· July, 2014

Stories about Caribbean from July, 2014

What Owen Arthur's Resignation Says About Barbados’ Politics

  27 July 2014

Owen Arthur has resigned from the political party he led for 14 years – a move which Barbados Underground thinks should give Barbadians pause: The incapacity of a former Prime Minister…to carve out an effective role to serve his political party in the twilight of his career leaves a sour...

Being A Black West Indian in Britain

  26 July 2014

Jamaican author Kei Miller's blog post about “the anxieties of being a black poet in Britain” draws from several personal experiences, leading him to the conclusion that “the act of writing certain black experiences has to be one of translation – as surely as we translate from one language into...

Cuba's Customs Clamps Down in “Illegal Imports”

  24 July 2014

On September 1, 2014 the Customs Service of the Republic of Cuba will begin enforcing new regulations intended to combat illegal trafficking of merchandise by relatives, friends and ‘mules’ (a slang term for couriers of goods from overseas through airports and port facilities). Iván's File Cabinet considers this “one more...

The Hypocrisy of Outrage Against LGBT Rights in Jamaica

  23 July 2014

An off-colour comment by a Jamaican sports commentator who “dampened the moment of post World Cup celebrations with his shouts of ‘Heil Hitler’ on national television” leads author and blogger Kei Miller to pen a letter to the editor illustrating why his countrymen are living a double standard – outraged...

A Documentary That Allows Transgender People's Voices to Be Heard

  21 July 2014

Though gays and lesbians are gradually gaining more acceptance in Puerto Rico, the same cannot be said yet of transgender people. That is why a film like Mala Mala, a documentary in which trans people speak freely about their stories, is so important. The film, directed by Dan Sickles (@dan_sickles) and...

Improper Land Allocation Harms Trinidad & Tobago's Public Interest

  18 July 2014

Property ownership is a critical ingredient of the society we are trying to build. No one can deny that. The wealthiest people and companies in this society have made a great part of their wealth through property dealings – buying, leasing, sub-dividing, selling, renovating and so on….property is critical to...

Archaic Laws Continue Jamaica's History of Injustice

  18 July 2014

The anti-sodomy law is not the only archaic statute up for repeal in Jamaica. Author Kei Miller is astounded that a proposal to rescind the country's “blatantly racist Obeah Laws” has met with resistance: We seem to like throwing fits whenever it is suggested that we review and correct our...

Why the Caribbean Should Care About Net Neutrality

  16 July 2014

For those who figure that the issue of net neutrality doesn't affect them, Trinidad-based blogger Activized connects the dots. The concept that “all data is created equal” is not as common as you might think: Local telecommunications company Digicel announced that they were banning certain VoIP application services from their...

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Janine Mendes-Franco
Janine Mendes Franco is the Caribbean editor. Email her story ideas or volunteer to write.