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| Map of Dominican Republic http://www.lonelyplanet.com/maps/caribbean/dominican-republic/map_of_dominican-republic.jpg |
The Treaty of Ryswick in 1697 marks the partition of “La Isla Espanola”, involving the Spanish and the French, into the countries Haiti and the Dominican Republic. While Haitians speak both French and Creole, Dominicans speak Spanish as their native language (Library of Congress).
Although according to several reliable sources that just 11% of Dominicans are of African descent, the number is arguably much higher. Part of the reason being the common assumption that “blacks” must be Haitian. This has exacerbated the Anti-Haitianism problem and caused a divide between the two nations (The African Diaspora in Latin America).
Unfortunately, many scholars are quick to point out that Dominican Republic, similar to Brazil, is built upon this idea of “colorism”. Unlike the “one drop rule” we commonly hear of, an Afro-Latino background in the D.R. may be considered white (Fuller). According to CIA World Factbook, 73% of the people are “mixed”, 16% white, and the remainder black. These demographics likely disregard many slaves of African descent who were brought over to the island of Hispaniola to work the plantations throughout the 16th-18th centuries, prior to Toussaint L’ouverture’s revolt (Guitar).
I chose to research and blog about the Dominican Republic because I'll be headed to Punta Cana, D.R. for a week over spring break (March 13 - March 19). I have also studied the Haitian Revolution in one of my Africana Studies classes and wanted to learn more about the eastern side of the island.
Population: 9.96 million (2nd largest Caribbean nation behind Cuba)
Area: 48,670 sq km
Capital: Santo Domingo
Independence: 27 Feb 1844 (from Haiti)
Main Exports: sugar, gold, silver, coffee, cocoa, tobacco
President: Leonel Fernandez Reyna (since 16 Aug 2004)
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| Punta Cana Beach http://www.myuptodate.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/Tourist-destination-in-Punta-Cana-2012.jpg |
QUICK FACTS
Population: 9.96 million (2nd largest Caribbean nation behind Cuba)
Area: 48,670 sq km
Capital: Santo Domingo
Independence: 27 Feb 1844 (from Haiti)
Main Exports: sugar, gold, silver, coffee, cocoa, tobacco
President: Leonel Fernandez Reyna (since 16 Aug 2004)
MY SOURCES
1. Library of Congress Country Studies: Dominican Republic
2. CIA - The World Factbook: Dominican Republic
3. The African Diaspora in Latin America
4. Fuller, Regina. From Slavery to Exclusion: Perceptions of African Identity in the Dominican Republic and Brazil.
5. Guitar, Dr. Lynne. History of the Dominican Republic.
6. Map of Dominican Republic
7. Punta Cana Beach
URL: http://www.myuptodate.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/Tourist-destination-in-Punta-Cana-2012.jpg
It is interesting to learn about the tense race relations that exist in the Dominican Republic. Hearing about these race relations reminds me of the race relations in Brazil that I learned about last semester in my History of Latin America course. My professor explained, much to my surprise, that racism in Brazil today is much more intense and prevalent than in the US today. Similar to the way that Spanish descendants discriminate against blacks the DR, citizens of Portuguese descent discriminate against blacks in Brazil.
ReplyDeleteI would be interested to learn how blacks are treated in the DR and if it resembles how blacks were treated in the US in the pre-civil rights era or if it is less obvious. Another question that I have after reading this blog post is whether or not the Spanish imported slaves into the DR like the French did in Haiti. I am assuming that they did not, otherwise blacks in the DR would probably not automatically be considered Haitians. Ted also mentioned the indigenous people, the Taino, who originally inhabited the island of Hispaniola before colonization occurred. I wonder what these people are classified as today if any pure Tainos exist. I assume they are considered white, but I wonder if they look different than the citizens of Spanish descent.