caribbean Struggles After Slavery

Richard Hart: Key figure in the politics of the Caribbean of the 20th century. Trade Union and political activist in Jamaica, Guyana and Attorney General of Grenada; a post he held until the American invasion in 1983. As an academic, Richard Hart taught at Northwestern University, USA, and has also been a visiting lecturer at a number of Canadian and American universities, the University of Guyana, University of Havana, University of the West Indies in Jamaica and Trinidad and the University of Paris. He has continued to be a prolific author and speaker on Caribbean history, politics and economics.

On paper, slavery was abolished in the British Empire in 1838. In the Caribbean, former slaves remained desperately poor, politically disenfranchised, and subject to persistent exploitation. As conditions deteriorated, rebellion grew. Richard Hart, founding member of the Jamaican nationalist movement and renowned Caribbean scholar, will discuss the economic and political struggles that occurred after the end of slavery. Drawing on his historical scholarship and reflecting on his own political activity, Dr. Hart will consider how these post abolition struggles laid the foundation for later independence movements throughout the Caribbean.

Listen to this talk:
Richard Hart

Debate

• Download Richard Hart’s introduction (2.3 Mb mp3 file)
• Download the debate (5 Mb mp3 file)