Product Description
Women of the Virgin Islands: From the Field to the Legislature recognizes and restores women to their central role in the history of the Virgin Islands by examining their lives from the earliest days of the colony's settlement. Constrained by their sex, race, and colonized status, women, nevertheless, led lives of ordinary heroism, which ensured the territory's economic, social, and cultural survival. In this comprehensive history of women in one of the world's last British colonies, O'Neal shows how women continue to define and redefine themselves and their roles in both their public and private lives, even as the colony itself undergoes its own transformation. As the twenty-first century begins, this book takes a look back at the role colonialism played in the twentieth century in furthering male political leadership and patriarchal norms. While party politics might have had the potential to advance women's political careers, O'Neal concludes they have largely failed to do so despite the advances women have made. This book represents a truly original and enlightening addition to the literature on the Virgin Islands and Caribbean history. ... Read more

Product Description
THE HANGING OF ARTHUR HODGE--A CARIBBEAN ANTI-SLAVERY MILESTONE recounts life in the British Virgin Islands during slavery, the hanging of a master for murdering one of his own slaves and its impact on the movement which resulted in the freeing of slaves throughout the British Empire in 1838. ... Read more

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The Abolition of Slavery in the West Indies
The trial of Arthur Hodge for murdering one of his slaves began on the Caribbean island of Tortola at 10:00 a.m. on Monday, April 29, 1811. The proceedings went on continuously until 5:00 a.m. on April 30. The jury deliberated until 8:00 a.m. on that same day and returned a verdict of guilty. Arthur Hodge was hanged two days later. This trial was used in England as a significant reference to bring about the abolition of slavery in the West Indies. This book portrays in vivid detail the lifestyle of plantation owners like Hodge and the slaves of that era, as well as the abuses that Hodge and other plantation owners made their "property" (the slaves) suffer. John Andrews is to be commended for his professional presentation that makes this book an excellent resource for researchers as well as a good read for those wishing to be informed of the slave trade era. ... Read more