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Unsilencing Hi(Stories) of Indo-Caribbean Women: Re-Writing and Re-Presenting Self and Community

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Unsilencing Hi(Stories) of Indo-Caribbean Women: Re-Writing and Re-Presenting Self and Community UNSILENCING HI(STORIES) OF INDO-CARIBBEAN WOMEN: RE-WRITING AND RE-PRESENTING SELF AND COMMUNITY PRABHA JERRYBANDAN A DISSERTATION SUBMITTED TO THE FACULTY OF GRADUATE STUDIES IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY GRADUATE PROGRAM IN EDUCATION YORK UNIVERSITY TORONTO, ONTARIO March 2015 ©Prabha Jerrybandan, 2015 ii Abstract This study unearths and explores stories of six Indo-Caribbean women (including myself) who live in Canada. We remembered, wrote, shared, and discussed in the context of a group writing practice. We met eleven times over a period of three months in 2012. In addition, I collected family stories from my mother, her sister—my aunt, and my father’s brother—my uncle, as I sought to fill in huge spaces of not knowing with understandings. While there is no doubt that I have learnt a great deal about the lives of people in the Caribbean, and while there is still much that I may never know, this project has shown me that when I ask, there is a chance to know. Caribbean politics and culture have historically been a source of alienation for all of us, and yet we have a growing sense of belonging to the region. Our discussions spanned formal and traditional education, immigration, negotiations of race relations, gendered roles and stipulations of class and caste. My analysis uncovered and formed new understandings about the lives of women in the study and Indo-Caribbean women more generally. I situate this study within a theoretical framework of colonial and postcolonial theory and history that integrates constructs of identity and memory; of Caribbean feminist discourse; and dominant traditional, cultural and political systems. The stories, combined with interviews, are a gateway into histories that have been silenced. Silences, questions and gaps in this work are as important as the stories that were told. In this dissertation, I have discussed alienation and hardship as core aspects of experience for Indo-Caribbean women. In citing the scarcity of their published work, I ask, can mental abandonment of one’s environment be thought of as a form of silencing iii that is characteristic of formerly subjugated people? I consider the possibility of silence when there is nothing to applaud, and the silences of women as a form of resistance. As a work of remembrance and creative narration, this dissertation contributes to the growing body of literature and theoretical discourse of Indo-Caribbean women. iv Acknowledgements This study would not have been possible without the support of many people including my family, my friends, participants, and my supervisor and committee members. To the participants in this study, you gave me your time, your stories and your friendship. I thank you. Esther Fine, your dedication to supervising my work has been invaluable. Your mix of gentleness and strength has helped me to move through the challenges of this kind of study. Your commitment to language has encouraged me to look closely at the meaning and value of every single “word”. You have given me many hours of your time—I am deeply grateful. Naomi Norquay, I thank you for introducing me to a methodology by means of a graduate course on life history research. That changed my life forever. I found a way to know a little more about my family, my community and myself. Thank you for your help during this dissertation work. Your insights and advice have helped me tremendously. Aparna Mishra Tarc, your encouragement has moved me forward through this process. Your confidence that “it could be done,” has fuelled my work when I felt weary. Thank you for your time and your interest. Karleen Pendleton Jiménez, your critique of this study has reinvigorated my thinking and spurred me to envision future projects. One of my greatest rewards, so far, has been that you “got it”. Thank you for your important questions and your validation of my work. v Kym Bird, I thank you for your provocative questions. I am grateful for your keen observations and thoughtful contributions. To the Faculty of Graduate Studies in Education, I thank you for the opportunity to embark on a creative, liberatory practice that is not possible in all places. To my parents, Lutchmin and Harrynarine, I thank you for your constant love and encouragement. This work is as much yours as it is mine. I thank my siblings. Ramjeet, you have urged me to become “tougher”, and although I struggle with it, you are the perfect role model. Shobha Devi, you inspire me with your spirit. To the love of my life, my “baby” brother Teekaram, every day you remind me of the richness I have with you as my “co-pilot” on our earthly journey together. To Billy, I thank you for the support you have provided. Being in Toronto without my family, you have been the person I count on. To my guides and angels, I thank you and know that I am never alone. vi Table of Contents Abstract ............................................................................................................................ ii Acknowledgements ......................................................................................................... iv Table of Contents ............................................................................................................ vi Chapter 1: The Beginnings of a Study ..............................................................................1 The Research Study ....................................................................................................2 Study Objectives .........................................................................................................3 Background and Rationale ..........................................................................................3 Delimitations and Definitions .....................................................................................5 From West Indian to Caribbean ..................................................................................6 Language ...............................................................................................................6 “First-Generation Immigrants” .............................................................................6 The Significance of the Study .....................................................................................7 Opening up Spaces for Stories and Writing ..........................................................7 Overview of Chapters ...............................................................................................10 Chapter 2: Theoretical Structures: A Historical Context ................................................14 Historical Considerations of the Indian Presence in the West Indies .......................15 A Historical Overview of the Region .................................................................15 The Peopling of the West Indies with Specific Reference to Trinidad and Guyana .............................................................................................16 The East Indians: Arrival, Marginalization and Political Representation ..........17 Colonial Considerations ............................................................................................18 Treatment of the Indians by “Protectors,” “Governors” and “Authors” ............ 18 Colonial Education ..............................................................................................20 From Under-Privilege to Privilege ......................................................................21 Traditions Within the Indo-Caribbean Experience ...................................................22 The Naparima Tradition ......................................................................................22 The Brahminic Patriarchal Tradition ..................................................................24 Caribbean Feminist Thought: Positioning the Indo-Caribbean Woman Subject ......25 Similarities and Differences of Afro-Caribbean and Indo-Caribbean Women ..25 Literature by Men and an Absence of Literature by Indo-Caribbean Women ...26 Ethnicity and Gender ................................................................................................27 Ethnicity and Class ...................................................................................................28 Gendered Class and Caste .........................................................................................29 Visibility of Indo-Caribbeans: Historical Developments in Representation ............34 Memorializing Indian Arrival Day .....................................................................34 Possibilities for Increased Visibility of Indo-Caribbean Women .............................37 Chapter 3: Life History Research and Structures of Experience ....................................38 Theoretical Grounding of a Life History Research Project ......................................38 Memory and Identity .................................................................................................40 Frigga Haug’s Model for Memory Work and Identity .......................................40 vii Identity and the Indo-Caribbean Woman ............................................................41 Indo-Caribbean writers and participants—the complexities of identity .............41 Unfitting, Hybridized Ideals of Representation ..................................................44 Race and “Colour” in the Caribbean ...................................................................45 The Use of
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