Strictly Facts: A Guide to Caribbean History and Culture

The Panama Canal was envisioned as a waterway to connect the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans hundreds of years before its construction. When official building began in the 19th century and continued into the 20th century, thousands of  Francophone and Anglophone Caribbean people migrated as laborers to ...

Rastafari reggae musician and activist Peter Tosh (1944-1987) was born Winston Hubert McIntosh in Westmoreland, Jamaica. Tosh quickly went on to found musical group The Wailers alongside Bob Marley and Bunny Wailer. After the group disbanded in 1974, Tosh continued to make music as a solo artist, wi...

We have many differences in the Caribbean, namely language, but also many similarities. In this week's episode, Dr. Margo Groenewoud shares with us the creative, political, and social histories of the Dutch Caribbean and why she believes islands like Aruba, Bonaire, and Curaçao are sometimes neglect...

Puerto Rico is one of America's remaining colonies after being ceded to the U.S. by Spain in 1898. In this episode, Puerto Rican scholar Nina Vazquez discusses the island's long history of colonization and activism in an attempt to become an independent Caribbean island and what are the current beli...

Did you know Jamaica, the Cayman Islands, and Turks & Caicos used to make up the Colony of Jamaica, governed by the UK until 1959? In this episode, we trace the history of these islands and the others that were formerly part of the Colony of Jamaica and discuss why they disbanded.Connect with St...

With both Anglophone and Francophone Caribbean connections, Canada is one of the foremost locations of Caribbean life in the diaspora. Featuring Jamaican-Canadian historian Dr. Marlene Gaynair, we discuss Canada's longstanding, and at times problematic, historical relationship with the Caribbean and...

Before many of the formerly British Caribbean territories became independent nations, they attempted to create a political union known as the West Indian Federation. The short-lived union only lasted four years, but went on to influence future organizations for regional unity like the Caribbean Free...

Caribbean carnival is one of the region's most famous annual celebrations comprised with lively music, dancing, and of course lavish costumes. Shauna Rigaud joins us this week to discuss carnival's history and the history of  Barbados' Crop Over festival. Shauna holds a BA in African American Studie...

Our second "Big People Tings" highlight is Trinidadian Marxist, Black Feminist writer and political organizer Claudia Jones (1915-1964). Jones was one of the leading Black female organizers in the Communist Party in the USA and later went on to organize and celebrate the Afro-Caribbean community in ...

Caribbean writers have undoubtedly left their mark on history. In this episode, we talk with  author Desiree C. Bailey about Caribbean literature, common themes that have inspired her story and her recently published book What Noise Against the Cane, which combines Caribbean history, music, and cult...