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Employing critical analysis of Caribbean intellectual thought and of the postcolonial political economy, Brian Meeks sets about proposing a manifesto for the future. What emerges is a programme for the medium term, which is pragmatic in its efforts to deal with the current crisis without engaging in the romanticism of an all-encompassing revolutionary transformation. Meeks suggests a form of participatory reorganization without, necessarily, dismantling the fundamentals of formal democratic organization. Particular emphasis is placed on rural agro-producers because their empowerment, politically and economically, resolves the problem of elite domination while creating the conditions for economic democracy. He argues, finally, that the proposals can become the basis for a more fundamental social and intellectual transformation from, following Sylvia Wynter, ""man"" to ""human"", based on democracy, community and solidarity.

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The earthquake that struck Haiti on 12 January 2010 thrust the nation into the public consciousness as never before. There is now an unprecedented empathy for and interest in Haiti, and a related need for information on Haitian reality, beyond the clichés often associated with the nation. In particular, there is a special interest in the earthquake and the questions of Haitis future development. Haiti Rising responds to this public interest and has three fundamental aims: to raise awareness of Haiti, its people, culture and history; to allow some who were in Haiti during the earthquake a chance to testify.

The book brings together more than twenty essays written by some of the most prominent authorities on Haiti, and offers insights on the political, social and historical contexts, as well as the uniquely rich culture of the nation. The first part features survivor testimonies  moving accounts of the earthquake and its aftermath written by authors and academics, Haitian nationals and foreign visitors. The second part presents essays on economics, politics, society and culture (music, religion, visual art), and the ways in which they are interrelated in history and in contemporary life. The third section focuses on the history of Haiti from colonial times to the present and shows the ways in which history has shaped Haitian society. It shows how colonial class and colour structures have persisted, how the revolution has shaped subsequent political, cultural and social structures, and how the legacy of the Duvalier dictatorship has lingered. The final section features contributors who were not in Haiti at the time of the earthquake, but who have strong ties to Haiti. These authors write about their personal connections to Haiti, their reactions to the earthquake, and their hopes and recommendations for reconstruction.

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The increasing visibility of individuals engaging in small-scale business enterprises outside formal wage employment has been a topic of debate for many years, in many countries. The Caribbean Community (CARICOM) is no exception. In fact, the informal economy has become a persistent feature of the regions economic landscape and has been thriving, as documented by leading Caribbean scholars.

Informal Commercial Importers in CARICOM is the first book to examine the various dimensions of informal commercial importing from an aggregate CARICOM perspective, emphasizing the economic dimensions and providing three empirical surveys of informal commercial importing in Guyana, Dominica and Jamaica. Roger Hosein and Martin Franklin provide a rich survey of the literature on shuttle trading, which aids in contextualizing the range of factors that has given rise to shuttle trading in CARICOM and enabled its longevity. They discuss the possible effects of formalizing the informal trade in CARICOM economies and propose strategies that can aid in this formalization process.

While this book is written to appeal to an academic audience, it also provides essential reading for policymakers, research scholars and practitioners alike, and it provides a foundation for further studies of the shuttle trade in a changing Caribbean.

Description

This is the first scholarly biography of Edward Philip George Seaga, retired prime minister of Jamaica (1980-1989) and former leader of the Jamaica Labour Party (1974-2005). Patrick Bryan examines Seaga in light of the twentieth-century history of Jamaica, which experienced the challenges of race, colour, economic dependence, the transition from the British colonial period to independence in 1962, and the challenges of creating a Jamaican national state and separate cultural identity. Although the study focuses on Edward Seaga, the historical forces that shaped Jamaica's history are central, in particular the way in which he confronted these forces. In placing Seaga in historical perspective, this work strikes a seasoned and balanced analysis of the man and is neither an apologia nor iconoclastic. Based on a variety of primary sources, government records, interviews and secondary sources, the author paints a compelling portrait of a complex man, a contradictory mixture of idealism and pragmatism, but, above all, a Jamaican nationalist who had a profound impact on Jamaican politics, tourism, culture and finance.

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Patrick E. Bryan is the Douglas Hall Professor of History, University of the West Indies, Jamaica. His publications include The Haitian Revolution and Its Effects; Philanthropy and Social Welfare in Jamaica; The Jamaican People, 1880-1902; Jamaica: The Aviation Story; The Legacy of a Goldsmith: A History of Wolmer's Schools; Inside Out and Outside In: Factors in the Creation of Contemporary Jamaica. He is also the co-editor (with Rupert Lewis) of Marcus Garvey: His Work and Impact and (with Karl Watson) of Not for Wages: Eyewitness Summaries of the 1938 Labour Rebellion in Jamaica.