Century
| Eleanor Krohn Herrmann | src/bzst/40/79/4 | July | 1979 | Uniforms of the West India Regiment | | Charles John Emond |
src/bzst/41/79/5 | September | 1979 | The Battle of St. George's Caye: A New Analysis (Part 11) | This concluding part of Mr. Humphreys’ examination of the Battle of St. George’s Caye describes the Battle, and its consequences for future generations in Belize. | H. F. Humphreys |
src/bzst/41/79/5 | September | 1979 | How the British won the Battle of St. George's Caye | It is difficult to find a single source in Belizean history which explains well the Battle of St. George’s Caye. It is certainly the best-known event in our history - albeit many erroneous notions concerning that event have been passed on through the years. It is hoped that this article and Mr. Humphreys’ two-part examination of the battle (which concludes in this issue) will provide for students and other Belizeans and general readers a good presentation of this event. Mr. Humphreys’ article gives most of the details of the battle itself, so they will not be repeated here except to add further information or to illustrate a point. | Richard 0. Buhler, S. J. |
src/bzst/41/79/5 | September | 1979 | Goals, Priorities and the Decolonization of Education in Belize | Mr. Bennett’s article was first given as a talk, in February of 1977, to a group of students from the U.S.A. Its points are well worth study and discussion. | Joseph A. Bennett |
src/bzst/42/79/6 | November | 1979 | Colha, Belize: A Preliminary Statement of the 1979 Season | The purpose of this article is to provide a brief review of the first 1979 field season at the site of Colha, Belize. The comments offered here are greatly expanded in a publication issued by the Center for Archaeological Research, the University of Texas at San Antonio, in the late summer of this year. | Thomas R. Hester; Harry J. Shafer; |
src/bzst/42/79/6 | November | 1979 | The Labourer's Riot of 1894 (Part 1) | This "Labourer’s Riot" has previously gone largely unnoticed by historians and what mention has been made of it has erroneously attributed its causes solely to the change of currency of October of the same year. In fact it was brought about by more than just a numerical reduction in wages, and it is of enormous significance in the history of Belize as it marks the beginning of the resistance of ‘organized’ labour to mercantile exploitation. | Peter Ashdown |
src/bzst/42/79/6 | November | 1979 | Of Boats and the River | | Charles John Emond |
src/bzst/42/79/6 | November | 1979 | Index for 1979 (volume 7) | | |
src/bzst/43/80/1 | January | 1980 | Faces and Places of Old Belize (6) | In this 1980 issue we are featuring a dedication to a man who loves Belize very much and was one of the founders of the Credit Union Movement which has helped so many of our fellow citizens. It is usual to wait until a person has died before making a dedication but we believe that deserved honors should be spoken when they can be appreciated. We are happy to dedicate this first issue of the 1980’s to the much loved Father Marion Ganey, S. J. | |
src/bzst/44/80/2 | March | 1980 | Black Cross Nursing in Belize: A Labour of Love | | Eleanor Krohn Herrmann |
src/bzst/44/80/2 | March | 1980 | Call and Response in Belizean Creole Folk Songs | | Ervin Beck |
src/bzst/44/80/2 | March | 1980 | The Labourer's Riot of 1894 (Conclusion) | In the first part of this article Mr. Ashdown described the Constabulary Mutiny of November 1894, occasioned by a currency devaluation in the previous month, and the Labourers’ Petition of December 8, 1894, setting forth grievances to Governor Moloney and asking for governmental action to relieve the distress. The Governor considered the contents of the Labourers’ Petition serious enough to call a meeting of the employers of labour to discuss it. Those gentlemen, however, were united in their opposition to the petition and the petitioners and the only suggestion they had for the Governor was that he revise the customs duties. | Peter Ashdown |
src/bzst/45/80/3 | May | 1980 | Glyphic Evidence for Classic Maya Militarism | | Dorie J. Reents and John R. Sosa |
src/bzst/45/80/3 | May | 1980 | First (1979) Season's Report on the Ceramics of Colha, Belize | The Colha Project is a long-term archaeological project focused on a site in the Maya lowlands which appears to have been specialized stone tool production center. | R.E.W. Adams and Fred Valdez Jr. |
src/bzst/45/80/3 | May | 1980 | Lamanai (Indian Church): Cross-Section of Belize's Past | | David Pendergast |
src/bzst/45/80/3 | May | 1980 | Cuello, 1979: A Summary of the Season | | Norman Hammond |
src/bzst/46/80/4 | July | 1980 | On Being Indian in Southern Belize: A Research Note | | James R. Gregory |
src/bzst/46/80/4 | July | 1980 | The Answer Songs of Leonie White | Creole Folk songs | Ervin Beck |
src/bzst/46/80/4 | July | 1980 | Subsistence Activity in Belize | The following article is the second chapter in draft text of a proposed book for school on the "Economy of Belize". Presenting a generalized view of milpero’s life and activity, it makes for information reading form many who are removed from this level of economic activity. | John Wyeth |
src/bzst/47/80/5 | September | 1980 | The Great Fire of 1863 | | John Crane |
src/bzst/47/80/5 | September | 1980 | Bootlegging in Belize: 1920 - 1933 | | Peter Ashdown |
src/bzst/47/80/5 | September | 1980 | Women, Agriculture and Development in the Maya Lowland: Profit or Progress? | The following article was printed in the ISIS Bulletin No. 11 (Spring, 1979), and is excerpted from the Proceedings and papers of the International Conference on Women and Food held in the University of Arizona, Tuscon, Arizona, in January 1978. | Marion Louise Marshall and Olga Stavrakis |
src/bzst/48/80/6 | November | 1980 | Circling with the Ancestors: Hugulendii Symbolism in Ethnic Group Maintenance | When one reviews the past three centuries of the Black Caribs’ history, their continuing presence as a viable and integrated society in Central America is remarkable. In spite of dislocation from their original homeland and residencies in different colonies and nations (Belize, Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua), the descendants of the St. Vincent Black Caribs have retained their integrity as ethnic groups. | Marilyn Wells |
src/bzst/48/80/6 | November | 1980 | Moho Caye, Belize: A Preliminary Report on the 1979 archaeological season | | Paul F. Healy and Heather Mckillop |
src/bzst/48/80/6 | November | 1980 | Folk History in Creole Topical Songs | Many, if not most Creole, songs are based on historical incidents. Although a few arise from an interest in international affairs, most spring from much more humble domestic incidents - frequently homely, embarrassing occurrences that subject their participants to the rimed and sung gossip and scorn of the curious, on looking fold community. | Ervin Beck |
src/bzst/48/80/6 | November | 1980 | Thomas Gann’s 1903 Report on the Ruins of Lubaantun | Below we publish as a valuable item in Belizean studies the first official report ever made on Lubaantun Maya Centre. This was written by Assistant Colonial Surgeon Thomas Gann. The report is found in Government Minute Paper No. 1069 of 1903 in the National Archives, and is copied through the courtesy of the Ministry of Education and the Government Archivist, Leo H. Bradley. | |
src/bzst/49/81/1 | January | 1981 | Faces and Places of Old Belize (7) | | |
src/bzst/50/81/2 | March | 1981 | The Colonial Administrators of Belize: Sir Ernest Bickham Sweet-Escott | | Peter Ashdown |
src/bzst/50/81/2 | March | 1981 | The Folk History of Alonzo Schultz, Town Baladeer | Behind an important group of Creole songs looms the shadow of Alonzo Schultz, a colorful woodcutter who was also a notorious rascal and composer of tropical songs in Belize City in the early 1920’s. | Ervin Beck |
src/bzst/50/81/2 | March | 1981 | Pigs are a Part of the System: A Lesson in Agricultural Development | | Richard Wilk |
src/bzst/51/81/3 | May | 1981 | Carnival in Northern Belize | | Jaime Briceño |
src/bzst/51/81/3 | May | 1981 | Excavations at Cuello, 1980: A Summary | Contributed by: Norman Hammond, Juliette Cartwright, Karen Bruhns, Mark Horton, Richard Wilks, Michael Davenport, Charles Miksicek | |
src/bzst/51/81/3 | May | 1981 | A Kekchi Account of an Encounter with the Chol Indians | Among the original, but extinct, inhabitants of Belize were the Chol Indiands. By the time of the conquest they inhabited an area roughly the same as that earlier covered by the so-called “Old Maya Empire”, that is, the area where Maya Civilization cam into its fullest bloom in the Classic Period. This fact has led to the belief that Chol might have been direct descendants of the people that once built Tikal, Altun Ha, Labaantun and other ceremonial centers of the area. | Jon Schackt |
src/bzst/52/81/4 | July | 1981 | Body, Soul and Social Structure at the Garifuna dugu | This essay is written with thanks to the Belizean government for permitting the research to take place and is intended as a contribution towards the unity of the Belizean people as Belize moves towards independence. | Byron Foster |
src/bzst/52/81/4 | July | 1981 | The 1980 Season at Colha | Contributed by: Thomas R Hester, Harry J. Shafer, Giancarlo Ligabue, Jack D. Eaton and R. E. W. Adams | |
src/bzst/52/81/4 | July | 1981 | Book Review: Belize, by Ralph Lee Woodward, Jr. | | James S. Murphy, S. J. |
src/bzst/53/81/5&6 | | 1981 | Keeping Belize Free, Democratic and Independent | | James S. Murphy, S. J. |
src/bzst/53/81/5&6 | | 1981 | Oral History Vignette: The Death of Dr. Harrison in 1916 | | Dr. Eleanor K. Herrmann |
src/bzst/53/81/5&6 | | 1981 | The Cayes of Belize: An Archaeological Resource | | Dr. Michael Easter |
src/bzst/53/81/5&6 | | 1981 | Comparison of Belize Creole Speech with Other Afro-American Speech Communities | In this article, the ethonographic description of Belize Creole speech usage is placed in the context of comparison with speech use in other Afro-American speech communities. The aim of this study is to demonstrate the common cultural patterning of speech use in the different speech communities considered. | Dr. Robert French |
src/bzst/53/81/5&6 | | 1981 | The Belize Elite and its Power Base: Land Labour and Commerce Circa 1890. | | Peter Ashdown |
src/bzst/54/82/1 | | 1982 | Mal de Ojo | | Ramon Cervantes |
src/bzst/54/82/1 | | 1982 | The Belize Elite | | Dr. Peter Ashdown |
src/bzst/55/82/2 | | 1982 | The Mayehac of the Kekchi Belizeans | | Joseph Cayetano |
src/bzst/55/82/2 | | 1982 | Pallotti High School | | Sr. Mary Leonardis, S. A. C. |
src/bzst/55/82/2 | | 1982 | An Interpretation of Spirit Possession In Southern Coastal Belize | | Byron Foster |
src/bzst/56/82/3&4 | | 1982 | A Report on Contemporary Belizean Foodways | The purpose of this paper is to summarize the results of a dietary survey conducted in Stann Creek and Cayo Districts in 1979, which may serve as a baseline for future studies of this kind. | Dr. Carol Jenkins |
src/bzst/56/82/3&4 | | 1982 | Spirits See Red: The Symbolic Use of Gusueue among the Garif (Black Caribs) of Central America | The use of guseue by Garif was part of the culture-system which was carried by them in their migration from the Lesser Antilles to the eastern coastline of Central America. Guseue continues to be a dominant symbol in Garif ritual although modifications of its use have developed in response to different social environments. This paper presents a description of the use of guseue and an analysis of its ritual referents. Modifications in its use and meaning are related to change in time and place. | Dr. Marilyn McKillop Wells |
src/bzst/56/82/3&4 | | 1982 | Garifuna Musical Style and Culture History | In this paper, we present the results of a Cantometric analysis of a sample of Garifuna music recorded in Southern Belize. | Doctors Carol & Travis Jenkins |
src/bzst/56/82/3&4 | | 1982 | Mayas, Yucatecans and Englishmen in the Nineteenth Century Fiesta System of Northern Belize | | Dr. Grant Jones |
src/bzst/57/82/5 | | 1982 | Peasant Rationality: A K'eckchi’ Example | Throughout the Third World Today, peasant Indian communities are continually being drawn into national economic and political systems. This process may take various forms, including increasing reliance on cash crops for market sales, wage labouring, or, in extreme cases, migration to urban centers or market towns. Few communities remain which have not yet felt the expanding tentacles of commercialism. This paper will explore the ways in which modern economic incentive have influenced traditional relations in a K'eckchi’ Maya Village in southern Belize. | Nancy A. Berte |
src/bzst/57/82/5 | | 1982 | Household Composition and Socio-Economic Strategies in Orange Walk Town, Belize | The social and economic determinants of household composition are assessed for orange Walk town, a district governmental, agriculture, and retailing center of 6,000 people in 1970. There is a normative preference for and a statistical predominance of nuclear family house hold in each ethnic category and social stratum. This reflects the degree of market involvement and the amount of immigration which has occurred. | C. Thomas Brockmann |
src/bzst/58/82/6 | | 1982 | Oral History: Cleopatra White | | Dr. Eleanor Krohn Herrman |
src/bzst/59/83/1 | | 1983 | The Sisters of Mercy in Belize | | Sr. Yvonne Hunter, R. S. M., |
src/bzst/59/83/1 | | 1983 | Ultzheimer's Remarks on the Caribs in the Years 1599 - 1601 | In searching for ethnohistorical evidence of the ancestors of the Garifuna we found and early German source which mentioned some cultural traits of the inhabitants of the Lesser Antilles and of the N. E. coast of South America. The original home of the Black Caribs of Garifuna is estimated to be in St. Vincent and supposedly in Dominica (Conzemius 1928). | Andrew R. Craston and Christian Ratch, |
src/bzst/60/83/2 | | 1983 | The History of Archaeological Research in Belize | | Jaime Awe and Heather Mackillop |
src/bzst/60/83/2 | | 1983 | Book Reviews: Archaeology at Colha | | Richard 0. Buhler, S. J. |
src/bzst/60/83/2 | | 1983 | The Ramonal Ruins, Corozal District | During the course of the 1981 archaeological field season at Cerros, workmen from Chunox village invited the Cerros crew to investigate another area of extensive Maya ruins called Ramonal. This archaeological Zone is located approximately 6 miles east of Chunox village and 1 mile to the east of a large canal which is said to have been excavated within the last 100 years in connection with logging activities in the area. | Suzanne Lewenstein |
src/bzst/61/83/3 | | 1983 | Memories at Graduation Time | | Abel Rudon |
src/bzst/61/83/3 | | 1983 | Lamanai, 1981, Belize | | David M Pendergast |
src/bzst/61/83/3 | | 1983 | Feeding Ourselves: The Flying Potato | | I. E. Sanchez |
src/bzst/61/83/3 | | 1983 | Belmopan before Pauling: An Ancient Maya Site | | H. Topsey, J. Awe, J. Morris and A. Moore |
src/bzst/62/83/4 | | 1983 | The History of Orange Walk, Second Edition (Special Issue) | | Charles John Emond |
src/bzst/63/83/5 | | 1983 | Archaeological Investigations at Colha, Belize: The 1981 Season | | T. Hester, G. Ligabue, J. D. Eaton, |
src/bzst/63/83/5 | | 1983 | Archaeological Investigations at Nohmul And Santa Rita: 1979 - 1980 | | Arlen F. & Diane Z. Chase |
src/bzst/64/83/6 | | 1983 | Ranking of Northern Belizean Maya Sites | The following paper is a first trial at rank size analysis of northern Belize Maya centers for two sequent time periods. Implications are drawn from the analysis, and comparative comments made in the context of similar analysis done for other lowland Maya regions. | R.E.W. Adams |
src/bzst/64/83/6 | | 1983 | Belize and its Neighbours: A Preliminary Report on Colonial Records of the Audiencia of Guatemala | Reports on the contacts of the British with their neighbors, particularly the Maya, are rare in papers from the 17th and 18th centuries. Reasons have been claimed in the illiteracy of the English settlers and hazards of the times. Information on the indigenous inhabitants has also been sought, with some success, in the papers of the Audiencia of Mexico, as is logical, for much of this area was administered, via Salamanca de Bacalar, ultimately by the Audiencia of Mexico. | L. H. Feldman |
src/bzst/65/84/1&2 | | 1984 | Belize at Two: Keeping Its Appointment with History | This issue is base on the Anglo-Guatemalan Claim | James S. Murphy, S. J. |
src/bzst/66/84/3 | | 1984 | Special Study: Food and Social Relations In a Belizean Garifuna Village | Lisurnia provides a setting for the study of food and social relations. It is a rural community whose population consists heavily of children an older folks. Lisurnia is surrounded by large tracts of easily available, arable land and faces the sea, yet it is not production most of its food. The food supply is maintained by a wide range of cash and non-cash exchange methods not only among the village but also with others beyond the village. | Dr. Joseph Palacio |
src/bzst/66/84/3 | | 1984 | Food Exchange Systems | Food circulates in Lisurnia through cash and non-cash exchange systems. Cash exchange consists of petty trading and large scale trading. Non-cash exchange is based on participation in the subsistence economy and role obligation. In the last part of this paper I discuss how food exchange reflects rank in the village social structure. | Dr. Joseph Palacio |
src/bzst/67/84/4 | | 1984 | Rural Settlement Change in Belize, 1970-1980: The Effects of Road | During research on agricultural change and development in Belize, I found it necessary to profile the rural agricultural population of the country, and get some idea of how it is growing and changing. I was particularly interested in the ways rural settlements have grown, and the effects which road construction has had on the countryside. This topic has direct relevance to government policy towards rural settlement, especially on the question of how settled farming can be encouraged and milpa farming can be discouraged. | Richard E. Wilk |
src/bzst/67/84/4 | | 1984 | The Archaeology of Hick's Caye, Belize | | Matthew Boxt |
src/bzst/68/84/5 | | 1984 | Cooperatives: "Failures" Versus "Success" | Among anthropologists, with their knowledge of large numbers of societies from around the world, it has become almost axiomatic that cooperatives usually fail to meet their promoters’ expectations as vehicles for development and modernization. I personally have research data, from the southern Belizean community of San Antonio, of two separate cooperative ventures: on initially seemed a huge success but was in the end a colossal failure; the other had a history which commanded respect but a future (at last word) which was much in doubt. | James R. Gregory |
src/bzst/68/84/5 | | 1984 | The Tzuultak'a: Religious Lore and Cultural Processes among the Kekchi | | Jon Schackt |
src/bzst/69/84/6 | | 1984 | The Archaeology of the Valley of Peace | In April of 1982 the Belmopan Police notified us that they had confiscated some artifacts from a Guatemalan citizen. These artifacts later proved to be fragments of a nearly complete imitation pabellon model-carved vase. Under questioning, the individual revealed that he had collected the pieces from a mound that was currently being bulldozed at the Salvadoran refugee village site. This village later became known as Valley of Peace, a name we also adopted for our site. | Jaime Awe |
src/bzst/70/85/1 | | 1985 | A Social History of Caye Caulker | This article reconstructs the social and economic history of Caye Caulker, Belize. The aim is to present a historical description of the people who have settled on Caye Caulker, the ways they have made a living and the events that have shaped their culture. | Dr. Anne Sutherland and Laurie Kroshus |
src/bzst/71/85/2 | June | 1985 | An Architectural History of Belize | Both the ancient past and the contemporary present forge themselves into one tradition that makes Belize distinct in comparison with the rest of Central America and the other English speaking nations in the Americas. Because of its location, Belize has always been more cosmopolitan than provincial. Its architecture reflects this cultural framework from the vernacular construction to the monumental structures. This architectural heritage must be judged within the framework of the civilization which created it against the universal standards. | H. L. Meredith |
src/bzst/71/85/2 | June | 1985 | The Nohmul Project Report, 1983 | This article forms part of the preliminary report on the 1983 field season at Nohum., Orange Walk and Corozal Districts, which included also major excavations in the ceremonial center, settlement along the Rio Hondo. | A. Pyburn, S. Cohen, etc |
src/bzst/71/85/2 | June | 1985 | Educational Modernization in Southern Belize | This paper is intended as a contribution to our understanding of the relationship between educational modernization and economic development, a relationship whose treatment by social scientists has been subject to much variation. | Dr. James R. Gregory |
src/bzst/72/85/3&4 | September | 1985 | Testing a Socio- Linguistic Model In Belize: An Analysis | Belize is largely virgin territory for the social scientists and much spadework has yet to be done. Some very interesting socio-linguistic works about Belize have been published, e.g. Marlis Hellinger, Aspects of Belizean Creole. In a way this paper will "pick up" where Hellinger left off. Hellinger in here "Aspect of Belizean Creole" concluded that of the five (six) major languages spoken in Belize, English has in fact the status of a second language, whereas Belizean Creole is the dominant language of most vital communicative functions. | Andrew Lopez |
src/bzst/72/85/3&4 | September | 1985 | German Migration to Belize: The Beginnings | Belizeans have attempted from time to time historical sketches of their several ethnic groups. In this article we look at many of the Germans who have settled in Belize from the late 18th century, and particularly from 1850, and offer an evaluation of their contributions and achievements. | St. John Robinson |
src/bzst/73/85/5&6 | December | 1985 | Language Change and Ethnic Identity in Eastern Corozal | | Donna Birdwell-Pheasant |
src/bzst/73/85/5&6 | December | 1985 | Kinship and Family Structure on Caye Caulker | On Caye Caulker there are two important distinctions between people. Islanders and non-islanders, kin ("family") and non-kin. These distinctions have two important implications: Islanders have preferential access to land and to sources of economic support; kin or family provide valuable economic and social support. With these links as given, in this article we shall describe the structure of kin relationships which are based on cognatic descent, patrilineal surnames, family localities, "Caribbean" patterns of conjugal ties, and "Latin American" patterns of household. | Dr. Anne Sutherland and Laurie Kroshus |
src/bzst/73/85/5&6 | December | 1985 | A Logical Chronology of Month's Names in Garifuna "Carib" | | W. M. Arzu |
src/bzst/74/86/1 | | 1986 | The Growth and Development of Belize City | Although Belize City has almost always been the centre of population in Belize, few studies have been devoted to its historical geography - or indeed to the urban geography of the country as a whole. The purpose of this paper is to gather together much of the scattered material on Belize City, in the hope that this codification will help the reader to understand the growth and present status of the city, and perhaps inspire others to do further research on this, still the major urban centre of Belize. | John C. Everitt, Ph.D., |
src/bzst/75/86/2 | | 1986 | The Colonial Administrators of Belize: Sir Alfred Moloney (1891 - 1897). | | Peter Ashdown |
src/bzst/75/86/2 | | 1986 | Garifuna Traditions in Historical Perspectives | | Dr. Nancie L. Gonzalez |
src/bzst/76/86/3 | | 1986 | Belize Release Me, Let Me Go: The Impact of U.S. Mass Media on Emigration in Belize | Among the troubles Third World nations face today are two "flow" problems - the flow of foreign culture and values into developing nations via mass media; and the flow of populations out of these countries and into the more developed centers of the North. The recent introduction of television into Belize, a new Central American/Caribbean nation with a high emigration rate, provides an opportunity to examine possible links between these two problems. Specifically, we can explore the association between exposure to U.S. mass media content and the desire among young Belizeans to leave home and move to the United States. | C. Roser, L. B. Snyder & S. H. Chaffee’s |
src/bzst/76/86/3 | | 1986 | Effects of Transborder Television in Corozal Town and Surrounding Villages | Close relationships between media exposure and attitudinal change in the Third World were first observed by Lerner. His modernization model identified the mass media as significant agents of change toward modernity in developing societies. Subsequent studies uncovered significant associations between individual exposure to the media and social mobility. Social mobility was assumed to encourage the movement away from traditional inclinations. | Omar Souki Oliveria |
src/bzst/77/87/1 | | 1987 | The Colonial Administrator as Historian: Burdon, Burns and the Battle of St. George's Cay | Some colonial officials, much to the frustration of the Colonial Office, developed intense loyalties and romantic attachments to their charges. These love affairs with particular colonies in particular places led – or so the Colonial office held - to a marked lack of necessary detachment and a consequent desire on the part of the man on the spot to vigorously champion the specific concerns of his colony against the overseeing generalists in Downing Street. This tendency of the over-seas administrator to unduly align himself with the interest of his posting led on occasion to metropolitan - colonial friction: it also often encouraged the committed and besotted to glorify their protégées in print. | Peter Ashdown |
src/bzst/77/87/1 | | 1987 | Television and Video Ownership in Belize | During 1985 UNESCO and the Broadcasting Research Unit of London undertook a study of the international flow of video hardware and software, which will be published early in 1987. Belize was selected as on of the countries to be studied, part of the research including an estimate of ownership of television and VCRs in Belize in mid-1985. The results are summarized in tables. | Trevor Petch |
src/bzst/77/87/1 | | 1987 | A. Z. Preston and His Work | At a time when the hope of good management of money and people, dominates the political and economic designs for Jamaica, the untimely death of Dr. A. Z. Preston former Vice-Chancellor o the University of the West Indies must give the talkers and non-doers among us pause. | Rex Nettleford |
src/bzst/77/87/1 | | 1987 | Book Reviews: Rediscovering the Past at Mexico's Periphery by: Gilbert M. Joseph | | Leo H. Bradley |
src/bzst/77/87/1 | | 1987 | Book Reviews: Belize - A New Nation In Central America by: 0. Nigel Bolland | | Lita Hunter Krohn & David Price |
src/bzst/77/87/1 | | 1987 | Book Reviews: Interpreting Signs of Illness by: Kathryn Vance Staiano | | Homero Escalante |
src/bzst/78/87/2 | | 1987 | Belizean Nationalism: The emergence of a new Identity. | Although Belize is on the Central American mainland, it is an English speaking country with a cultural and historical tradition which more closely parallels the traditions of the West Indies than those of its Spanish speaking Central American neighbours. Because of their British colonial heritage, and the long-standing animosity toward the Spanish - both in the early days of the colony and more recently in the dispute with Guatemala - many Belizeans reject a Central American affiliation and consider Belize a Caribbean nation. | Karla Heusner |
src/bzst/78/87/2 | | 1987 | Oil in Guatemala: An Economic Factor in the Heads of Agreement. | This paper argues that economic development in Guatemala, in particular the exploration and exportation of petroleum, was an important factor which helps to account for the Guatemalan Government’s readiness to negotiate the Heads of Agreement, the attempt made in March of 1981 to resolve the long-standing dispute with Britain over Belize. The following will attempt to gather the evidence for this claim by examining the state of affairs in Northern Guatemala from the late 1970s to the early 1980s, and by showing their connection with the topic which surfaced in the Heads of Agreement, the construction of pipelines from Guatemala through Belize. | Herman J Byrd |
src/bzst/79/87/3 | | 1987 | Men, Women and Modernization in a Mayan Community | This paper analyzes recent developments in the Mopan Maya Indian village of San Antonio in Southern Belize in order determine whether - and if so, in what ways - these observations are applicable to that community. The analysis is based on the results of fifteen months of field work in San Antonio during 1968 - 69 and the findings of a six month follow-up study in 1977 | James R. Gregory |
src/bzst/79/87/3 | | 1987 | The Kekchi and the settlement of Toledo District. | The Kekchi of southern Belize are a small splinter group from a much larger population that has its homeland in the dissected plateaus and rugged mountains of the Alta Verapaz Department of Guatemala, and this number is undoubtedly much higher today. The 3000 or so Kekchi in southern Belize, however, are ethnographically much better known that those in Guatemala. | Richard R.Wilk |
src/bzst/79/87/3 | | 1987 | The Prisoner and the Chol Cuink: A Modern Kekchi Story | This story was told on May 18, 1979, by Manuel Cab, in Aguacate Village, Toledo District. The next day Mateo Cab (Manuel’s son) translated the taped story from the original Kekchi into English onto another tape. Laura Kosakowsky transcribed this final tape. Richard Wilk then re-typed the original transcription, edited the English version lightly in order to improve its readability and grammar, and added explanatory notes. This story has a number of interesting features - it is highly traditional, rooted firmly in two thousand years of Mayan oral story-telling and mythology - but it is also historical, referring to the 16th and 17th century relationships between the Kekchi and Chol. And the story is also very contemporary; some of the themes may be derived from European folklore, and on of the characters entered during recent history. | R. Wilk, M. Cab, L. Kosakowsky |
src/bzst/80/88/1 | | 1988 | Catholic Social Principle and the Manley Programme | This paper is born of two convictions: first, the Roman Catholic Church, in its body of social teaching, possesses an instrument of considerable usefulness in a world torn by much strife, strife rooted in one form or another of injustice. Secondly, that for purposes of credibility, it is important to demonstrate that this body of teaching is capable of influencing the efforts of individuals to build a world that is more just. | James Murphy, S. J. |
src/bzst/81/88/2 | | 1988 | Central America, Belize and the Third World | | Wayne M. Clegern |
src/bzst/81/88/2 | | 1988 | Britain, British Honduras and Belize | This paper seeks to assess the performance of British government over the centuries, by examining specific instances of its action or failure to act in relation to the territory, which may have been significant in producing the present situation. | D. A. G. Waddell |
src/bzst/81/88/2 | | 1988 | E Pluribas Qua: Belizean Culture and the Immigrant Past | Belize’s peculiar geographic situation as an Anglo-creole enclave on an otherwise Hispano-mestizo landmass has given this country "an astonishingly diverse culture", one which differs in many ways from that of other Anglo-creole territories of the West Indies. | St. John Robinson |
src/bzst/81/88/2 | | 1988 | Book Review: Party Politics by: Assad Shoman | | Carla Barnett |
src/bzst/82/88/3 | | 1988 | Creating and Manipulating Power within Dependency | I have approached the problem of power relations in the citrus industry in Belize from the perspective of political anthropology. A central debate which has shaped political anthropology concerns the issue of whether power relations are structured a priori, or whether they are negotiated. | Laurie Kroshus Medina |
src/bzst/82/88/3 | | 1988 | "Transnational Politics: Coca- Cola Foods in Belize" | This paper is a case study of the Coca-Cola Foods entrance into Belize and its subsequent failure to carry out its initial plans to grow citrus for the U.S. market. The case illustrates the often asymmetrical bargaining dynamics between a small country and a large transnational corporation. | David A. Kyle |
src/bzst/82/88/3 | | 1988 | "Reporting of Belize by Two International Newspapers" | Much recent research has focused upon the impact of foreign, particularly Anglo-American, mass media upon public perceptions and actions in Third World countries. For example, a recent study has examined the influence of U.S. mass media upon Belizeans’ perceptions and actions, particularly in the context of emigration. At the same time, it is important to remember that the transmission of information by mass media is multidirectional. International public perception of a small Third World country such as Belize is also greatly influenced by portrayal of that country by mass media, particularly North America and European newspapers, television and radio. | David H. Lewis, Michael Day |
src/bzst/83/89/1 | | 1989 | Colonial Time and T.V. Time: Media and Historical Consciousness in Belize | While Belize has avoided most of the political and military strife that has torn its Central American neighbors, and the threatened Guatemalan invasion has never come, the country has been shaken to its cultural fundament by another invasion that seems even less controllable than African killer bees. American television programming has become a central fact of Belizean culture. Even in rural areas the evening hours are captured by the Cosby Show, baseball, and regular network fare from TV movies to CNN news. | Richard Wilk |
src/bzst/83/89/1 | | 1989 | Country of No Return: Belize since Television | In the ever-occurring deliberations about possible effects of mass communications, certain countries surface as archetypal examples - almost as "countries of the moment." In the 1950s and 1960s, when radio (especially through forums) and television were believed to be development catalysts, India, American Samoa and one or two other territories wee at center stage. In the 1970s, Brunei, with its gigantic and accelerated leap into color television, and Indonesia and India, with their PALAPA and S.I.T.E satellites, became focal points, followed by the Middle East, with its overall rapid advancement in use of new information technology. | Dr. John A. Lent |
src/bzst/83/89/1 | | 1989 | Book Review: Colonialism and Resistance in Belize: | Essays in Historical Sociology by: Dr. O. Nigel Bolland | James S. Murphy, S. J. |
src/bzst/84/89/2 | | 1989 | "The Implementation of Belizean Studies Programmes in Secondary Schools, 1964-1987" | Since the attainment of self-government in 1964, and even more significantly after independence in 1981, nationalism has become a prominent feature of the Belizean experience. Belizean artists, poets, choreographers, sculptors, musicians and novelists have produced works richly expressive of the Belizean experience and ethnic complexity, while political independence remains the most obvious accomplishment of the earliest nationalist movement. | Francis Humphreys |
src/bzst/84/89/2 | | 1989 | "United States - Belize Relations in A Time of Tension: 1861- 1862" | The United States has never had a strategic interest in Belizean territory, has never intervened directly (at least in a visible way) in Belizean internal affairs, and has certainly never invaded the country of landed troops to protect American interests. Yet there was a time, about 130 years ago, when Belize and the United States may have been on the brink of armed conflict. | Richard Wilk |
src/bzst/84/89/2 | | 1989 | A Democracy Too Soon: The Constitutional Proposals 1923 - 1925 | One witness to the Riot Commission of 1919 testified to his belief that the soldiers who had instigated the violence felt that "politically the Colony is very backward" and Bennett believed that "the rioting had a political aspect". By ‘political’ he meant that the practice of democracy in Belize was not as well advanced as elsewhere in the colonial empire and there was a widespread desire among the populace for the reestablishment of the elective principle in the constitution. | Peter Ashdown |
src/bzst/85/89/3 | | 1989 | John Coxon and the Role of Buccaneering in the Settlement of the Yucatan Colonial Frontier | Frontier settler and pirate, founding father and social outcast - John Coxon was all of these. His career reveals the dual social personality of the rugged Englishmen who first settled at Laguna de Terminos on the Bay of Campeche near modern Ciudad del Carmen, as both buccaneers and cutters of what was then a valued commodity: logwood. | Gilbert M. Joseph |
src/bzst/85/89/3 | | 1989 | The Poetry of Colonialism: 19th Century Doggerel about Belize | Poems are many things to many different people. They can be amusing, emotional, romantic, public or very private, abstract or descriptive. To an anthropologist like myself, however, poetry is important as a window into another culture and another time. They can even express ideas that the writer held, but was not consciously aware of at the time. Just as Homer has been a key, for generations of scholars, to the thought and emotions of the ancient Greeks, poems of other culture have helped us to understand how people see themselves, each other and the world. | Richard Wilk |
src/bzst/85/89/3 | | 1989 | The Valdez Proposal: A Rebel General's Plan for a German-Guatemalan Invasion of Belize | With healthy doses of good fortune, the secret proposal laying before the German Minister to Mexico might reshape the map of Central America. It might also relieve beleaguered German troops on the Western Front. In the desperate summer of 1918, German Minister von Eckhardt had to consider any proposal that could possibly aid the Fatherland’s faltering war effort. | Jaime Bisher |
src/bzst/86/90/1 | | 1990 | Gold Potential of the Maya Mountains of Belize | From investigations made in the Maya mountains since the 18th century, it appears that the gold occurrences are controlled by a Permo-Triassic volcanogenic and granitic complex. | Jean H. Cornec |
src/bzst/86/90/1 | | 1990 | The Impact of the Anglo-Guatemalan Dispute on the International politics of Belize | | Alma H. & Dennis H. Young |
src/bzst/86/90/1 | | 1990 | No Turning Back: U.S. Aid and Investment in Belize | In 1981 Belize obtained independence from Great Britain; two years later the U. S. Agency for International Development (AID) opened its mission doors, increasing aid by twenty-fold in the 1980’s. This paper will explore the expanding relationship between the U. S. and Belize through aid and trade that occurred after Belizean independence and continued through the 1980’s. | David Kyle |
src/bzst/87/90/2&3 | | 1990 | The Afro-Caribbean Presence In Central America | The volatility of regional politics and the predominance of Latin culture in the Central American isthmus have tended to overshadow a mainland Afro-Caribbean presence dating from slavery’s 16th century introduction into the Western hemisphere. This study delineates in general terms the historical role of Central America’s African population in the region’s emergent national social formations. The essay surveys the ethnohistorical record in a review of the Afro-Latin encounter in the Caribbean lowlands of Central America. Turning to the Belizean experience, it projects beyond questions of ethnicity to a more fundamental challenge, the forging of a uniquely national identity in a milieu of cross-cutting cultural, socio-economic and political influence. | Michael Cutler Stone |
src/bzst/87/90/2&3 | | 1990 | The Mosquito Shore and The Bay of Honduras during the Era of the American Revolution. | This paper offers an overview of the impact of the American Revolution on British settlement in Central America, including a more detailed discussion of the role of the American Loyalists (those colonists who opposed the war) than has yet appeared in print. It also includes an analysis of certain British Settlers in Central America who were bracketed with the loyalists. Finally, the little-known Skeleton Papers, located in the Scottish Records Office, Edinburgh, yield interesting information about the economy of the Mosquito Shore. | Wallace Brown |
src/bzst/87/90/2&3 | | 1990 | Book Reviews: Books by: Robert R. Naylor | (1) Influencia Británica en el Comercio Centroamericano Durante las Primeras Décadas de la Independencia, 1821 - 1851 (Antigua, Guatemala: Centro de Investigaciones Regionales de Mesoamerica, Serie Monográfica: 3, 1966) and (2) Penny Ante Imperialism: The Mosquito Shore and the Bay of Honduras, 1600 - 1914: A Case Study in British Informal Empire | Herman J. Byrd |
src/bzst/88/91/1 | June | 1991 | The Commemoration of the Ignatian year and Introduction of Fr. Charles T. Hunter, S. J. | | James S. Murphy, S. J. |
src/bzst/88/91/1 | June | 1991 | From Mono-Cultural Myopia to Multi-Cultural Vision: The Role of Jesuit Secondary Education in Maintaining Cultural Pluralism in Belize. | | Charles T. Hunter, S. J. |
src/bzst/88/91/1 | June | 1991 | Cultural Colonization and Educational Underdevelopment: Changing patterns of American Influence in Belizean Schooling. | | Charles Rutheiser |
src/bzst/88/91/1 | June | 1991 | Commentary on Charles Rutheiser's Changing Patterns of American Influence in Belizean Schooling | Charles Rutheiser’s paper presents an interesting analysis of the growing presence of agencies of U. S. origin in Belize and their influence on formal education in this country. However, he also suggests that Belizeans are aware of this American presence and its actual and potential influence, are critical of it and do what they can, when they can, to avoid becoming prey to its "neocolonial orientation." | J. Alexander Bennett |
src/bzst/88/91/1 | June | 1991 | Book Review: Character & Caricatures in Belizean Folklore by Meg Craig | | Charles T. Hunter, S. J. |
src/bzst/89/91/2&3 | December | 1991 | Post-War Guatemalan Foreign Policy and the Independence of Belize | | Dean 0. Barrow |
src/bzst/89/91/2&3 | December | 1991 | Developments in Guatemala and Belize - Guatemala Relations in the Independence Decade | This paper sets out to review developments within Guatemala over the last decade with the aim of providing some informative commentary on developments within Guatemala which could help explain the dramatic turnabout of the entrenched Guatemalan refusal to recognize and independent Belize. | Herman J. Byrd |
src/bzst/89/91/2&3 | December | 1991 | Cockburn, Miller and the Shift in British Policy in Belize 1834-1835 | | Karl R. DeRouen |
src/bzst/89/91/2&3 | December | 1991 | Christmas and Bramming in Belize City | The purpose of this paper is to describe ritual and festive features of Christmas in Belize City (1989) some of which are borrowed, and others that are emerging as distinctly its own. Of particular interest in addition to traditional holiday activities, is the "bram" ,a community based celebration that includes music, dancing and feasting. | Laurie A. Greene & Joseph Rubenstein |
src/bzst/89/91/2&3 | December | 1991 | Book Review: In Times like These by: Zee Edgell | | Charles T. Hunter, S. J. |
src/bzst/90/92/1 | May | 1992 | The University's Christian Inspiration | To clarify the future of the university from the perspective of theology and its requirements, it is worthwhile turning to something that precedes theology and university: the fundamental principles of Christian faith. These principles, respecting the particular nature of theology and the university, are the ones that can provide guidance, empowerment, and critique for both, shedding light on their interrelationship as well. | Jon Sobrino, S. J. |
src/bzst/90/92/1 | May | 1992 | Petty Smuggling and Lost Revenue at Santa Elena | So who hasn’t shopped in Chetumal? For some it is a routine chore, for others, a special day; for many it is a necessity, and for a few, a luxury. But for the government it is a problem because it means lost revenue. Of course shoppers pay a tariff tax when they cross the border but only the naïve would believe everyone pays as much as the law dictates. In this short paper, I take up the question of just how much money is the government losing in uncollected imports duties at the Santa Elena crossing. The paper then scores a final note by raising tow recommendations that could help alleviate the problem of generating public revenue in Belize. | Bruce Weigand |
src/bzst/90/92/1 | May | 1992 | Abortion in Belize: A Preliminary Assessment | The abortion issue is a multi-faceted one with ethical, medical, religious, social, and legal dimensions. An exhaustive discourse on all these aspects would be quite lengthy and beyond the scope of this paper and the competence of its authors. This paper is essentially a preliminary assessment of the abortion issue in Belize. It sets out primarily to share some results of a questionnaire meant to examine public views and understanding of abortion in Belize. | Manuela Lue & Sarah Hobbs |
src/bzst/90/92/1 | May | 1992 | Commentary: Sobrino's The University's Christian Inspiration | | Lorraine Gomez |
src/bzst/91/92/2 | October | 1992 | 1492: The Old World Discovers the New World Again | It was a fateful meeting between the visitors, Old World European Columbus and his sailors; and the hosts, New World Arawaks. Columbus thought he had reached Asia. Neither knew that meeting would alter human history. Neither envisioned the monumentally beneficial and catastrophic effects. Both would influence each other. The Europeans would prevail. | Alexandra M. Coye |
src/bzst/91/92/2 | October | 1992 | Historical Perspective on the Spanish Language of Belize | One is immediately impressed by the uniqueness of Belizean Spanish intonation, although this aspect along with the many syntactic, morphological and lexical features which set it apart from other Spanish dialects, have yet to be fully studied. The present study examines the origins and history of the Spanish language in Belize in an attempt to explain why this uniqueness has developed. | Timothy W. Hagerty |
src/bzst/91/92/2 | October | 1992 | Prominent Citizens of the Confederate Community in Belize City, 1865 - 1870 | As the political and economic leader, Belize City became the center of efforts to populate the interior of the colony. A large concentration of Ex-Confederates at Belize City resulted even thought not all immigrants entered the colony through port city. The impression of the new arrivals paint a wondrous picture of the city and draw grand characterization of the more prominent members of the Confederate community in the colony. | Donald Clyde Simmons Jr. |
src/bzst/91/92/2 | October | 1992 | Commentary: On Saving Anancy | | Ervin Beck |
src/bzst/92/92/3 | December | 1992 | Geomorphology and Hydrology of the Blue Hole, Caves Branch | | Michael J. Day |
src/bzst/92/92/3 | December | 1992 | The Afro-Belizean Cultural Heritage: Its Role in Combating Recolonization | Examine the historical origins of Garifuna-Creole friction, then demonstrate that the African heritage of both ethnic groups can be the "common, shared values" needed to fully emancipate them from their colonial prejudice. I will argue that "the danger of cultural recolonization, especially through the mass media" faced by these ethnic groups can effectively be combated through the re-discovery, preservation and enhancement of the common African heritage that they share. | Francis Humphreys |
src/bzst/92/92/3 | December | 1992 | Garifuna Immigrants in Los Angeles: Attempts at Self-Improvement | Since the 1960’s thousands of Garifuna people among other Belizean have migrated to the United States of America. In keeping with the large amount of research don on them in their Central American home countries, scholarly interest by anthropologists has followed them. "The purpose of this paper is to suggest that a major social change is now occurring which we believe will ultimately destroy Garifuna culture as its bearers now know it". | Joseph O. Palacio |
src/bzst/93/93/1 | May | 1993 | Social and Cultural Implications of Recent Demographic Changes in Belize | My aim in this presentation is to initiate a sociological analysis of the dramatic changes within the population of Belize during the past decades. I will try to show that there are links among the changes I see on Hydes Lane as well as in other parts of the country. Briefly these changes include an increasing outflow of Belizeans, the inflow of Central Americans and of other foreigners, increase in poverty, and conspicuous display of wealth. Finally I will make some recommendations about much needed future research and action. | Joseph O. Palacio |
src/bzst/93/93/1 | May | 1993 | The History of Television in Belize: 1980 - Present | This paper will deal with the history of television in Belize. However, in order to put Belizean television in perspective, a brief overview of broadcasting and the press is needed. | Dion Weaver |
src/bzst/93/93/1 | May | 1993 | Alan Burns and Robert Turton: Two Views of the Public Good | | Peter Ashdown |
src/bzst/94/93/2 | October | 1993 | Belize: As Presented in Her Literature | "… and by my works I will show you my faith," is appropriate advice, and, the theme of this paper. Using the two bibliographies of Belize, namely Minkel and Alderman, and Woodward, journals published in Belize, monographs published during the past decade, and a bit of personal observation from this writer’s fifteen years of annual visits we will see a shift in focus from a predominance of archeological reports, agricultural and forestry bulletins, catalogues of Belizean flora and fauna, to a mature compendium of books and articles which deal with the nation as a nation of people, more than as a locus of physical facts and artifacts. | Bruce Ergood |
src/bzst/94/93/2 | October | 1993 | Why Toycie Bruk Down: A study of Zee Edgell’s Beka Lamb. | In this Oft-Quoted passage from Beka Lamb, Belizean novelist Zee Edgell distills the essence of her novel: in Belize, it has often been difficult to make progress. | Mary Parham |
src/bzst/94/93/2 | October | 1993 | The Sinners’ Bossanova: Its Caribbean Roots | The subject of this paper is a controversial novel. I would imagine, on the basis of published comment, that some of you may have wondered why anyone would choose to discuss it in a context of literary criticism. In other words, to a great extent, it has been dismissed as trivial and escapist. | Steve Glassman |
src/bzst/94/93/2 | October | 1993 | Belize’s Literary Heritage: A 500 year Perspective | Long before the Europeans set foot on the American mainland, exceptional civilizations had arisen throughout the continent. Notable among these civilizations were the Mayas who flourished in Guatemala, Belize, Mexico, Honduras and El Salvador, as far north as the Yaqui and Mayo Valleys in Mexico down to the midpoint indigenous American and alien European cultures; that encounter represented a point of contact and conflict between the two cultures in which both groups underwent vast changes. | David Ruiz |
src/bzst/95/94/3 | February | 1994 | Imaging Belize: Tourist and Tourism Advertising | In this paper I briefly discuss conceptions of tourism and its connection to the imagined community. I then look at tourism advertising and review past and current images of Belize in tourism advertising and publicity. I conclude with some thoughts on the future of the tourist industry and tourism advertising in the case of Belize. | Michael D. Phillips |
src/bzst/95/94/3 | February | 1994 | Indirect Rule and the Alcalde System: Among the Gariguna of Belize | In administering its empire in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, Great Britain implemented diverse forms of indirect rule among subject populations. A variety of administrative systems were introduced on the Caribbean coast of Central America, where by the seventeenth century Britain vied with Spain for control of labour and resources. This article examines how the alcalde system, a form of indirect rule utilizing locally appointed headmen, was adopted as a means of administering Garifuna communities in the nineteenth century Belize. | Mark Moberg |
src/bzst/95/94/3 | February | 1994 | Reflections: New Vigor for the Church: Conversations on the Global Challenges of Our Times | | Peter-Hans Kolvenbach, S. J. |
src/bzst/95/94/3 | February | 1994 | Book Review: Belize, 2nd Edition. By: Peggy Wright and Brian E. Coutts | | Lawrence Vernon |
src/bzst/96/95/1 | March | 1995 | Looking Beyond The Year 2000: The Implications of Development in Belize’s Economy in the 1980’s and 1990’s | This paper begins with an examination of the present structure of the economy of Belize. On the basis of this, it proceeds to discern the challenges of the 21st century. We should make it clear from the outset that when we speak of "the economy", although we may be talking in abstract terms of production and consumption, investment and saving, diversification and concentration, we also need to bear in mind that we are speaking of the people in society who are producing and consuming, investing and saving and individually contribute to the trends which we, as economist, try to measure, understand and predict. | Carla Barnett |
src/bzst/96/95/1 | March | 1995 | Abortion and Family Life In Belize | | Gary Chamberlain |
src/bzst/96/95/1 | March | 1995 | Historical Narratives and Interpretation of Belizean History | The works presented in this paper are of two types. The first is a traditional history, presenting dates and facts in an objective style, and the second is a novel, which relates historical events through the lives and thoughts of fictional characters. In the first type, when the author orders history chronologically, he "creates the illusion of unmediated reality". | Sarah Woodbury Haug |
src/bzst/96/95/1 | March | 1995 | Modern Myths, Misconceptions and the Maya of Belize Maya of Belize | | Mark Thompson |
src/bzst/97/01/1&2 | September | 2001 | Why the Spanish did not Settle Belize | | Richard O. Buhler |
src/bzst/97/01/1&2 | September | 2001 | Belize and its Neighbours: A Preliminary Report on Colonial Records of the Audiencia of Guatemala | | Lawrence H. Feldman |
src/bzst/97/01/1&2 | September | 2001 | Belize at Two: Keeping its Appointments with History | This article attempts to bring together historical date on the Anglo-Guatemalan Dispute and some of the more recent developments in the continuing effort to solve the problem. It is, in short, a collection of items not previously assembled conveniently. The article is divided into a brief treatment of the historical foundations of the dispute, and up-dated on recent efforts to settle the dispute, and a few concluding remarks. | James S. Murphy |
src/bzst/97/01/1&2 | September | 2001 | The Impact of the Anglo-Guatemalan Dispute on the International Politics of Belize | | Alma H. & Dennis H. Young |
src/bzst/97/01/1&2 | September | 2001 | Cockburn, Miller and the Shift in British Policy in Belize, 1834 - 1835 | | Karl R. DeRouen |
src/bzst/97/01/1&2 | September | 2001 | Post-War Guatemalan Foreign Policy and the Independence of Belize | | Dean O. Borrow |
src/bzst/97/01/1&2 | September | 2001 | Oil in Guatemala: An Economic Factor in the Heads of Agreement. | This paper argues that economic development in Guatemala, in particular the exploration and exportation of petroleum, was an important factor which helps to account for the Guatemalan Government’s readiness to negotiate the Heads of Agreement, the attempt made in March of 1981 to resolve the long-standing dispute with Britain over Belize. The following will attempt to gather the evidence for this claim by examining the state of affairs in Northern Guatemala from the late 1970s to the early 1980s, and by showing their connection with the topic which surfaced in the Heads of Agreement, the construction of pipelines from Guatemala through Belize. | Herman Byrd |
src/bzst/97/01/1&2 | September | 2001 | The Valdez Proposal: A Rebel General's Plan for a German-Guatemalan Invasion of Belize | With healthy doses of good fortune, the secret proposal laying before the German Minister to Mexico might reshape the map of Central America. It might also relieve beleaguered German troops on the Western Front. In the desperate summer of 1918, German Minister von Eckhardt had to consider any proposal that could possibly aid the Fatherland’s faltering war effort. | Jaime Bisher |
src/bzst/97/01/1&2 | September | 2001 | Developments in Guatemala and Belize - Guatemala Relations in the Independence Decade | This paper sets out to review developments within Guatemala over the last decade with the aim of providing some informative commentary on developments within Guatemala which could help explain the dramatic turnabout of the entrenched Guatemalan refusal to recognize and independent Belize. | Herman J. Byrd |
src/bzst/97/01/1&2 | September | 2001 | A Commentary on the Belize-Guatemalan Facilitation Process | | Alexis Rosado |
src/bzst/97/01/1&2 | September | 2001 | Commentary: Where is Belize Heading? Will Belize ever become Part of Guatemala? A Guatemalan Perspective. | | Leo Obando, M.A. |
src/bzst/97/01/1&2 | September | 2001 | A Selected Bibliography of the Guatemalan Claim | | Charles Gibson, Lawrence Vernon |
src/bzst/98/02/1 | March | 2002 | Dangriga’s Two Centuries of Change | | H. Francis Humphreys |
src/bzst/98/02/1 | March | 2002 | Education as if People Matter: A Call for Critical Thinking and Humanistic Education | | Frank Gomez Jr. |
src/bzst/98/02/1 | March | 2002 | Symbols, Values, and Rituals of the Mestizo in Western Belize | After a brief review of their history, this paper will highlight some key characteristics of the Mestizo in western Belize. The aim is to deepen appreciation of the Mestizo culture and their contribution to the development of multi-ethnic Belize. | David N. Ruiz, Jr. |
src/bzst/98/02/1 | March | 2002 | Tribute to: Philip S. W. Goldson: A National Icon | | Hon. Dean O. Borrow |
src/bzst/98/02/1 | March | 2002 | Book Review: Clifford D. Conner, Colonel Despard: The Life and Times of an Anglo-Irish Rebel | | Lita Hunter-Krohn |
src/bzst/99/02/2 | September | 2002 | Culture, Spirituality and Transformation: Undoing the Colonizer within Us | In this essay, through the use of social analysis, I hope to: 1) Illustrate how the colonial cultural ethos provided the primary definition of how Belizean people see themselves, 2) examine a broader understanding of the concept of spirituality and how that understanding might help us in undoing the effects of colonization, and 3) lastly, share my vision for a transformed society. My major thesis is that a certain cultural ethos has shaped our way of ‘being’ and ‘becoming’ a people and a key way for transformation and liberation to a new sense of self identity is through deep process of soul searching. | Sr. Barbara Ann Flores, SCN |
src/bzst/99/02/2 | September | 2002 | Factors Affecting Youth in Belize | I will begin by defining what it means to be young in Belize today, then provide some background information on international and national initiatives to improve the opportunities for young people. The heart of my presentation will address the following factors affecting youth in our country today: teenage pregnancy, drug abuse, sexually transmitted diseases, gang/crime, child abuse and neglect, and education. I will conclude with some suggestions on how we may respond to these challenges. | Louise Smith |
src/bzst/99/02/2 | September | 2002 | “Dollarization!” | | Michael J. Pisani and David W. Yoskowitz |
src/bzst/99/02/2 | September | 2002 | A Tribute to Leo H. Bradley, Sr. | | Lawrence Vernon |
src/bzst/99/02/2 | September | 2002 | Book Review: Donald C. Simmons, Jr. 'Confederate Settlement in British Honduras' | | Lawrence Vernon |
src/bzst/100/03/1 | April | 2003 | A Tribute to Father Charles T. Hunter, S. J.: 1912 - 2002 | | Zee Edgell |
src/bzst/100/03/1 | April | 2003 | Fr. Charles T. Hunter, S. J. - Priest and Scholar | | Carol Fonseca |
src/bzst/100/03/1 | April | 2003 | The Web of Anancy, Super Spiderman (A popular exploratory essay into our past Belizean roots, our emerging cultural identity, and our future national role) | Published by Bruckdown No. 17, 1978 and reprinted with permission of the publisher | Charles T. Hunter, S. J. |
src/bzst/100/03/1 | April | 2003 | Proverbial Wisdom: The Folksy Philosophy of Caribbean Creole | Reprinted with permission from Brukdown, No. 19/1980 | Charles T. Hunter, S. J. |
src/bzst/100/03/1 | April | 2003 | The Purgative Purpose of Protest Poetry: Caribbean Catharsis | Reprinted from Bruckdown with permission of publisher | Charles T. Hunter, S. J. |
src/bzst/100/03/1 | April | 2003 | The Young Belizean Church: A Jesuit Mission Comes of Age | Reprinted with permission from The Christian Herald, September 1983 | Charles T. Hunter, S. J. |
src/bzst/100/03/1 | April | 2003 | Women Working towards Development of Self, Community, and Country | Fr. Hunter delivered this address to the National Women’s Convention in Belize City on March 8, 1994. | Charles T. Hunter, S. J. |
src/bzst/100/03/1 | April | 2003 | Religion and Development | Reprinted from the BELCAST Journal of Belizean Affairs, Vol. 1 No. 1 December 1984 | Charles T. Hunter, S. J. |
src/bzst/100/03/1 | April | 2003 | Vatican II Revisited: A Belizean Response to the Extraordinary Synod of ’85 (From - diocesan priests and pastoral teams of Belize) | Fr. Hunter’s report on a meeting of Diocesan priests held on May 22, 1986 | Charles T. Hunter, S. J. |
src/bzst/100/03/1 | April | 2003 | From Mono-Culture Myopia to Multi-Cultural Vision: The Role of Jesuit Secondary Education in Maintaining Cultural Pluralism in Belize | | Charles T. Hunter, S. J. |
src/bzst/100/03/1 | April | 2003 | Literature: Belize’s First Novel, "Beka Lamb" | This review was published in Belizean Studies in 1982 | Charles T. Hunter, S. J. |
src/bzst/100/03/1 | April | 2003 | Farewell Tio Carlos! | | Lita Hunter-Krohn |
src/bzst/101/03/1 | September | 2003 | Belize and the Plan Puebla-Panama: Prospects and Challenges | | M. J. Pisani, D. W. Yoskowitz, W. A. Label |
src/bzst/101/03/1 | September | 2003 | Educational Excellence: What does it mean to an Educator in Belize? | | Frank Gomez, Jr. |
src/bzst/101/03/1 | September | 2003 | Why are Garifuna Students Underachieving in Primary and Secondary Schools? | This is a narrative description of an effort by a group of concerned Garifuna leaders to study the level of achievement of Garifuna students in primary and secondary schools in Southern Belize. It starts with a discussion of how the study originated continues with the implementation and results and finishes with an analysis of the results. | Joseph O. Palacio |
src/bzst/101/03/1 | September | 2003 | Transnational Environmentalism, Power and Development in Belize | | Kenneth A. Gould |
src/bzst/101/03/1 | September | 2003 | Antibacterial properties of Ethno-botanically important Plants | | Thippi Thiagarajan and Douglas Aspinal |
src/bzst/102/04/1 | April | 2004 | The Social Carrying Capacity of Ecotourists Visiting Cayo District, Belize | This research explores relations between ecotourism destinations, primary tourist activities, social carrying capacities, satisfaction levels, and tourist preferences for development of the ecotourism industry, as expressed by ecotourists visiting Cayo District, Belize. Our specific objectives were to: (1) identify tourists’ demographic characteristics, (2) establish density tolerance levels for particular tourist activities, (3) determine current encounter rates during tourists’ main activities, and (4) assess visitor satisfaction levels. | Sara E. Alexander, Kristine M. Gentry |
src/bzst/102/04/1 | April | 2004 | Language Diversity and the Teaching of Languages to Infants in the Toledo District of Belize. | This paper, after briefly reviewing the debate in Belize on first language use for formal education, will present and assess the implications of the findings of the Language Teaching Support research. | John Newport |
src/bzst/102/04/1 | April | 2004 | Using Literature to Teach Reading, A Model that Works | | Rosalind Bradley, Denise Robateau |
src/bzst/102/04/1 | April | 2004 | Maid in Belize: Employee & Employer Perspective on the Minimum Wage | Our paper reports the findings of this national survey and is organized as follows: section two provides and overview of Belize; section three surveys the appropriate literature; section four highlights the methodology employed; section five details the results; and the last section concludes the paper. | M. J. Pisani, D. W. Yoskowitz, Roy Young |
src/bzst/103/04/2 | December | 2004 | A Preliminary Assessment of the Proposed Belize-Guatemala Free Trade Agreement | With an emphasis upon Belize, this paper seeks to explore the prospects of enhanced economic interaction and integration between Belize and Guatemala as possible result of political rapprochement involving the two neighbors. | Michael J. Pisani |
src/bzst/103/04/2 | December | 2004 | Technology Training in Belize: A Bottom-Up approach to Community Development | This research aims to investigate the role of community computer centers in equipping families with technology training in preparation for job opportunities. Unlike other studies, this research attempts to assess the effectiveness of a Bottom-Up approach in transferring technology knowledge from child-to-parent verses parent-to-child. While rural Belizeans struggle fro access to education, few researchers have looked to youth for answers in imparting knowledge gained from training to other family members, ultimately building better communities for all. | Kathaleena E. Monds, Cynthia F. Bennett |
src/bzst/103/04/2 | December | 2004 | The Tripartite Ecological Park in the Facilitators’ Proposals: Conservation Fostering Peace | As in the original presentation, this paper provides and analysis of the proposition to establish a tripartite ecological park as part of a package presented to the Organization of American States in 2002 by facilitators Sony Ramphal and Richard Reichler to provide a definitive solution to the Belize-Guatemala territorial differendum. Although the proposals have been rejected by Guatemala and the proposed referenda never held, this paper contends that the establishment of the park can be one of the definitive mechanisms in future negotiations to settle Guatemala’s claim and it can foster and encourage sustainable development of the people of the nations that use, or in some cases abuse, the resources within the proposed park. | Anna Dominguez Hoare |
src/bzst/103/04/2 | December | 2004 | Education in Belize: The National Education Summit 2004 and Beyond | | David Leacock |
src/bzst/103/04/2 | December | 2004 | Does anyone in Guatemala really want to bring this thing to an end? | | James S. Murphy |
src/bzst/103/04/2 | December | 2004 | Book Review: | 1) Caye to Success: A Biography of Antonio Lorenzo Vega Sr. By: Mati Gomoll (2) The Guatemalan Claim to Belize: A Handbook on the Negotiations By: James S. Murphy | Herman Byrd |
src/bzst/104/05/1 | June | 2005 | Processes of Differentiation in Belize City: The Construction and Negotiation of Immigrants and Other Strangers | This article examines how Creoles in Belize City relate to and differentiate themselves from Central American immigrants and Chinese immigrants in the City. With the continued exodus of Belizeans to the United States and the increase social and cultural North American influence in Belize, there is a growing sense among Creole in Belize City of cultural deterioration and failing local communities. The theoretical argument in this article is based on Thomas Hylland Eriksen’s contention that our object of analysis should be the cultural contexts of interaction when we seek to understand how cultural difference is communicated and negotiated. | Flemming Daugaard-Hansen |
src/bzst/104/05/1 | June | 2005 | Building Sustainable Livelihoods for the Food Insecure and Nutritionally Vulnerable in Belize | The goal of this project is to promote increase food security at the national, community, and household levels through the establishment of holistic, successful and sustainable food security policies, programmes, production, and consumption activities. | Joseph O. Palacio |
src/bzst/104/05/1 | June | 2005 | Local Interests versus Global Organizational Power Political Conflicts in the Organization of Belizean Football | This article is about the political consequences of a conflict between two rival Belizean football organizations. | Carel Roessingh and Kees Boersma |
src/bzst/104/05/1 | June | 2005 | The 2005 Disturbances: A Journalists’ Timeline from August 1, 2004 to April 6, 2005 | | Adele Ramos |
src/bzst/104/05/1 | June | 2005 | Book Review: Belize: A Concise History By: P. A. B. Thompson | | Lita H. Krohn |
src/bzst/105/05/2 | November | 2005 | Colonialism and Wildlife in Belize | | Richard Wilk |
src/bzst/105/05/2 | November | 2005 | Nature and Culture in Colonial Travel Writing and Ecotourism Discourse | | Megan Casey |
src/bzst/105/05/2 | November | 2005 | The Cockscomb in the Colonial Present | | Joel Wainwright and Christine Ageton |
src/bzst/105/05/2 | November | 2005 | Racing Nature and Naturalizing Race: Rethinking the Nature of Creole and Garifuna Identities | In this article, I explore the relationship between colonial racial ideologies and Belize’s natural landscape past and present. The Creole, Garifuna, Maya and Mestizo groups are each associated with different parts of Belize, and with different ways of living in the environment in each of those locations. | Melissa A. Johnson |
src/bzst/105/05/2 | November | 2005 | Ethical Contexts | | K. Anne Pyburn |
src/bzst/106/06/1 | April | 2006 | General Overview of the National Capacity Self Assessment Project (NCSA) | Belize has ratified the tree Rio Conventions, namely the UN Convention on Biological Diversity (UNCBD) on December 30, 1993, the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) on October 31, 1994 and the Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) on July 23, 1998. Implementation of the respective national commitments and obligations of the three conventions in the country has largely been ad-hoc and uncoordinated resulting in sub-optimal impact. The Ministry of Natural Resources, Local Government and the Environment is responsible for the implementation of these conventions. | Anselmo Castañeda |
src/bzst/106/06/1 | April | 2006 | Six Hydrologic Indices to Evaluate the State of Aridity in Belize, el Peten, Guatemala and Yucatan. | The problem of land degradation is not only a phenomenon of dry land zones, as has been adopted by the UNCCD, but it is also a challenge that must be faced by countries in the dry sub humid tropics, like those in Mesoamerica. Land degradation is the result of interaction among biophysical and socioeconomic factors (Lobo et al, 2004). It is closely related to the over exploration of the soil, natural resources and poverty. | Ramon Frutos |
src/bzst/106/06/1 | April | 2006 | Human Impact Mapping of the Mopan and Chiquibul rivers within Guatemala and Belize. | This study revealed that the upper Mopan River (all reaches above Los Encuentros or the convergence with the Chiquibul River) has been subjected to the greatest amount of stress from sedimentation, nutrient loading, habitat alteration, thermal alteration, toxins/contaminants and trophic alteration than indicated for the Chiquibul River or the lower Mopan River (all reaches below Los Encuentros to the river mouth at its confluence with the Macal River). | Jes Karper and Ed Boles |
src/bzst/106/06/1 | April | 2006 | Food and the Community: The Role of Sharing a Meal among the Mennonites of Shipyard, Belize. | In this article we want to focus on the sharing of food to explain more about the processes of inclusion and exclusion in the process of community forming among the Mennonites of Shipyard and their ideas about purity. | Tanja Plasil and Carel Roessingh |
src/bzst/106/06/1 | April | 2006 | "Neo-Dependent Commercial Exterior Relations? An Analysis of the Belizean Export Basket Since Independence" | This paper seeks to better understand the performance of Belizean exports given the undemocratic nature of the global trading system and the local context in which the exports are produced. | Michael J. Pisani |
src/bzst/106/06/1 | April | 2006 | Book Review: "Peopling Belize: Chapters in Migration 2006 by St. John Robinson." | | Lawrence Vernon |
src/bzst/107/06/2 | November | 2006 | Feasibility of Plantation Xate in Belize | | Michael Rea |
src/bzst/107/06/2 | November | 2006 | The Caribbean Single Market and Economy (CSME) Implications for the Education Sector in Belize A Perspective. | Presented by Marian McNab, Chief Education Officer, Ministry of Education, on the Occasion of the 16th Signa Yorke memorial Lecture. | Marian McNab |
src/bzst/107/06/2 | November | 2006 | The Effects of the Caribbean Single Market and Economy (CSME) on the Productive Sector. | "The bulk of the presentation will be on the Revised Treaty of Chaguaramas giving rise to the CSME. The rationale for the CSME is that the free movement of goods, services, capital and skilled people across the region will facilitate a more efficient allocation of resources, easier access to capital, skills and services. My presentation will be divided into four areas, namely: the history, regional trade, the effects of CSME and conclusions." | Kevin Hererra |
src/bzst/107/06/2 | November | 2006 | The March of History: the Belize-Guatemala Question and the Alternatives before Us. | "This paper provides a general discussion, especially for the general reader in Belize, on the Facilitation Process of the Belize-Guatemala territorial differendum, and examines the Facilitators’ proposals for a settlement, their implications (economic, financial and political), and the alternatives before us. This paper casts an eye to the future by examining our options (four in particular) should the proposals be deemed unacceptable by either or both countries. In the process, this paper address the implications of a ‘yes’ vote by Belize, as well as a ‘no’ vote for the proposals by either of the countries. Includes critique of the Ramphal-Reichler Proposals." | Frank Gomez Jr. |
src/bzst/107/06/2 | November | 2006 | Looking In, Writing Out: Journals as a Tool for Enhancing Critical Thought and Learning in Belizean Schools. | | Jeanette Winsor |
src/bzst/107/06/2 | November | 2006 | Book Review: | Peter Hitchen, Education and Multi-Cultural Cohesion in the Caribbean: the Case of Belize, 1931-1981. | Grant J. Rich |
src/bzst/108/07/1 | May | 2007 | Black Gold, White Gold and Gentrification of Belize | Oil is a finite, non-renewable resource that will be depleted in a matter of a few years, while land value is perpetual and perpetually increasing in value. One study indicates that 75% or more of coastal land has been purchased by foreigners, at prices that far exceed what most Belizeans could pay This paper will show evidence of coastal land values using GIS analysis, and a plan to recover land rent following Ricardo's principle of economic rent. Include information on Belize Natural Energy Limited (BNE) | Gary Flomenhoft, Marion Cayetano and Colin Young |
src/bzst/108/07/1 | May | 2007 | The Belizean View of the Economic Way Forward: Regional versus Global Perspective | We understand that physical geography and history are important determinants of foreign economic relations, as Belize is geographically embedded in Central America with a Caribbean history of British colonialism. As such, we seek to shed light on two related research questions one focus on regional economic relations, the other on more Global economic relations based upon Belizean public opinion. The research questions are 1) Do Belizeans perceive their economic destiny to be tied with the Caribbean or Central America? And 2) Which nation/ group of nations are perceived by Belizeans as having the greatest economic influences in Belize? The remainder of the paper is divided as follows: section two reviews the pertinent literature, section three illustrates our survey methodology , section four presents our results with a discussion, and the last section concludes the paper | Michael J. Pisani and Jana S. Pisani |
src/bzst/108/07/1 | May | 2007 | Development in Belize Escaping the moral Paradox | The purpose of this paper is to draw attention to a paradox existing in the field of international development which undercuts the effort of development workers and the impact of their efforts. This essay explores the strategic paradox, the pressures shaping compulsive greed, the understanding effect of greed upon sustainable development, and, the logic and disutility of moral development interventions. It also suggest a counter strategy for escaping from the limitations of moral approaches to development. | Michael Rosberg |
src/bzst/108/07/1 | May | 2007 | The Utility of Atmospheric Sounding Stability Indices for the Evaluation of Thunderstorm Potential in Belize | This research aims at removing some of that subjectivity by injecting a more scientific and empirical method of evaluating thunderstorm potential. The first section covers data sources along with a description of the different stability indices. This is followed by the section dealing with the method used to assign classes of risk/ threat levels to each selected index. The third section comprises the results of performance measures of forecast quality of the combined indices along with a comparison with individual index. Included in this section are selected examples of successes and failures of using a single valued index as compared with a aggregate. The final section involves the summary and discussions along with future avenues for research in severe thunderstorm forecasting in Belize | Dennis S. Gonguez |
src/bzst/108/07/1 | May | 2007 | Book Review | Rene R. Villanueva. Thanks for Choosing Love | Lawrence Vernon |
src/bzst/109/07/2 | December | 2007 | Step Mountain and the Kingdom of the Avocado: Engineering Marvel and Forgotten Hieroglyphs at Pusilha, Belize | Today, Toledo is often called the "Forgotten District" of Belize. But it was not always so. During the Classic Period (A.D. 250-850), Toledo District was home to at least four important Maya kingdoms. Today we call the capitals of these kingdoms Lubaantun, Nim Li Punit, Uxbenka, and Pusilha - by far the largest ancient Maya city in southern Belize - is far less known. Despite these early discoveries, very few archaeologists or travelers have visited Pusilha since 1930's and it has become something of a forgotten gem. | Geoffrey E. Braswell |
src/bzst/109/07/2 | December | 2007 | Ancient Mariners on the Belizean Coast: Stingrays, Seafood, and Salt | In this paper I will summarize my archaeological fieldwork on the coast, cays, and underwater in Belize since 1979, including the trading ports of Moho Caye and Wild Cane Cay, as well as the salt works in Paynes Creek National Park where we found the Maya canoe paddle in 2004 and other exciting discoveries in our underwater archaeological survey. | Heather McKillop |
src/bzst/109/07/2 | December | 2007 | In search of the first Belizeans: The Paleo - Indian and Hunter Gather of Belize | Although Belize is perhaps best known archaeologically for its large Maya cities like Caracol, Lamanai, and Lubaantun, the records of human habitation in the country extends well beyond the origins of ancient Maya civilization. Indeed, long before the establishment of the first Maya settlement two distinct but related cultural groups, the Paleo-Indians and Archaic people, thrived in the area that is today modern Belize. | Jaime J. Awe and Jon C. Lohse |
src/bzst/109/07/2 | December | 2007 | The earliest Maya of Belize: Terminal Early Formative Settlement in the Belize Valley | This article summarizes the important elements of the earliest phases at these two sites (Cunil at Cahal Pech and Kanocha at Blackman Eddy, 1100-900 BC) | James F. Garber and Jaime J. Awe |
src/bzst/109/07/2 | December | 2007 | Ancient Maya Urban Development: Insights from the Archaeology of Caracol, Belize | This paper derives from a body of long- term research data that have been collected in the course of more than 25 years of work at Caracol, Belize that may be used to answer questions concerning the composition, scale, and development of a Classic Maya city ( e.g. D. Chase et al. 1990). These data also suggest that, in spite of differences between modern and past economic system, ancient expressions of modern urban principles are reflected in the use of space at Caracol. | Arlen F. Chase and Diane Z. Chase |
src/bzst/109/07/2 | December | 2007 | Archaeology and Northern Belize | Several northwestern portions of northern Belize have become accessible during the last few decades and had lagged behind other areas in terms of archaeological investigations. The area can be very rugged climb onto the escarpments that define the region. From haystack knolls to very rough escarpment faces, heights in the area reach several hundred meters above sea level. The region has shown to be an area densely populated by the prehistoric Maya, perhaps because of available resources. Although today significant areas are covered by forest, these were likely open regions utilized and exploited by the ancient Mayas. | Fred Valdez Jr. |
src/bzst/109/07/2 | December | 2007 | Note on Contributors | | |
src/bzst/110/08/1 | June | 2008 | 'No Tyrants Here Linger': Understandings of Democracy in Modern Belize | This article examines understandings and interpretations of democracy in modern Belize. The article then cautiously assesses the prospects for a future democratic awakening in Belize. | Mark Nowottny, M.Sc. |
src/bzst/110/08/1 | June | 2008 | Belize: A Haven of Governance. Are we there Yet? | ".. .Development for countries like Belize means the alleviation of poverty, the uplifting of the people in many aspects: economically, socially and politically.. ." | Crucita Ken |
src/bzst/110/08/1 | June | 2008 | The Belize Senate: An Analysis of its Role in Belize's Democracy | | Godwin Hulse |
src/bzst/110/08/1 | June | 2008 | Advocacy and Social Justice in Belize: Some lessons from Political Reform | This paper was presented at a public forum entitled "Commitment to Social Justice: The Start of Advocacy" sponsored by the St. John's College School of Professional Studies on September 26, 2007 at the Holy Redeemer Parish Hall, Belize City, Belize. | Dylan G. Vernon |
src/bzst/110/08/1 | June | 2008 | Indigenous Rights and Governance | This paper was presented at a public forum entitled "Commitment to Social Justice: The Start of Advocacy" sponsored by the St. John's College School of Professional Studies on September 26, 2007 at the Holy Redeemer Parish Hall, Belize City, Belize. | Gregory Juan Ch'oc |
src/bzst/110/08/1 | June | 2008 | Book Review | Book Review: Dr. Joseph Palacio (Editor). The Garifuna: A Nation Across Borders: Essays in Social Anthropology | David Lacey |
src/bzst/110/08/1 | June | 2008 | Book Review | Book Review: Dr. Joseph Palacio (Editor). The Garifuna: A Nation Across Borders: Essays in Social Anthropology | Allan Flores Sr. |
src/bzst/111/08/2 | December | 2008 | Why Have Efforts to Reach A Negotiated Settlement of the Belize-Guatemala Territorial Dispute Failed? | Panel Presentation at the 17th Annual Signa L. Yorke Memorial Lecture Holy Redeemer Parsh Hall, April, 2007. | James S. Murphy |
src/bzst/110/08/2 | December | 2008 | Guatemala's Claim to Belize: The ICJ Imperative | "After a long history of failed negotiations, it is generally agreed that it is unlikely that the Belize-Guatemala differendum will be resolved any time soon through further negotiations." | Godfrey P. Smith |
src/bzst/110/08/2 | December | 2008 | By the Might of Truth: Provocation For Going to the ICJ' | "The central goal of Belize's foreign policy today was preordained even before the country's birth into nationhood. That was so because of the Guatemalan claim to Belize inherited from the British upon independence." | Lisa Shoman |
src/bzst/110/08/2 | December | 2008 | Guatemala's Claim to Belize: A Chronology of Events, 1859-2008 | | David A. K. Gibson |
src/bzst/110/08/2 | December | 2008 | A Tribute: The Honorable Edward A. Laing Jr. | Judge Diplomat, Professor, Community Leader | |
src/bzst/110/08/2 | December | 2008 | A Special Agreement Between Belize and Guatemala to Submit Guatemala's Territorial, Insular and Maritime Claim to the International Court of Justice | | |
src/bzst/110/08/2 | December | 2008 | A Selected Bibliography of the Guatemala Claim | | Charles Gibson and Lawrence Vernon |
src/bzst/111/10/1 | March | 2010 | A Brief History of Trade Union Movement in Belize. | | Nicholas Pollard Jr. |
src/bzst/111/10/1 | March | 2010 | Beka Lamb and The Metonymic Trinity | | Christopher DeShield |
src/bzst/111/10/1 | March | 2010 | The Availability and Desirability of Belizean-Made Products in the Corozal Commercial Free-Zone: An Exploratory Study | | Desiree E. Casey, Emrece Smith, Rachel Rancharan |
src/bzst/111/10/1 | March | 2010 | Imports and Consumer Ethnocentrism in Belize: Competing or Complementary Propositions? | | Michael J. Pisani, Ph.D. |
src/bzst/111/10/1 | March | 2010 | Builder of Belize: Honorable Santiago Ricalde | | |
src/bzst/111/10/1 | March | 2010 | Tribute to Allan Flores | | |
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Shaun gill walks away from the sport, the complexity of race and ethnicity in belize and the relevance of reparations.
Science proves that biologically and genetically all humans are the same. Race and ethnicity, therefore, are political and social constructs. Usually we subsume people into a racial group on the basis of their physical appearance and their original geographical location, so the Chinese and generally most Asians who have relatively yellow skin tones would be regarded as Mongolian, Europeans who are more light-skinned would be Caucasian or white, and Africans who are relatively much darker, despite their various colour gradations, would be perceived as Black.
It is a historical fact that for centuries European prejudices were based on class and religion, and not on race. Indeed, Africans were not new to Europe, because from 711 AD until 1492, much of Spain had been conquered by the Moors, who were Africans. The Spaniards, who were the first Europeans to colonise the Americas, therefore took with them to the Americas an underlying colour prejudice borne from their centuries-old experience of Moorish domination. Racism was clearly incubated from the sole desire to colonise and dominate, and used as a convenient crutch to secure and maintain the levers of power which exist to this very day.
Ethnicity, on the other hand, is more ambiguous, in that it is socially determined by our culture, community and familial connections, language, and place of origin. It may include nationality; but while one may be Nigerian by nationality, he or she is a member of one of the 371 different ethnic groups who live in Nigeria. And, even within one ethnic group such as the Yoruba, the Igbo, or the Ijon, there are further divisions determined by slightly different customs, dialects, dress, musical instruments and even food.
Belize is a little larger than the State of Israel, or two and a half times the size of Jamaica, but has a population which is just around 400,000. Within that population, there are four main racial groups and several different ethnicities. For example, there is a small, white settler group made up of the Mennonites (3.6%), who are a religious sect who speak old German and emigrated to Belize in the late 1950s. They have their own autonomous community, replete with schools, churches, clinics and even banks, and generally do not mix with other Belizeans. More recent arrivals to Belize are Europeans and North Americans who control and dominate the tourist industry and Belize’s unique resorts.
Added to them is a similarly recent white expatriate, retiree community from North America. Much of Belize’s huge expanse of land and scenic islands or cayes are almost gone — the largest island, San Pedro or Ambergis Caye, being about the size of Barbados. Belize’s choice real estate areas are now owned by these latest immigrés to Belize, while “born Belizeans” scrabble around for a bit of land. Many of these exclusive areas have been transformed into gated communities and city states, which few “born Belizeans” can enter.
Next on this racial pole are the Chinese (ranging between 1% and 2%) of the population. Earlier Chinese migrants represented labour diasporas from Hong Kong, in search of work in Belize, but more recent migrations in the last three or so decades are from Mainland China and Taiwan and are economic migrants. They also have their own autonomous gated community on huge tracts of Belize’s land. But because most of their shops and other business enterprises are located mainly within the largely African-Belizean or Creole community, based in Belize City, the commercial capital, there are tensions between these two races.
Another racial entity is the East Indians (3.6% of the population), a small group who first came to Belize as indentured labourers, but were joined later in the last four decades by Ugandan Indians. Other arrivals since the 1940s are Arabs, who are mainly Palestinian and Lebanese. Added to this group are nationals of Turkey.
The Mestizo population in Belize, now the largest (52.9%), is generally made up of arrivals from the neighbouring Spanish-speaking republics such as El Salvador and Nicaragua. They entered Belize in the 1980s as economic migrants fleeing from the upheavals that were prevalent then in Central America. Added to this mix are Mestizos coming from Guatemala, a predator nation which claims Belize, thus preventing it from getting political independence until 1981. The Guatemalan Mestizo are often illegal immigrants, encouraged by the Guatemalan government to cross the border, pillage Belize’s rich forests and nature reserves, settle in Belize, and thereafter obtain Belizean nationality.
But before the arrival of these later Mestizos, Belize had an earlier Mestizo community that was part of an exodus, along with the Yucateco Maya, who fled from Mexico to Belize in the 19th century from the Mexican Caste Wars. There were also other arrivals of the Mopan and Q’eqchi Maya from Guatemala, who emigrated to Belize roughly around that time, because their land had been confiscated by the white European settler class in Guatemala. The Maya who are indigenous to Central America and Southern Mexico constitute 6.1% of Belize’s population.
Added to this mix are the Garifuna, (formerly known as Black Caribs), who arrived in Belize in 1802, first from St. Vincent, and thereafter Honduras. The Garifuna of Belize (4%) are the only Africans who came to the Americas as slave cargo, but whose ship was wrecked off St. Vincent in 1650, and who, because of this, escaped slavery. While some of them intermarried with the Carib Indians they met in St. Vincent, Garifuna DNA tests prove that they are predominantly African and largely of Igbo ethnicity. They constitute 5 percent of Belize’s population.
The last ethnic group — the African-Belizeans, who are known as Creoles, used to be 60 percent of Belize’s population, but are now reduced to 25.9%. They are the descendants of second and third generation slaves brought to Belize mainly from Jamaica to work in the forests of Belize since its economy was based during slavery and colonisation on forestry. Belize has more than 700 different types of wood in its forests; and logwood formerly used for making dyes was the main economic reason for the British settling in Belize.
The Creoles, a mixture of African and European ancestries, with at times some Mestizo admixture, used to be the most Western-educated people in Belize, and customarily manned the professions, as well as the civil service and security apparatus. But in the last 50 years, more than half of Belize’s population has been transformed into a cultural diaspora or chain migration community in the US, and more recently in Canada. The majority of Belize’s diaspora community are the Creole and Garifuna people.
How relevant, then, is the concept and the implementation of reparations within this complex racial and ethnic mix; and more specifically for the dispossessed ethnicities in Belize, who were the earliest people to serve British colonial and imperialist interests? Although there was the presence in Belize of adherents of Marcus Garvey, the great Jamaican philosopher and Black African advocate of the early 20th century, in the form of the UNIA and the Black Cross nurses, it was not until the late 1960s that African-Belizeans became truly sensitised to their history and condition through a revolutionary Black African cultural and political movement named UBAD.
UBAD was led by Evan X Hyde, a brilliant Dartmouth University graduate, who instead of remaining in the US to further an academic or Wall St. career, preferred to return to Belize to serve the cause of Black African emancipation. Evan X insisted that not only the history of slavery and racism must be taught to all Belizeans, but also that of the neglected and discriminated indigenous Indians of Central America — the Maya people. Hyde also challenged the political status quo and sought to change the narrative about Black aversion to farming by attempting to create agricultural cooperatives. He and other organisations which followed in his wake such as BREDAA and BGYEA were neither encouraged nor supported in these agricultural initiatives by Belize’s power elite.
Today in Belize, despite these enlightened interventions, there is a large ignorance and even incomprehension and hostility towards the reparations movement. Sadly, this is by those who, although they are perhaps unaware, have suffered the most from the systemic economic, cultural and psychological effects of slavery, colonialism and neo-colonialism. In fact, these victims are unable to perceive that the current situation in Belize, of growth without development, stems intrinsically from the historical injustice of slavery and colonialism which are formalised and internalised within Belize’s institutions and power structures. One of the most malignant psychological residues of systemic racism and repression in Belize, is self-hatred among its victims — which creates the need to deny and forget.
Reparations in Belize is not only about justice, but the need to repair a broken system. Slavery and the economics of exploiting Africans and the indigenous Indians of the Americas by nations and institutions which have prospered, and are still prospering from activities perpetrated long ago, and even today, in the name of the law and not of justice, requires not just an apology, but actions to amend.
With the exception of the white, Chinese, Indian and Arab settler communities in Belize, every other ethnic group consists of victims of discrimination and general marginalisation. Granted, the capture and enslavement of Africans for 400 years as a prized economic commodity has no parallel in world history. The Creole community of Belize gained nothing for the loss of their identities, names, languages, belief systems, kinship relations, foods, culture and even the sovereignty of their bodies. Psychologically, they are still so damaged that a number of their lighter-skinned members, with “good” hair, who can “pass” for Mestizo, crossed over in recent successive censuses to identify as Mestizo, and not Creole. Some, also, who are often referred to in Belize as “royal Creoles” and regard themselves as heirs to the British, believe that British colonialism and its handmaiden, American imperialism, represented tempering factors in making them Westernised and “civilised”.
With this latent racism and self-hate inherent within Belizean society, it was not surprising that there was no desire among some of Belize’s influential political leaders, to join in 1958 the now defunct West Indian Federation. Actually, they were afraid of the largely Black African and Protestant Caribbean people swamping an underpopulated and largely Catholic Belize. More recently, Haitian immigration to Belize has been met not only with disfavour, but even prejudice and hostility.
Will reparations negotiated on a regional platform create a new transformative reality, which visionary leaders in our political milieu will use along with a conscious citizenry, to dismantle the present broken economic, political, juridical and social constructs in nations like Belize? We must use the opportunity of the reparations struggle to obliterate the perpetration of economic oppression, the normalisation of brutality, political opportunism and misrule on our most vulnerable citizens. Without doubt, the origins of all these vices are situated in our history.
In Belize, and I suppose throughout the Caribbean and the rest of the Americas and Europe, there is this persistent ghettoisation of African-Belizeans, African-Caribbean people, African-Americans and African-Latinos, even when some of our political, intellectual and institutional leaders have emerged from these groups. Our proximity to the US has now inculcated within our youths the culture of drugs, guns, gangs, and mindless violence. But the constancy of their humiliation and hopeless state, instead of producing the organised, progressive rebellion of the Evan X generation to change the status quo, paradoxically creates a fatigue, an acceptance of the current state — a type of slavery.
There is much work to do within Belize. The European nations, the US, their corporate entities and institutions, and their domestic collaborators must accept the need to redress age-old and current injustices. They ought to understand that they must be responsive in formulating a new and progressive vision of all our futures. But, there is no way there will ever be a positive redistribution of economic, educational, social and political dividends from those who possess them to those who do not, unless perceptions radically change. This is because reparations essentially have to do with power and privilege, and no one readily gives these up to be shared.
The nations of Africa, because of their collaboration with Europe and America in the trans-Atlantic slave trade, must be represented at the reparations table. There is a vast silence and at times an incomprehensive ignorance about Africa’s role in the trans-Atlantic slave trade within Continental Africa. And Africa must be held to account. Even among the continent’s famed griots, there is a resounding silence, as if those who were taken away had never lived, and were never a part of Africa.
It is a fact that Africa gained nothing from its interaction with Europe and America. Many of the wars waged on the continent were deliberately initiated by the Europeans for the sole purpose of obtaining supplies of slaves. Evidence abounds that the slave trade damaged Africa to the point that it left the continent demographically unbalanced, and the coastal empires, kingdoms, confederacies and city states were considerably weakened and subsequently vulnerable to Africa’s eventual division and colonisation by various European powers. One of these was small, insignificant Belgium, which ended up owning the richly endowed Congo, which is the size of Western Europe.
Africa, a continent of 56 sovereign states, 54 of which are UN members, can make amends to its exiled children, by extending the hand of fellowship to bridge the centuries-old history of perfidy, unease, ignorance, miseducation and pernicious indoctrination about each other, perpetrated by Europe and America. For those who wish to return to the land of their ancestors, they must be offered any African nationality of their choice. That is the least we require. After all, there is a large pool of educated and highly trained Africans both on the continent and in the diaspora who urgently need to unite to create and sustain an African Renaissance that would engender respect throughout the world for all Black and African peoples, wherever they may be. Respect is always earned and never, ever freely given.
(Presented at a virtual conference: “Reparations for Africans (Diaspora and Continental) and the Indigenous Peoples of the Americas — A Grass Roots Perspective”) (Bogota, Colombia) 12th July, 2020
(Thérèse Belisle-Nweke, a Belizean, lives in Lagos, Nigeria.)
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Colonial Education: A History of Education in Belize
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Christopher De Shield
Belize's systematic exploitation under British colonialism has left a legacy of poverty and underdevelopment the country has yet to surmount. For Belize, decolonisation is an ongoing process. Education is routinely cited as a means for social and economic uplift and the key to emancipation from mental slavery. In this short talk, I argue simply that the Arts and Humanities are central to this emancipatory process. Belize's decolonisation agenda will only be served by encouraging greater empathetic, critical questioning, big thinking, historical awareness, skilful communication, and the ability to appreciate nuance and celebrate difference. To the extent that the new curriculum fosters the type of thinking humanities subjects provide through the inclusion of arts competencies will it support efforts to articulate Belizean identity, take up the challenge of decolonisation, and engage learners in the life-affirming and future-friendly education we need to confront the debilitating legacies of colonialism and other looming global challenges.
David V Gibson
Naomi Aiken
Formal education within the English-speaking Caribbean Community (CARICOM) may be traced back to the establishment of Codrington grammar school in Barbados in 1743. After more than two centuries of British colonial rule the educational systems within CARICOM states continue to reflect the academic traditions of their former colonizer. Prior to emancipation in 1838, the notion of providing education for the African slaves met strong opposition from plantation owners, despite the efforts of many Christian missionaries seeking to provide religious education to convert enslaved-Africans to Christianity. During the post-emancipation period, the education of ex-slaves within the British West Indies became one the central issues of the day. Religious groups including the Anglicans, Baptists, Catholics, Methodists, Mico Charity, Presbyterians, and Wesleyans, together with financial support from the imperial government and the Negro Education Grant, drove and shaped the development of education at all levels of the British West Indian society. The purpose of this paper is to present a brief historical overview of some key developments in formal education within the English-speaking Caribbean during the period following emancipation.
Journal of Latin American Studies
Mark A Moberg
Nigel O M Brissett
Angela Alcerro
Costa Rica’s high education level sets it apart from its neighbors in Central America. A great importance is placed in the expansion of primary and secondary education even in the most remote areas of the country. Because of this and ongoing reforms, Costa Rica is one of the most literate countries in Latin America. Costa Rica also has the most stable democracy in Central America and it is believed that the emphasis on education has a lot to do with that status. Honduras has made major gains in recent years with regards to primary education, but still lags behind most countries in Latin America in secondary education. This study is limited to upper secondary schooling (public and private) as well as existing and emerging alternatives for delivery of secondary learning. Issues of teacher preparation, attendance and reasons behind unequal distribution of resources, while relevant are beyond the scope of this comparison. Honduras is proposing major education reforms that include compulsory education to 9th grade, bilingual education Spanish/English, and teacher training programs. While these reforms do not immediately affect secondary schooling, if implemented, could it result in higher secondary school completion rates? As Honduras moves to implement these reforms, what can be learned from the success of Costa Rica that may help Honduras weather the challenges ahead? What qualities unique to Honduras might help in achieving its ambitious educational goals? A comparison of Costa Rican and Honduran secondary schooling is logical because both countries are in Central America but are on opposite ends with regards to education (Duarte, 2007, p. 3). There is a strong correlation between completion of secondary school and a higher wages as well as a wider range of opportunities in life. Quality bilingual secondary education and 21st century skills are of urgent importance for both countries in order to participate in the globalized economy. While Costa Rica has always had a large middle class compared to its neighbors, in recent years it has had its challenges with the gap widening between the rich and poor (Costa Rica, A Step Ahead, 2012). Honduras has made substantial gains in advancement to secondary school and is at gender parity at all levels of education (World Bank, 2010). However, in both countries, secondary completion rates are low and repetition rates are high. National exams are weighted heavily, making it difficult for both poorly prepared and for special education students to obtain a secondary school diploma (UNESCO, 2010, p. 27). This situation demonstrates a need for long-term solutions as well as alternative interventions to achieve the goal of secondary school completion (Umansky, et. Al, 2007, p. 8).
Nigel Encalada , Giovanni Pinelo
Research Reports in Belizean History and Anthropology, Volume 1 is first edition of an annual publication of the Institute for Social and Cultural Research (ISCR), City of Belmopan, Belize. It is devoted to the publication of those Social, Anthropological, and Historical themed Papers and Reports presented at the Belize Archaeology and Anthropology Symposium (BAAS) for the dissemination and promotion of research conducted in Belize.
New West Indian Guide
Grant J Rich
Journal of education & development in the Caribbean
Carol Gentles
Rolando Cocom , Nigel Encalada , Giovanni Pinelo
The proceedings in this publication are a compilation of history and anthropology papers presented at the 2014 Belize Archaeology and Anthropology Symposium (BAAS). The conference featured both local and international researchers who informed the academic community and general public about the latest findings of their research. This publication is an important output of the symposium as it allows scholars and general readers alike the opportunity to access cutting edge research on the topics of Indigenous Identity and Wellbeing, Cultural Change, Sustainability, and Language and History. The publication is a must read for anyone seeking to conduct research in Belize and interested in contributing to the advancement of the nation. APA Citation: Encalada, N., Cocom, R., Pelayo, P., & Pinelo, G. (Eds.). (2015). Research Reports in Belizean History and Anthropology, Volume 3 (Vol. 3). Belize: ISCR, NICH.
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Slavery in Belize
SLAVERY IN BELIZE
Slavery was a system in which human beings were owned and forced to work by their masters. In Belize, the earliest historical reference of this is in 1724 from a Spanish Missionary. A century later, slavery was still present in Belize and the total slave population increased by about 2,300.
Lacking indigenous laborers, British settlers in Belize had to purchase enslaved Africans to work. The purchasing of these slaves was known as slave trade. This was done mostly by orders, which were given to the captain of a ship taking logwood. Most of the slaves that were brought to Belize were from the West Indies, through the markets of Jamaica, but a few were also brought directly from Africa or Untied States. Once they arrived in Belize, they immediately became the property of the British settlers.
Slaves were mainly forestry workers used to cut logwood and mahogany. The extraction of mahogany was a seasonal occupation, so the laborers had spend long periods of time isolated in makeshift camps away from their families. The mahogany trees, once found by the huntsman, were cut and trimmed by the axe-men and hauled through temporary paths in the bush to the nearest riverside, at a place called the “Barquadier”. During the rainy season, settlers and slaves floated rafts of untrimmed logs down the river, where the wood was processed for shipment.
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Apart from the jobs that were directly connected with woodcutting, slaves were also engaged in two other activities: domestic work and the cultivation of provisions. The masters in Belize had slaves to clean their houses, sew, wash, iron their clothes, cook, serve food and raise their children. Most of these domestics were women and young girls. The women were required to perform sexual as well as domestic roles; some of the black or colored concubines became mistresses of the houses, supervising the household activities. These “housekeepers” had a rather insecure position in the home and an ambiguous social position in the community.
Slaves were often obligated to cultivate small plots of ground foods, vegetables and corn, which was known as “making plantations”. This allowed the masters to save money by having the slaves grow their own food. Most of the slaves, making plantations were children the elderly. For their own family's occupation, these slaves formed small lots for sale in their spare time.
The earliest law that concerned the protection of the slave population was the Consolidated Slave Law of Jamaica which was adopted in Belize. In Belize, it was difficult to estimate the extent of how the law was adopted in the different situations of Belize, due to the dissimilarity in the organization of slavery in Belize and Jamaica. In 1787 a slave court was established but it was only "for the trial of slaves for offenses not amounting to felony." Since the law failed to make provision for other offenses done by slaves, the Supreme Court was established in 1819. The British controlled the first legislature, the judicial and administrative institutions. As a result, they had a disproportionate influence on the development of the slaves.
One way the British successfully maintained control over their slaves was by dividing the slaves from the growing population of free Creole people who were given limited privileges. Though some Creoles were legally free, they could neither hold commissions in the military nor act as jurors or magistrates, and their economic activities were restricted. In 1803, the British settlers passed a law forbidding a “slave to hire himself with a view to pursue trade.” If this was violated a fine of 500 pounds had to be paid.
During the 1760s and 1770s, there was an economic crisis due to a decline in the logwood trade. The slaves were forced to bear a great deal of the hardship caused by the crisis, thus they rebelled three times. Even though the revolts in 1765 and 1768 were small, they revealed that the British were defenseless. The economic problems only got worse so the British tried to export more logwood to make up for the lower price. This resulted in two thousand or more slaves working harder, but getting fed less. In May of 1773 on the Belize River, the British saw the outcome of this situation. This revolt lasted for five months and was considered to be the largest slave revolt in Belize. There were about fifty armed enslaved Africans with Musquets and Cutlasses that were involved in this rebellion that could only be stopped by the naval force in Jamaica.
The British settlers did their best to exclude the dangerous slaves from the settlement, so for a while there were no revolts. In 1820 on the Belize an Sibun Rivers, the last slave revolt took place in Belize. About ten days after the revolt began, Superintendent Arthur offered rewards for the apprehension of two black slaves, Will and Sharper, who were "reported to be the captains and leaders of these rebels." He also offered "a free pardon to any of the other runaways, who would voluntarily come in and deliver themselves." Superintendent Arthur's plan was successful because about a month after the revolt began, all the slaves had delivered themselves.
The Creoles of Belize are descendants of the intermingling of the early British settlers with African slaves, imported to work in the logging camps. Even after the abolition of slavery, the Creoles continued to work in these camps. Today, this tendency is reflected in the location of the dominant Creole towns which are Monkey River and Punta Gorda that are along waterways and the coast. While the majority of the Creole population claim a slave and British ancestry, the other ethnic groups have all intermarried with Creoles and have adapted the Creole culture.
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- Table Of Contents
The following is a history of Belize focusing on events since European settlement. For further treatment, see Central America ; Latin America, history of ; and pre-Columbian civilizations: Mesoamerican civilization .
The Maya lived in the area now known as Belize for centuries before the arrival of Europeans , as manifested by more than a dozen major ruins such as La Milpa, Xunantunich, Altun Ha, and Caracol . The Spanish penetrated the area in the 16th and 17th centuries and tried to convert the Maya to Christianity, but with little success. The Maya population had begun to decline long before the Spaniards arrived, and the remaining Maya lived in politically decentralized societies. Although the Maya did not have the resources to defeat the Spaniards, they could not be decisively beaten.
British buccaneers and logwood cutters settled on the inhospitable coast in the mid-17th century. Spain regarded the British as interlopers in their territory. By treaties signed in 1763 and 1783, Spain granted British subjects the privilege of exploiting logwood and, after 1786, the more valuable mahogany , though only within specified and poorly surveyed territories. Indeed, Spain retained sovereignty over the area, which Britain called a settlement, as distinct from a formal colony. The Spanish also prohibited the settlers from establishing a formal government structure, so the British conducted their affairs through public meetings and elected magistrates. However, superintendents, appointed by the British government after 1786, slowly established their executive authority at the expense of the settlers’ oligarchy . In 1798 the British overcame Spain’s final attempt to remove them by force, and Belize became a colony in all but name. The British government instructed the superintendent to assume authority over the granting of land in 1817, and he assumed the power to appoint magistrates in 1832. In 1854 a constitution formally created a Legislative Assembly of 18 members, who were elected by a limited franchise, and the next year the Laws in Force Act validated the settlers’ land titles.
Guatemala challenged the British occupation on the grounds that it had inherited Spanish interests in the area, and from time to time Mexico also asserted a claim to part of Belize. Great Britain and Guatemala appeared to have settled their differences in 1859 by a treaty that defined boundaries for Belize. The final article of the treaty, however, bound both parties to establish “the easiest communication” between Guatemala and Belize. (Conflict between Guatemala and Belize over land boundaries would persist into the 20th and 21st centuries; the dispute became intractable after 1940 when Guatemala declared that the treaty was null and void because such communication had never been developed.)
Belize became the British colony of British Honduras in 1862—which was ruled by a governor who was subordinate to the governor of Jamaica—and a crown colony in 1871, when the Legislative Assembly was abolished. British Honduras remained subordinate to Jamaica until 1884, when it acquired a separate colonial administration under an appointed governor.
The British settlers, who called themselves Baymen, began importing African slaves in the early 18th century to cut logwood and then mahogany . Although the conditions and organization of labour in timber extraction were different from those on plantations, the system was still cruel and oppressive. There were four slave revolts in Belize, and hundreds of slaves took advantage of the terrain and the freedom offered over the frontiers to escape.
Trade with Spain’s colonies in Central America flourished , even after those colonies attained independence in the 1820s; however, the development of plantations in Belize was forbidden by the treaties with Spain. After emancipation in 1838, the former slaves remained tied to the logging operations by a system of wage advances and company stores that induced indebtedness and dependency . When the old economy, based on forest products and the transit trade, declined in the mid-19th century, these freedmen remained impoverished.
Beginning in the early 19th century, a mixed population of Carib Indians and Africans exiled from British colonies in the eastern Caribbean (formerly called Black Caribs, now referred to as Garifuna) settled on the southern coast of Belize. The Caste War, an indigenous uprising in the Yucatán that began in 1847, resulted in several thousand Spanish-speaking refugees’ settling in northern Belize, while Mayan communities were reestablished in the north and west. These immigrants introduced a variety of agricultural developments, including traditional subsistence farming and the beginning of sugar , banana, and citrus production. In the 1860s and ’70s the owners of sugar estates sponsored the immigration of several hundred Chinese and South Asian labourers. In the late 19th century Mopán and Kekchí Maya, fleeing from oppression in Guatemala, established largely self-sufficient communities in southern and western Belize.
By the early 20th century the ethnic mixture of the area had been established, the economy was stagnant, and crown colony government precluded any democratic participation. In the 1930s the economy was hit by the worldwide Great Depression , and Belize City was largely destroyed by a hurricane in 1931. A series of strikes and demonstrations by labourers and the unemployed gave rise to a trade union movement and to demands for democratization. The right to vote for the Legislative Assembly was reintroduced in 1936, but property, literacy, and gender qualifications severely limited the franchise. When the governor used his reserve powers to devalue the currency at the end of 1949, leaders of the trade union and the Creole middle class formed a People’s Committee to demand constitutional changes. The People’s United Party (PUP) emerged from the committee in 1950 and led the independence movement. The PUP would be the dominant political party for the next 30 years.
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The Legacy of Slavery in Belize. The disenfranchised people of Belize — along with their brethren throughout the British colonies in the Caribbean — would finally be emancipated on August 1st, 1838. This was five years after the British Parliament had passed the Emancipation Act — a decision that extended the power of captors over slaves under the pretext of an apprenticeship transition ...
Slavery in Belize includes practices of enslavement by British colonists during the period of European colonization. ... Cutting logwood was a simple, small-scale operation, but the settlers imported slaves to help with the work. Slavery in the settlement was associated with the extraction of timber, first logwood and then mahogany, as treaties ...
Bolland makes clear that Belize's creole culture evolved from the complex interaction among slaves from different cultural backgrounds, slaves and their masters, and men and women who were not primarily engaged in plantation slavery. The final essay in this second section examines changing European perceptions of Amerindians in Belize, from ...
An Order-in-Council reached Belize in March 1834 and established a registration period of two months. In order to compensate slave owners for their losses they would incur once the slaves were free, Britain paid 20 million pounds The system of slavery in government bonds.
Belize's long road to self-rule is marred with conflicts pertaining to enslavement, land dispossession, and territorial disputes. For example, Guatemala claimed the Belizean territory although Belize was formally declared a British crown colony in 1862. Guatemala's claim prolonged the nation's ability to seek independence until the early ...
Slavery in the Settlement, 1794-1838. Belize Table of Contents. Cutting logwood was a simple, small-scale operation, but the settlers imported slaves to help with the work. Slavery in the settlement was associated with the extraction of timber, first logwood and then mahogany, as treaties forbade the production of plantation crops.
This is a collection of Nigel Bolland's best essays on Belize. While the essays do not provide a complete treatment of Belize's past, the discussion on dialectical theory helps to locate and pull together the strands of "colonialism and resistance" in Belize. Besides, as the author himself notes, the collection is like "a number of ...
In this collection of essays, Boland analyzes the most import topics during three centuries of colonialism. Part One examines the early British settlement, the nature of slavery in Belize, and the development of Creole culture in the nineteenth century. Part Two analyzes the relations of between the Maya and the British in the nineteenth ...
The Colonial Legacy in Belize. NANCY LUNDGREN. Antioch University. An old Creole proverb says, "wen Black man teef, e teef some, wen bakra teef, e teef all," which means: when a Black man steals, he steals some; when a White man steals, he steals all. Anyone who is familiar with Belize knows that this proverb reveals truths about the history ...
Belize was also adjusting to the abolition of slavery and the place of free Afro-Belizeans. Although Belize is often neglected by the scholarship on both Latin America and the British World, my article argues that the response to the refugee crisis in Belize provides valuable insight into how ideas around protection and asylum were interpreted ...
In this collection of essays, written over a period of several years, Professor Bolland focuses on some of the most important topics in the history of the people of Belize, during three centuries of colonialism. Part one examines the early British settlement, the nature of slavery in Belize, and the development of Creole culture in the ...
Slavery in Belize (Part 1) ... Why I Love Belize: The following essay was written originally in 1973 for the National Day Celebrations - the first such celebrations after "Belize" had replaced "British Honduras" as our country's name. I.E. Sanchez: src/bzst/36/78/6:
The social history of Belize is marked by conflict; between British settlers and the Maya; between masters and slaves; between capitalists and workers; and between the colonial administration and the Belizean people. This collection of essays, analyzes the most import topics during three centuries of colonialism.
Published Aug 2, 2023. + Follow. A Historical Perspective of Emancipation Day on the Occasion of the. 185th Anniversary of Emancipation in Belize. by Rolando Cocom. Today, we gather to commemorate ...
Bolland, N. O. (1998, 2003). Colonialism and Resistance: Essays on historical sociology. Belize: Cubola Productions. Leslie, R. (ed.) (2008). A History of Belize: Nation in the making. Belize: Cubola Produc-tions. Thompson,P.A.(2005). Belize : a Concise History. ... In Belize slave owners were paid an average of £54 per enslaved person. In ...
Added to this mix are the Garifuna, (formerly known as Black Caribs), who arrived in Belize in 1802, first from St. Vincent, and thereafter Honduras. The Garifuna of Belize (4%) are the only Africans who came to the Americas as slave cargo, but whose ship was wrecked off St. Vincent in 1650, and who, because of this, escaped slavery.
The social history of Belize is marked by conflict between British settlers and the Maya, between masters and slaves, between capitalists and workers, and between the colonial administration and the Belizean people. Belize shares many features with other parts of the Caribbean Central America, including a long history of colonialism and slavery, a dependent economy in which the ownership of ...
2022 •. Belize's systematic exploitation under British colonialism has left a legacy of poverty and underdevelopment the country has yet to surmount. For Belize, decolonisation is an ongoing process. Education is routinely cited as a means for social and economic uplift and the key to emancipation from mental slavery.
Slavery was a system in which human beings were owned and forced to work by their masters. In Belize, the earliest historical reference of this is in 1724 from a Spanish Missionary. A century later, slavery was still present in Belize and the total slave population increased by about 2,300. Lacking indigenous laborers, British settlers in ...
Belize - Maya, Archaeology, Colonialism: The following is a history of Belize focusing on events since European settlement. For further treatment, see Central America; Latin America, history of; and pre-Columbian civilizations: Mesoamerican civilization. The Maya lived in the area now known as Belize for centuries before the arrival of Europeans, as manifested by more than a dozen major ruins ...