History

The Dominican Republic is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Caribbean, which it shares with the country of Haiti.  Christopher Columbus, who arrived in 1492, founded the Dominican Republic’s capital, Santo Domingo.  From that point until 1821, the country was under the rule of Spain, France, and Haiti.  In 1821, the Dominican Republic was freed from Spanish control in a revolt.  Haitians then controlled the area until 1844, when the Dominican Republic became independent.  The United States occupied the country from 1916 until 1924.

 

 

 

 

 

From 1930 until 1961, the dictator Rafael Trujillo ruled the Dominican Republic.  When he died and the democratic leader Juan Bosch was installed, a civil war began.  This period marked the first major emigration from the Dominican Republic in the mid 1960s.

The United States stepped in to help end the war in 1965 and aided Dominicans in coming to the United States.  This immigration to the United States continued through the 1970s as Dominicans felt the effects of the poverty and political corruption caused by decades of unrest.

Economic reasons continue to contribute to Dominican immigration today as the people seek relief from inflation, unemployment, and inequality in distribution of wealth.

In the United States today there are more than one million people of Dominican descent.  Dominicans have been successfully accepted as a part of American culture, especially in New York City where they are most concentrated.  An annual parade has been held in New York City since 1982 called the Dominican Day Parade to celebrate Dominican Americans.  Dominicans bring their culture to America in this way through their food, music, and traditional clothing.

There were no noticeable gaps in the literature of the Dominican Republic.  Thousands of books and articles were available covering Dominicans prior to immigration as well as after they began to establish themselves as one of the major immigrant groups in New York City.  The sources included here are from as early as the 1930s and as recent as this year.  There were also many books about the Dominican Republic and Dominican immigrants that were targeted to children.  Sources that made significant mention to the Dominican community in Staten Island could not be found.  This is not an unusual occurrence; the lack of literature concerning the residents of Staten Island is well-known.  Though there is little mention of the group on Staten Island, the plethora of sources concerning Dominicans in New York City as a whole is able to provide a detailed picture of the group, their struggles, and what they have brought to America.