Migration is a worldwide issue where people leave their homes to look for better living conditions. Migration struggles in the Bahamas are an untold story. Life in the past century was very difficult to endure since there were very few opportunities for black Bahamians. They had to move to other countries to seek employment in the form of contracts with foreign countries or companies. Industries such as wrecking provided employment but died after introduction of lighthouses and charts for sailors. The agricultural sector was affected since farmers were unable to transport produce due to the island nature of the country. Hurricanes in the 1930s also destroyed sponge beds. However, in 1943 relief came to Bahamians through the United States’ Farm Labour Programme known as ‘The Contract’, which required them to sign seasonal contracts to provide labour across America. Money earned helped in boosting the economy of these islands.
The Contract led to more migration from as early as 1890. From 1900 to 1920, about a fifth of Bahamians had moved into Florida working in farms and resorts in the state. Herbert Wells became the first black Bahamian to be hired by the Florida East Coast being honoured as a pioneer of Florida after his death in 1960. From 1900 to 1912, Bahamians were given jobs to cut cane in the Dominican Republic, but there was reduced migration due to laws on coloured migration. Before this period, Bahamians went to Panama to work on the Panama Canal between 1895 and 1908.
Delegate your assignment to our experts and they will do the rest.
Most of the migrants succumbed to diseases such as malaria and typhoid. They were also recruited in Costa Rica, Honduras and Guatemala on the United Fruit Company and the Atlantic Fruit Company plantations. They worked in the Monterrey Division of the National Railways of Mexico and the Mexican Port of Tampico. At times, their contracts were not honoured, monies were not delivered home, wages were taken and they were denied passages to go back home. They were told that they would return home in masses if contracts were not honoured. They decided to return to the Bahamas where they were unaccustomed to such discrimination.
