“Transnationalism Personified: Young Returning Trinidadians ‘in Their Own Words’” by: Robert B. Potter, Dennis Conway, and Godfrey St. Bernard

This article talked about Trinidadian migrants who return to Trinidad after living abroad for several years. It talks about how these migrants connect to Trinidad as a country and their views n returning to Trinidad. We can understand through this article how transnationalism affects the country of origin of a person. The article talks about several areas that make the migrants keep their connection to their homeland. The first area is Transnational family and life-course issues. An example of this could be the connecteion that is maintained when a parent with a child overseas gets help in child rearing from family back in their home country. The second area is connection between transnational communities. If it is cheap to go back and forth between two countries they are more likely to have a transnational relationship. The Third area is keeping in touch with their homeland and the people there. If a family visits their country often, they have a lot of information about their home country that can allow them to decide whether they want to have something like a retirement home back in their country, in this case in Trinidad. The fourth area is Transnational mobility. Traveling back and forth leaves a door of possibly staying in their home country. For many of the people mentioned in this article, Trinidad was their “home” and they wanted to eventually return to their home. The fifth area is Transnational identity. In this area we can talk about the many migrants who felt connected to their home land as well as their residing country. This could be dealt with through dual citizenship. They have the legal ability to stay in either countries. The sixth area is Transnational economic and commercial interests. In this area, the article talks about how owning a property abroad can influence the decision to return home. The last area was Strategic flexibility. In this area we can talk about the flexibility of the migrants to move around. They were open to migrant opportunities int he future.

It was interestng to read this article because when I thought about my life as a migrant it made sense that these were the areas migrants looked at to decide whether they want to return to their home land, remain in the migrant country or possibly have a dual citizenship for both countries. Thinking about it I realized that these were options open to me as well and it made me understand my reason for choosing one country or the other. I can connect to both the United States as well as India just as the people in this article to connect to Trinidad.

Dew Breaker Part 2

The Bridal Seamstress is about a intern young journalist named Aline who interviews a bridal seamstress named Beatrice who is retiring from her job. Beatrice is also originally from Haiti. After their interview, Beatrice and Aline walk around the neighborhood where Beatrice points out the house of a Haitian Prison Guard. Beatrice tells Aline that when Beatrice was young and was still living in Haiti this prison guard had taken her to a prison and whipped the soles of her feet because she refused to go dancing with him. Aline goes back later to look at the house where a neighbor tells her no one lives there. So Aline goes back to Beatrice and tells her the house is empty. To this Beatrice replies by saying that the man always lives in empty houses because otherwise he would get caught and would be sent to prison. Beatrice thinks that the man is always able to find her no matter where she lives. Aline then decides that Beatrice is mentally unstable because of her suffering.

This was an interesting chapter because it was as though we were going back to the first chapter again and wondering where this was leading because this chapter was not connected like the first 5 chapters. It was also interesting to see that people who did certain crafts in Haiti kept their crafts even after they moved to the United States.

The Monkey Tails chapter was about Michel, the third tenant in the Dew Breaker’s house. Michel looks back to that day in Haiti in 1986 when he was a 12 year old boy without a father. The dictator Jean-Claude Duvalier had been removed from power and the members of the once-feared militia Tonton Macoutes were attacked in the streets by angry people of Haiti. Michel looks for his friend Romain who was abandoned by his father Regulas. Regulas had been a member of the militia and was being sought for by the people for his crimes against them. Romain and Michel decide to leave the chaos and try to get a room in a hotel but they are not able to find a room. Romain had thought he would find his father at the hotel. While they were at the hotel Romain accidentally tells Michel that his father is a local man named Christophe. Michel had suspected this but had never gave it too much thought. Romain then says he is leaving the country and for Michel to go home to his mother. Then we find out that Regulas had shot himself to avoid being captured. Michel then nears heard from or about Romain again.

This was also a unique chapter because it was looking back to a memory from the character who is older at the present time. It was an interesting view of the chaos after the overthrow of the dictator. At the same time it was sad that Michel’s father had not been a part of Michel’s life when he had so close. I also felt sad for Romain because he knew his father but his father was also not a part of his life.

The Funeral Singer chapter was about the three Haitian women who were trying to make it through a diploma class in America. One of the women Mariselle had been a victim of Ka’s father because her husband had drawn an unflattering portrait of the resident. He had been shot as he was leaving the show. Freda is a funeral singer from Haiti. Rezia is a Manhattan Haitian restaurant owner. She was sold into prostitution by her parents. This is the restaurant the three women meet up to do their homework. Freda’s father was a fisherman with whom Freda got experience with sea. Freda’s father was arrested and before that they really “worshiped” the president. Freds had to leave Haiti because she was invited to sing at the presidential palace and she didn’t want to sing.

This chapter gives us a insight into the situation in Haiti through the eyes of women who have gone through the chaos and have now settled in the United States. It also shows us the strictness of the ruler at the time. Things were not fair for the people at the time s many have left Haiti and gone to New York City.

The last chapter is a look a the Dew Breaker in the Past. It talks about the Dew Breaker who kills a preacher who was captured but then was to be released. Then he met the Preacher’s Half-sister, Anna, who is his wife now with whom he had Ka. This chapter was specially interesting because I am not sure about whether or not Anna knew about her brother. She still has a life with the Dew Breaker.

“Transnationalism in the Aftermath of the Haiti Earthquake: Reinforcing Ties and Second-Generation Identity” by:Garvey Lundy

This article looks at the Haitian earthquake in two ways. The first way is by looking at transnationalism and how the Haitian Diaspora responded to the earthquake. The second way is by looking at how the earthquake affected the identity of second generation members. After the earthquake, the transnational connected created connections that allowed the people of the Haitian Diaspora to quickly help the people suffering after the earthquake. Haitian families took in orphans and some were also able to go and help in the recovery. Haitian churches allowed those living abroad to get information about their loved ones. The author also talks about the struggle the Haitian diaspora went through to try to connect to the people in Haiti through cellphone connections that were not too expensive.

The diaspora was kept a bit away form the people in Haiti because they were suspicious that the diaspora was not doing enough to help Haiti. The work the diaspora did at this time helped this situation much because remittances were used to allow Haitians to temporarily come to the U.S and stay here.

When Wyclef Jean tried to run for Haitian Presidency, the Second generation members came to light. Originally, second generation was looked as trying to distance themselves from the Haitian ancestry. The earthquake allowed the second generation Haitians to come to identify themselves as Haitians. Some of them have never gone to see Haiti but they were still able to get a positive image of Haiti.

This article was a surprising look at people who are able to accept their ancestry through a natural disaster. The earthquake helped bring the people living in Haiti and those living abroad together to rescue their country.

“Create Dangerously: The immigrant Artist at Work”

Danticat begins this essay by telling us about the brutal executions of Marcel Numa and Louis Drouin. These two are Haitian Men from New York who go back to Haiti to fight to destroy the dictatorship of François Duvalier. One man was caught while he went shopping while the other man was injured and told his group to leave him behind after a fight. Danticat then goes on to compare these executions to some pieces of literature and artworks of this time. According to Danticat, these executions and the performances of some works of literature involved disobeying a higher authority and possibly facing the punishment that went with disobeying a higher authority. The author says that the purpose for the performances was to convince people that they will not die the way Drouin and Numa did. Danticat goes on to say that the courage of the reader can be compared to the courage of the writers.

The courage of the writers and the readers is their courage in finding a way to disobey authority through either the writing or reading of some works of literature. The scholars who write literature with ideas that oppose higher authority have found ways through time to state their opinions even against higher powers. While the act of writing anything that opposes authority is dangerous, Danticat says that reading these works can be just as dangerous. Danticat says that somewhere there will be people risking their lives to read these works of literature.

I found this interesting because I have never really thought too much about authors publishing work against the interest of authority. I immediately thought about J.K Rowling, the author of the Harry Potter series. Being a woman meant it was not easy for her to publish works under her name. Therefore, she created the pen name J.K Rowling from her initials to publish her novels under the pen name. This may not seem like a dangerous piece but at the time the first book in the series was being published it was not common for female writers to publish their works.

“The Other Side of the Water”

This essay was about the death of Danticat’s cousin, Marius. Danticat had to face much difficulty in trying to send Marius’ body back fro Miami to Haiti. Marius was undocumented and therefore, he needed special papers to leave the United States. The fact he died from AIDS meant there were more special procedures that needed to be followed before his body could be send back. The body is eventually send back with the money that was sent by Marius’ mother.

This was a surprising article for several reasons. I knew that for Dead bodies you needed a lot of money. I didn’t know a specific number but I didn’t expect so much difficulty with the paperwork for a person’s body to be sent back to his or her country. I suppose I can understand the difficulty in the situation of Marius. He was undocumented which meant he was originally not among the known citizens of the United States. He also died from AIDS which was a deadly disease that killed many people.

The Dew Breaker

The Dew Breaker surrounds the people around a family of three that includes the Father (The Dew Breaker and a barber), The mother (Anne and a hairdresser), and their Daughter (Ka). The barber was a torturer in Haiti before he came to NYC as an undocumented person. He is married to his wife who knows the truth about her husband and they had a daughter who grew up thinking that her father was a prisoner. Ka made a stature of her father in her imagination during his time in prison in Haiti. Ka and her father were bringing the statue Ka made to a famous Haitian actress and art collected named Gabrielle Fonteneau. Ka’s father didn’t like the statue and threw out the statue in a lake. Ka then learned from her father that he was not a prisoner but instead the torturer.

We then learn about the three tenets of the barber’s basement. There were three men, Eric, Dany and Michel who have lived there for sometime. Dany is married and has his wife coming to NYC after being seperated for seven years. Dany’s wife brings many gifts of food and sexual aids that are thrown in the garbage by the creole speaking customs officer. When Dany and his wife meet after 7 years and make love that night. Then until the weekend, the wife spends her day sitting at home cooking and listening to Creole radio states from Haiti and NYC. When the weekend comes, Dany takes his wife to see Haitian Brooklyn.

Then we read about Naden, who was Dany’s wife. She works in the ear, nose and throat Department in the hospital as a nurse. She had aborted her child 7 months ago and now has a shrine in her apartment. It tells us about a patient named Ms. Hinds  who is a teacher that had a laryngectomy. Ms. Hinds can no longer talk and causes a lot of trouble for the other nurses  until Naden has a conversation with Ms.Hinds with Ms. Hinds writing down what she wanted to say on a pad. When Ms.Hinds leaves from the hospital, she talks to Naden and says goodbye. Once Ms.Hinds and her family leave in the elevator, Naden looks at her enlarged reflection in the elevator doors and thinks of her aborted child who would have been born that week.

Then we read a chapter from Anne’s perspective when she takes her husband and her daughter to the Christmas mass. At the mass, Ka notices a man who looks like Emmanuel Constant and keeps looking at him. Anne remembers her brother drowning and she hopes that he is invited to heaven to stop wandering since he was not buried.Anne then becomes afraid that other people would recognize her husband the way Ka thought she saw Emmanuel Constant.Therefore, she decides not to being her husband or Ka to mass anymore.

We also read about Dany, another one of the tenants who live in the Barber’s basement. Dany purposely decided to live in the barber’s basement because he recognized the barber as the torturer who killed his parents and ruined his aunt Estina’s eyes, and killed Estina’s husband. Dany goes back to Beau Jour, his aunt’s village in the mountains which is like a paradise. He goes back to tell his aunt about the barber. Once when he starts to tell Estina, the man who led him to Estina’s house interrupts their conversation. Then he meets Claude, who is a Haitian American who doesn’t speak creole, who killed his father and is like a refuge in the mountainside village. Dany then tells Estina about the barber in a dream after which Estina and Dany talk about him sleep talking about his parents. They go back to sleep and Estina dies peacefully without knowing about the barber. Dany then talks to Claude about Claude’s life.

While I was reading the Dew Breaker, One thing that really struck me was the ability of some Haitian Americans to participate in transnationalism while others such as the barber who were living undocumented, could not participate in transnationalism.

It was also surprising that Dany left Beau Jour for NYC when it seems almost like paradise. Many of the villagers say that they weren’t as lucky as Dany to have been able to move away from the village. I don’t really believe that Dany is lucky for moving away because he had to leave behind a really kind and accepting place like Beau Jour.

“West Indian Migration in New York: An Overview” by: Nancy Foner

This Introduction was about the reasons why Caribbean people migrate to New York. Emigration from the Caribbean is often because of poor conditions in their home countries. Many of these migrants come to New York and make up the large West Indian Population in new York City. Many West Indians come to New York with the help of many transnational ties. They retain the ties while living here in New York. Transnational ties are retained through the exchange of letters, goods, or through formal associations. Technology also plays a big part in maintaining these transnational ties. Often times, these transnational ties play a major role in the politics of the home countries. Money is send from the United States to help towards a party’s political campaign before elections

West Indians are often put together with African Americans because of their skin color. So, West Indians often have to face discrimination and prejudice and racial stereotypes. There are times when West Indian families try to leave their communities and move to white neighbor hoods because they feel that they connect to white people more. However, these attempts are often futile because when black families move into white neighborhoods, due to prejudice, white families begin to move out while no other white people move in. This makes the community become increasing black once more. Then the segregation is once again reinforced in these neighborhoods. In these segregated areas, west Indians are forced to live with inferior schools, higher crime rates. This environment is different from the communities west Indians come from. They are normally not too concerned with race but they have a strong sense of ethnic identity and therefore, they try to separate themselves from African Americans.

As I was reading this, I thought that immigrants from various different countries are often more similar than we think. As an immigrant myself, I know that there are often times here when people are put into stereotypes that have no base with that individual person. The Stereotype might not necessarily be bad but these stereotypes can often be limiting of a person’s experiences. Foner also talked about some suggestions for future research. One of the suggestions that was interesting was the idea to explore the experiences of new immigrant groups.

“New York as a Locality in a Global Family Network” by: Karen Fog Olwig

This chapter talks about the notion that migrants come from poor, neglected groups in their own country who want to achieve the American Dream. Through their experiences they migrants are incorporated into their communities and societies and eventually shed their old identities an become “Americans.”

There are two opposing theories that go against this notion. The First theory says that a separated assimilation occurs and that these migrants are not assimilated into the mainstream American society but instead they are assimilated in to separate subcultures. The Second theory is that migration happens between places and several mixing countries. There is a two way flow of people, goods, and ideas like a transnational system where people have ties to more than one country or nation.

It also talks about how New York is often seen as the first encounter of a migrant with the American Society. New York was a point of transition for migrants. The chapter talks about one Jamaican family who first saw New York as a place to achieve their dreams. however,as more of their family moved in, New York became a “family center.” The family members lived within walking distance of each other. Over time, family members moved away because of family problems and deterioration of the family before them.

I feel sad that families were broken up after a while of living here in New York. I think it is true however that family must be held close but still at an arms distance. It is important to value your family but at the same time you need to keep it a certain distance away because if families become too close, conflicting views will make it easy for the family to deteriorate and separate. I wonder if making more money than they were making in their own countries or the money they were making when they first moved to New York might be causing these family problems. Maybe jealousy for a family member who makes more money might lead to something similar to a superiority complex for some family members and inferiority complex for other family members that could become the cause of arguments and family problems.

“Trust Networks in Transnational Migration” by: Charles Tilly

This article talked about the the connection between transnational networks and trust networks. Trust is defined by the author as an attitude or relationship that is made up of “placing valued outcomes at risk to others’ malfeasance, mistakes, or failures.” Trust networks have common characteristics such as there are people who are connected through similar ties. Then these ties between people gives then the aid of one another. Members of these Trust networks are doing long-term enterprises together. These transnational ties are very important because members of these networks looked to each other for help, advice, etc to fulfill certain responsibilities. The article also talked about remittances and the role they play in the organization of power. It also said that remitter’s obligations had to upheld and if they were not upheld then the remitter was shunned and criticized.

An important point was made that these transnational ties can also be limiting in the opportunities and overall futures of these migrants. Migrants find themselves stuck in niches of these trust networks unable to reach for other opportunities. This author also talked about the popular images of immigrants as one way travelers who are” desperate for work and looking for welfare in a richer country.” It is also said that these migrants cut ties to their home countries as soon as possible to take advantage of the new country they are migrating to.

While I do think that Transnational ties are important, I must agree with the author that these ties can also be limiting. Ties with people can help you get opportunities at the beginning but if a migrant wanted to take up a certain job that the networks don’t like, it will be difficult to take up those jobs because then you will be criticized and shunned for going after their own new opportunities.

I was able to understand the role transnational ties have in the lives of many people.

Book 3 and Book 4 of Brown Girl, Brownstones has many important events happening. It begins with the announcement of the United States entering the war after the Pearl Harbor attack. This is followed by the breakfast scene where Ina and Selina are watching their mother making food while two new characters named Florrie and Iris. Selina hears her mother say that she will sell Deighton’s land without his consent. Selina is really afraid and tries to talk to various people and when that doesn’t seem to work, Selina goes to look for Silla at the factory where Silla was working. Although she goes there to stand up to her mother, Selina does not end up doing that and is instead scolded by her mother for coming to the factory. When Silla sold the land without Deighton’s permission but let him collect the money, Deighton ended up wasting the money buying random things.

Several months after Deighton wastes the money from selling the land, Gatha Steed’s daughter’s wedding. The daughter was getting married to a man she did not love. The Marriage ceremony was more for the families and the participants than the couple themselves. Deighton is rejected by the entire community at this Wedding. When Deighton loses his arm at the factory in which he worked, he becomes depressed and ends up joining The Peace movement. When Deighton leaves home to work at a restaurant of the Peace Movement Silla becomes angry and reports him to the authorities since he was a illegal immigrant. He is then deported but on the way back to Barbados he drowns and dies.

After her Father dies, Selina blames her mother and starts changing a lot. She was then told to go to a meeting of Association of Barbadian Homeowners and Businessmen with her mother. While at the meeting, Selina lashes out on the association. When she was leaving she meets Clive, who she ends up having sex with even though she didn’t really know him and this was their first meeting. Clive becomes Selina’s boyfriend. Selina plans to get a scholarship that the association was giving to run away with Clive. After a Dance recital, however, Selina really learns about the racism that she and people like her face in society. She goes to Margaret’s house where she meets Margaret’s mother who ridicules her for her skin tone and tells her she is good for her people which is an insult to her people and herself.These insults thrown at Selina makes her realize the good sides to her own race and decides to be honest with the association. Selina breaks up with Clive and tells the association the truth about the scholarship money and doesn’t accept it even though she wins it. She then accepts her background and decides to go back to Barbados.

Overall, the book “Brown Girl, Brownstones” was an interesting book that gave me a peek into the life of an average Caribbean American girl growing up in Brooklyn. it was interesting to see how Selina’s life was probably similar to many other people who are 2nd generation immigrants. It was also interesting to see that Selina had been able to accept her background for what it was. I think it is a struggle that all 2nd generation immigrants or even first generation immigrants face once they immigrate to the United States.

Although I got angry at the characters during different periods of the book, I was able to understand the life of children who are born in families with conflicting views on their background. It also makes me see and understand the difficulties that is faced by many people as they try to find a place for themselves in their respective communities in the United States.

I also felt very sad for Deighton and the whole family in general. it would have been easier for the family to have lived properly if the whole family had put in the effort to become better in life. Deighton never actually seemed realistic enough to work and try to actually provide for the family. It was also sad that he lost first his dreams, then his arm, and eventually his life. Just as Deighton was driven by his dreams of going  back to Barbados, Silla was too driven by her desire to fit in with the others who were buying houses. She went too far as she sold the land and then got Deighton deported. She should have let him even if it was just to remain as a father to Selina and Ina.

“From Immigrant to Transmigrant:Theorizing Transnational migration”

This article is about the transnational ties that affects migration. Originally there was the view that immigrants slowly incorporate into the countries they migrate to. The new theory of Transmigrants says that there are people who have lives that depend on their international connections and are shaped by those connections. It also points out that the view of the United States on immigrants limits their transnational Loyalties. Meaning that transmigrants are sail to be loyal to one country while they could be loyal to more than one countries.

There are three reasons why immigrants lead a transnational life. The first reason is that there is a “global reconstruction of capital that is based on changing forms of capital accumulations” has to bad situation in the sending and receiving countries of immigrants. This gives the immigrant no secure place of settlement. The second reason is that Racism in european countries and the United States makes newcomers and their descendents insecure. The third reason is that there are nation building projects in nations that allow the immigrants to have social ties in various nations.  Transnational ties are also very important because they provide support for immigrants in economic and social situations. There are also many good things that grow out of transnational ties. An example is the role played by transmigrants in the struggle against the dictatorship of Haiti.

As I was reading this article it reminded me of my own situation. I feel that I too have my ties with the United States as well as India. With many of the readings we have done so far, I find myself agreeing to their truth. When I was reading about the part about transnational ties helping businesses, I thought about the many culture stores in various parts of New York. I think that it is important to treasure these transmigrant ties because with these connections there are many benefits to be gained. People become transmigrants for various reasons but in the end being transmigrants is a big part of many people’s lives. it makes me think of people who work in airlines, they are constantly traveling between countries and their lives depend on those travels. It is their livelihood.

“Capital of the Caribbean” by Jason Parker is about the fight for Independence in the Caribbeans before and during World War II. The Capital of the Caribbean in many ways was Harlem. Harlem was a center for political developments. When Italy tried to Invade Ethiopia, many African Americans as well as Caribbeans spoke out against colonialism. Ethiopia was a country that is important to many black people because it was the only country that retained its freedom from colonialism.

When the British needed American Destroyers they agreed to trade Atlantic base sites for American destroyers. The U.S government under Franklin D. Roosevelt sent a man named Charles Taussig to learn about the base sites and the people as well as their culture there. Taussig was able to learn to about the people was able to tell the U.S government to be sensitive to the local customs and to hold an anti colonial outlook.

The Anglo-American Caribbean Commission (AACC) was formed with the United Kingdom to improve the economy of the Caribbean region and the standard of living among the people there. Also when the British government announced that Jamaica would get a new constitution the next year, there was a fight between the Norman Manley’s People’s National Party (PNP) and Alexander Bustamante’s Jamaican Labour Party (JLP) to get the chance to govern over Jamaica. Although many people in Harlem raised money to help the PNP party, they still failed to get the leadership position. JLP won the election.

What I found really interesting was that even though Harlem is considered the capital of the Caribbean and much of the political development was also affecting Harlem, the ideas of the Caribbean people and the people of Harlem was quite different. This I felt was noticeable in the election of the JLP party over the PNP party that was being supported by the people of the Harlem Community. I also felt that colonizing countries seemed much more easygoing during this period of time than with other large nations that had to fight for their own Independence. In a sense the Caribbean people also had to fight for their Independence but at the same time it seems as though Britain and the United States gave the Caribbean people their Independence with a lot less struggles.

The First two books of Brown Girl, Brownstones by Paule Marshall is about a young girl named Selina who is behind her friend Beryl and her sister Ina. Selina is still a “Kid” while Beryl and Ina were becoming a woman. In the beginning we see Selina as she is jealous of her sister Ina who is skipping the “awkward faze that Selina herself seems to be going through. Selina seems to like her father, Deighton, more as he is a dreamer who always has dreams of moving his family back to their home in the Caribbean. he has received a piece of land from his sister and he dreams of making a lot of money and moving back to the Caribbean and building a large and nice house on his land. Selina’s mother, Silla, on the other hand doesn’t seem to believe in dreams. She has had a tough life as a child and has always had to face the hardships of life as she work in a plantation and was mistreated by the whites there. Now she is working hard to provide for her family while Deighton almost ignores his duties as the head of the family and is constantly going after a dream that he either ends up giving up on or being unsuccessful. Deighton while he is not working to take care of the family, he also doesn’t want to sell his land to pay the bills. On top of his lack of responsibilities he also has a open mistress.

Over all I like the structure of the book and it gives you a sense of a Caribbean immigrant’s life here in Harlem. I think many immigrants can side with Deighton as he dreams of going back to his life in his homeland. while at the same time, the hardworking Silla also gets the reader’s sympathy for the harsh life she has led until this point and he unwillingness to give up on life. She faces reality and works hard to gain a stability in their life. Selina as a little girl reminds me of many other little girls who often have friends like Beryl who are already on their way to womanhood while the others are still in an awkward faze before becoming a woman. I am curious to see how this book goes because I will get to experience, through the book, the life of another women as she is on her way to adulthood.

Chapter 4 was mostly about the impact of churches and other associations in the lives of the people living in Harlem and moving into Harlem. Often times, churches and the other associations were the center of the immigrant community. Many immigrants were attracted by the celebrations of traditions including weddings and funerals that were similar to the ones back in their countries. Although there were many separate churches for African Americans and Caribbean immigrants, both groups were often mixed during the celebrations. Church leaders often used the churches and other associations as a base for leadership. Along with the traditions that were often preserved in some Caribbean churches, benevolent and fraternal societies also encouraged the immigrants to hold on to their identity. There were some groups that were meant specially for people from certain areas. Belonging to these associations meant the members could get privileges such as sick and death benefits.

This chapter was similar in some ways to my life. As an immigrant, I have been part of a church with members who are from the same country and state as I am from. Although some traditions were preserved in our church, there were many differences from my church from India. However being part of this church was a good way to hold on to some of my culture while learning about the American culture and fitting into that new culture. When we moved to our current American Church, I found everything peculiar. While we are following the same religion, the practices were very different from the practices in which I grew up. Although it is still peculiar, it is much more acceptable now than before.

Chapter 5 talks about the struggles the Harlem community had to face to get their own people governing them. While a limited number of people were able to rise to high positions, they were unable to use that position. Harlem eventually shifted from the republicans to the democrats. One of the main reasons for this occurrence is due to the fact that the leadership of the republic party that was made of native blacks was not very welcoming to blacks who were foreign-born. Also, some naturalized professionals were able to make some advancements in the Harlem political system. For the most part, however, naturalization was seen as unnecessary because the Caribbean immigrants felt comfortable among the Harlem community. Citizenship was seen as a way to advance socially and economically.

It was somewhat odd that the native blacks and the Caribbean immigrants didn’t get along too well because of the political situation of Harlem. The reason I may view this as odd is because now, Harlem near City College seems to internal conflicts. I see many people from different cultures and different countries talking to each other on my way to college. Somehow, it is hard to believe that the people who work so well alongside eachother now actually had a conflicting time among them.

Chapter 7 was mostly about Marcus Garvey and his activities. In Harlem, Garvey created the organization Universal Negro Improvement Association (UNIA). He was well-known as a great orator. The Negro World was a publication made by the UNIA. The UNIA organization was created to provide a way of improvement for the black people. The Organization provided jobs for many people in Harlem especially black workers. Garvey was often criticized for his status as a west Indian citizen. His organization, the UNIA, was also criticized by some as being a West Indian Movement. Many parts of the government tried to find excuses to either imprison or deport him. When Garvey met with the Ku Klux Klan saying that Ku Klux Klan was similar to the UNIA but instead for the White people. In the end because of a mail fraud, Garvey was deported back to Jamaica.

I don’t really understand why Garvey was criticized by the people he was trying to help. I do understand that not everything he did was as what the majority  of the people would have liked but in the end, his actions did hold the interests of the people in UNIA.

The illegal activities that is looked into in Chapter 9 is really interesting. During the Early 1900’s Harlem had the “numbers” or the “policy” game. The people who played had to choose a set of three numbers that matched the three digit numbers that appeared in places like a betting area in a race track. If the number appeared in location they had agreed upon, then the player would get a “hit.” A hit was a rare occurrence and the bankers who got the bets put the money into other things like buying property. Although this game was banned in 1902, it reappeared when immigrants from Central America and Cuba came around 1914. The bankers made a lot of money from these bets. However, it was not fair towards the white ans black bankers. White Bankers were not liked and were attacked. On the other hand, black bankers were got all of the money and had the most influence in the Harlem Community.

This reminds of all the times when there is a high price on the lottery. I remember some of the teachers from my High School pitched in together to buy many tickets to see if they would win. Most people who hope they will win don’t get any thing from the lottery and simply lose the money they spent buying the lottery tickets.

Chapter 10 is all about the role the Harlem writers had in their community. Most of the writing is based on the experiences of many different groups of people in Harlem. Immigrant experiences were common. The writings were numerous many based on feminism, immigration, identity, race issues and equal rights.

Chapter 11 was a conclusion tying together many of the issues that are expressed in detail in other chapters. It talks about the interactions between the black population and the Caribbean immigrants.

The book was overall different from what I would normally read whether it is for fun or to learn something new. There were parts that were quite intriguing to think about and there were other parts that I was not too interested in. It is nice to know about the community surrounding our college.