Fighting Slavery in the Caribbean (Latin American Realities

by Luis Martínez-Fernández

Fighting Slavery in the Caribbean  is a social history of life in mid-19th-century Cuba as experienced by George Backhouse (and his wife, Grace), who served on the British Havana Mixed Commission for the Suppression of the Slave Trade. Documented with extracts from the Backhouse's correspondence, diaries and other contemporary documents, Luis Martinez-Fernandez paints a detailed picture of the Cuban slave trade, its role in the sugar industry, and the interrelated contradictions within Cuba's economy, society and politics. The Backhouse story provides additional insights into important aspects of life in the "male" city of Havana, social antagonisms between Britons and North Americans, interactions with European social circles, religious tension, and the reality of tropical disease.

216 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1998

About the author

Dr. Luis Martinez-Fernandez is a historian, nationally syndicated columnist, award-winning author, and acclaimed public speaker, whose fileds of expertise include Latin America, the Caribbean, Cuba, Puerto Rico, transcultural communications, education and Latinos in the U.S.

He is an award-winning, nationally syndicated columnist with Creators Syndicate.

A Pegasus Professor of History at the University of Central Florida since 2004, Martinez-Fernandez is recognized as one of the most prolific and influential scholars in the field of Caribbean studies.

His books include Fighting Slavery in the Caribbean, Revolutionary Cuba: A History, and Key to the New World: A History of Early Colonial Cuba.

His forthcoming book, If History Is of Any Value: Politics, Culture and the Unimaginable Events of 2019-2022, will be published in December 2022 by Peter Lang Publishers.