"A widely appealing and valuable addition to diaspora studies, Central American and Caribbean historiography, and scholarly understandings of how individuals and groups navigate belonging in and beyond the nation." - Elizabeth Manley (The Americas) "<i>Panama in Black</i> uncovers the complexities of Afro-Caribbean Panamanian identity across class, gender, and generational lines. Corinealdi’s account of Afro-diasporic world making reveals an ongoing practice in which Afro-Caribbean migrants shaped ideas of citizenship on the isthmus and throughout the Americas. As a result, this book is essential reading for those interested in the history of Caribbean migrations, the African diaspora, the Canal Zone, Panamanian nation formation, and citizenship in Latin America." - Takkara Brunson (H-Caribbean) "<i>Panama in Black</i> demonstrates some of the reasons researchers, including myself, were drawn to these immigrants and their descendants. . . . I salute Kaysha Corinealdi for this latest addition to the bookshelf and look forward to more." - Michael Conniff (ReVista) <p>"This is a terrific book. Scholars of not only the African diaspora but other diasporas in different geographic contexts and historical periods would benefit from taking it very seriously. ... [Corinealdi's] sophisticated grasp of the much broader concerns of diasporic studies should make this short book a must for those studying regions beyond the Americas."</p> - Dario A. Euraque (Hispanic American Historical Review) "Corinealdi’s book is a splendid addition to renewed studies of the Afro-Caribbean experience in the Greater Caribbean Basin and the diaspora." - Kirwin R. Shaffer (English Historical Review) "Overall,<i> Panama in Black</i> is highly readable and very good to follow, no matter the readers prior knowledge. It combines a highly specific perspective and very general questions and is by this a contribution to many different scientific debates, not only on US- or Panamanian history. . . . [I]t is a book you clearly have to read if you are interested in Panamanian history, racism, diasporic world making or intersectional perspectives on these topics." - Mario Faust-Scalisi (Iberoamericana)
Acknowledgments xi
Introduction. Legacies of Exclusion and Afro-Caribbean Diasporic World Making 1
1. Panama as Diaspora: Documenting Afro-Caribbean Panamanian Histories, 1928–1936 29
2. Activist Formations: Fighting for Citizenship Rights and Forging Afro-Diasporic Alliances, 1940–1950 57
3. Todo por la Patria: Diplomacy, Anticommunism, and the Rhetoric of Assimilation, 1950–1954 93
4. To Be Panamanian: The Canal Zone, Nationalist Sacrifices, and the Price of Citizenship, 1954–1961 122
5. Panama in New York: Las Servidoras and Engendering an Educated Black Diaspora, 1953–1970 150
Conclusion. Afro-Caribbean Panamanians and the Future of Diasporic World Making 180
Notes 195
Bibliography 233
Index 253