Blog: Culture

We all have our own unique “Coming to America” story. This time around, we thought tracing back the majority of Caribbean’s migration process would serve as a, maybe new or maybe old, but definitely pretty interesting family history lesson. Before many of us picked up from our respective islands and moved to the States, select members of our families inhabited Europe (mostly England). This started to become popular as families grew in size and in age. Heads of the household knew more money was needed to feed mouths, put clothes on backs, shoes on feet and, of course, for school. As a result, in most cases, the father of the home and one or two of his sons would journey to Europe to earn a keep that would be sent back to their island to help their families afford the necessities and accomplish goals set. The journey of Afro-Caribbean people to the United States started long before then when enslaved Barbadians were taken by their British owners to South Carolina during the seventeenth century. That first involuntary migration was followed by a large wave of people from the British West Indies at the turn of the twentieth century. A third wave of immigrants arrived between 1930 and 1965, and a fourth movement is still going on today. Times of Enslavement One estimate puts the ratio of Caribbean to African slaves at three to one between 1715 and 1730; the largest number coming from Jamaica, followed by Africa, Barbados, and Antigua. Caribbean immigration to the United States was relatively small during the early nineteenth century but it grew significantly after the Civil War. The population, which was almost 100% Caribbean in origin, increased from four thousand to more than twenty thousand during the years of 1850 and 1900. Leaving Our Home The significant growth of the Caribbean community in the United States at the turn of the twentieth century is easily explained by the increasing economic hardship in the British West Indies and the simultaneous expansion of the U.S. economy due to its newly high wages and growing employment opportunities. It…

We are living in an unprecedented era of human history. The creation of the internet has made us more connected than ever before birthing a new digital society: social media. This has changed society as we know with new innovations that schools, businesses and cultural scholars are still trying to understand. However, today we are celebrating the unsung heroes of mankind. I’m speaking of the innovators who fuel our desires and heighten our senses in times of need. They give the people what they want. Ladies and gentlemen I’m talking about food bloggers! Food bloggers are using our shared universal human trait of self indulgence to happily torture us with food porn. I mean just look at this: On a serious note, here at IslandTv we pride ourselves in the mission to share our culture,history and heritage with the world so we are sharing 3 eye candy-extreme foodie accounts across the social media landscape. Whether you are in search of dinner inspirations or just enjoy drooling over photos of diri ak sos pwa, there is definitely a food blogger for you. Here are 5 Caribbean bloggers you should be following right now ! What are your favorite Caribbean food bloggers ? Did we miss someone ? Please be sure to shout us out on Twitter and Instagram! #WeAreTheCaribbean #NouSeKarayib ! [vc_tta_pageable no_fill_content_area=”1″ active_section=”1″ pagination_style=”flat-square” pagination_color=”orange” css=”.vc_custom_1554190037068{padding-top: 5px !important;padding-right: 10px !important;padding-bottom: 5px !important;padding-left: 10px !important;background-color: #ededed !important;border-radius: 5px !important;}”] Lamise O Lamise O Haitian born and North Dakotan resident, Lamise is no beginner in food vlogging. This veteran has been posting cooking tutorials since 2013. She specializes in Haitian cuisine, a gastronomy rooted in West African, French, Spanish and Taino influences. Her videos are of high quality and her personable approach makes them easy to follow. She also has a second YouTube channel titled Lamise O Recette Creole, for her predominately Haitian Creole speaking audience. Our Favorite videos of hers are the Poission Gros Sel and the Haitian Macaroni Au Gratin tutorial. Be sure to follow her on YouTube Channel and Instagram. Chris De La Rosa Chris De La Rosa Chris…

In light of the Gucci and Prada recent controversy, people of color especially those of black descent have become increasingly conscious on the brands they support and are market towards them. To refresh, last month Gucci came under fire due to their Winter 2018 Balaclava sweater. It was criticized for being an example of blackface. Blackface is when a non black person darkens their skin to resemble someone of African descent. This was prevalent in minstrel shows during the 19th century during which, Caucasian actors would masquerade as blacks in a derogatory and racist manner. By the turn of the 20th century much of The Western World has come to seen it as an repulsive act–or so we thought. After intense backlash on social media, Gucci issued an apology and confirmed that the turtleneck had been “immediately removed from our online store and all physical stores.” The company release a apology on Twitter account stating,“We consider diversity to be a fundamental value to be fully upheld, respected, and at the forefront of every decision we make.” However, many of the African diaspora are a bit wary of such apology and are searching for black own businesses to support. Due to the lack of support and awareness of many black businesses, especially Caribbean own, we are sharing 4 Haitian-Owned Fashion Houses you should be wearing right now! [vc_tta_pageable no_fill_content_area=”1″ active_section=”1″ pagination_style=”flat-square” pagination_color=”orange” css=”.vc_custom_1554188923186{padding-top: 5px !important;padding-right: 10px !important;padding-bottom: 5px !important;padding-left: 10px !important;background-color: #ededed !important;border-radius: 5px !important;}”] Stella Jean Stella Jean Her unique style is reminiscent of her cultural identity. Jean was to a Haitian mother and Italian father in Rome. Her common motifs often include merging classical Italian tailoring with Haitian and African style prints and imagery. Her clothes has grace the likes many A-list celebrities, including Rihanna and Beyonce. Davidson Petit-Frère Davidson Petit-Frère This Haitian-American is the guy behind Jay Z, Diddy, Nas and Omari Hardwick iconic looks. Originally in a career in real estate, Davidson would often post his outfits on his social media. This soon attract attention and sought a way to brand himself and create a lifestyle he…