"I’m not Black, I’m Dominican": Diaspora and bioarchaeology from a descendant’s perspective

Summary

This is an abstract from the session entitled "Global Archaeologies and Latin American Voices: Dialogues Transcending Colonizing Archaeologies", at the 2023 annual meeting of the Society for Historical Archaeology.

Growing up, my father taught me to say, “I’m not Black, I’m Dominican.” But I eventually realized I am indeed also Black. I do not speak Spanish, and my Latinx heritage is recognizable only in certain spaces. I noticed the conflation of racial constructs and ethnic backgrounds while researching the Huntington Collection, a skeletal collection of individuals who died and were dissected in New York City during the Progressive Era. Eight women whose remains are now part of this collection came to the United States from the Caribbean and were then labeled various forms of “black” or “negro” upon death, oftentimes erasing their identities as immigrants. Here, I investigate this complicated history and the collapsing of various members of the African Diaspora into the category of “Black” upon arrival to the United States. Further, I explore the colonial roots of why Blackness is oftentimes seen as undesirable among Caribbean immigrants.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Global Archaeologies and Latin American Voices: Dialogues Transcending Colonizing Archaeologies   •
• Society for Historical Archaeology 2023

Keywords

Individual & Institutional Roles

Contact(s): Nicole Haddow