The Burma Road Riot
I’se a Man
Political Awakening and the 1942 Riot in the Bahamas
Abstract When Americans began building their World War II bases in Nassau, the Bahamians they hired expected the high wage rates that usually accompanied foreign contracts. Unfortunately, the
Bahamian government had negotiated much lower rates than were expected. Green, with his cry
‚I’se a man,‛ captured the indignation that many of his co-workers felt. After attempts to address the wage issue by collective bargaining failed, two thousand labourers gathered at the building site chanting ‚we want more money.‛ Their cries fell on deaf ears and police officers were called in to disperse the group. But, the police only succeeded in agitating the protestors.
Eventually, armed with sticks and clubs, the leaderless crowd marched to where they would be heard. They marched to Bay Street, the stage for some of the most significant events in the
Bahamas’ history and a social space that has continually been at the centre of cultural, economic and political life in the country. Two days of rioting ensued.
Although the riot was triggered by a labor dispute, it has been described as the first sign of a popular movement in the Bahamas. And, some have described the riot as a tremor along the fault line that divided the rich white Bahamians who owned businesses on Bay Street and the poor blacks who worked as laborers and lived in the poorer neighborhoods ‚over-the-hill.‛ This paper is an effort to retell the story of the riot, focusing on its significance as the first sign of political awakening in the country’s black community. This paper was published in the Journal of Caribbean History, 41 (1 & 2) 2008. Paper presented at the 30th Annual Conference of the Society for Caribbean Studies, The National Archives, Kew,
UK, July 2006. We would like to thank Nicola Virgill and John Rolle for comments on previous versions of this
Political Awakening and the 1942 Riot in the Bahamas
Abstract When Americans began building their World War II bases in Nassau, the Bahamians they hired expected the high wage rates that usually accompanied foreign contracts. Unfortunately, the
Bahamian government had negotiated much lower rates than were expected. Green, with his cry
‚I’se a man,‛ captured the indignation that many of his co-workers felt. After attempts to address the wage issue by collective bargaining failed, two thousand labourers gathered at the building site chanting ‚we want more money.‛ Their cries fell on deaf ears and police officers were called in to disperse the group. But, the police only succeeded in agitating the protestors.
Eventually, armed with sticks and clubs, the leaderless crowd marched to where they would be heard. They marched to Bay Street, the stage for some of the most significant events in the
Bahamas’ history and a social space that has continually been at the centre of cultural, economic and political life in the country. Two days of rioting ensued.
Although the riot was triggered by a labor dispute, it has been described as the first sign of a popular movement in the Bahamas. And, some have described the riot as a tremor along the fault line that divided the rich white Bahamians who owned businesses on Bay Street and the poor blacks who worked as laborers and lived in the poorer neighborhoods ‚over-the-hill.‛ This paper is an effort to retell the story of the riot, focusing on its significance as the first sign of political awakening in the country’s black community. This paper was published in the Journal of Caribbean History, 41 (1 & 2) 2008. Paper presented at the 30th Annual Conference of the Society for Caribbean Studies, The National Archives, Kew,
UK, July 2006. We would like to thank Nicola Virgill and John Rolle for comments on previous versions of this