Daneilla Banks & Romario Adams

The
Contribution
of Peasantry
to the
Development
When slavery was
in 1834, there was a surge among the newly freed blacks. Ex-slaves,
ofabolished
Caribbean
Society
with their families,
were on a conquest of finding land and starting their new lives as
in the Period
independent small farm owners. The blacks have now evolved from slavery to peasantry. This
of
evolution was necessary to sustain the culture of the blacks and the blacks themselves, as slavery
Emancipation
had wiped out most of the black population, and to retrieve the independence of the black people.
According to Beckles and Shephard (2004), peasantry, the movement of people from the
plantation system to be established as independent small farmers for subsistence and cash sale,
started in 1838. The freed blacks resided in mountainous areas, Crown lands, free villages, on
abandoned plantations and on lands they had purchased. There were also other ways they had
acquired land. Non-conformist missionaries had bargained prices with land owners so the blacks
could afford land as a way of spreading their Christianity to the ex-slaves. With their own land,
the blacks cultivated small crops as a means of making a living and then later in the 1860s these
crops were being used for exportation.
However, as peasantry was a reaction to emancipation, the growth of land acquisition and growth
in the number of peasants were rapid. This growth was controlled by the whites. Though the
blacks were freed they were still being oppressed. The whites made it difficult for the blacks to
acquire land by selling them at high prices.
Nevertheless, peasantry moved across the socio-economic and political spectrum of the
Caribbean society differing in various Caribbean territories. In the Lesser Antilles, less land was

Daneilla Banks & Romario Adams

available for cultivation compared to the Greater Antilles and so peasantry did not depend
exclusively on the soil for subsistence and income generations. Peasant farming was
supplemented by fishing, shop keeping, casual estate work and animal husbandry. Also, as sugar
cultivation became unprofitable new small crops were introduced such as coconut, bananas, rice
and fruits.
The role of peasantry contributed vastly to the economic development of the Caribbean society
in the period of Emancipation. Peasantry allowed for the Caribbean people to become less
dependent on the imported food as their agricultural produce supplied them with the food that
they needed themselves and for cash sale. This new independence that the free blacks found was
born out of peasantry and the economy was booming as a result.
Sir Arthur Gordon, a British colonial official encouraged the local governments in making land
acquisition less difficult for the ex-slaves by reducing the prices of the land. The exportation of
the small crops cultivated by the small farmers was sustained and maintained by the local
government who provided loans so that these crops could be shipped quickly and regularly to
various trading countries. Colonial officials also educated the peasant farmers on the different
crops that could be cultivated on their conducive farm lands which would make them more
marketable. Some of the goods produced by the blacks were mostly fruit, vegetables and ground
provision. However, the larger Caribbean territories were at an advantage over the smaller ones
as more lands and natural resources were available for the agricultural diversifications. So
countries like Jamaica had a developed trading system that reaped foreign exchange by exporting
some of their produce- spices, lime juice, rum, arrowroot, citrus, pimento, coffee and coconut to
Central America, the US and Great Britain. Also, Jamaica and Trinidad had large reserves of

Daneilla Banks & Romario Adams

natural resources where the discovery of oil and bauxite led to these countries having industrialbased economies. Where as the smaller territories depended on tourism and agriculture.
Peasants also became more interested in saving. They would put their money into banks. This
was a form resistance. Though the blacks were emancipated they still faced oppression. Saving
and thriving in the industry was a contradiction to the ideology that the whites had had as the
blacks being inferior and mere objects for the use of capital. The evolution of peasantry made
them more independent and gave back their sense of identity.
The establishment of peasantry also influenced social life in the Caribbean. The values and
norms that were practiced by peasants are still prevalent throughout the Caribbean such as
kinship, brotherhood, neighbourly love and respect for elders. Regarding the blacks sense of
identity, their cultures could be expressed purely and more freely. The free villages were where
ex-slaves could socialize and practice their dance and music. They promoted cultural events,
some of which helped to keep African and Indian culture alive. This freedom contributed to the
diverse cultures in the Caribbean in period of emancipation. Also social institutions such as
churches and schools were established by these peasants. They also contributed to the foundation
of Modern Caribbean Society.
The contribution of peasantry to the political life of the Caribbean society was not as immense as
the other major factors. Up until the 1940s only some black men were qualified to vote and
participate in the political life of the region. What made them qualified was land ownership.
Thereafter, all adult men and women of the British colonised Caribbean were able to vote.
However, Sir Alexander Bustamente caused there to be a change in the world of politics for the
blacks. His passion for equality between the blacks and the whites and the black pride was

Daneilla Banks & Romario Adams

evoked from peasantry. He led black workers against exploitation by employers and indicated
that capital must learn to work fairly with labour and labour must give a fair days work for a fair
days pay. The two political parties in Jamaica now originated in the same time of peasantry.
The Jamaica National Party had been formed in 1943 to take the struggle of the workers, until
then confined to collective bargaining and the advocacy of social legislation, to the field of
politics where the power of the state could be won for the workers and become an instrument for
the improvement of their standard of living, and the reduction of social and economic inequality.
Bustamente strived for the ability of all the adult blacks the right to vote. This was achieved in
1944, The Universal Adult Suffrage. This freedom of voting fuelled the advancement in the exslaves status.
In conclusion, the period of emancipation is highlighted in history as this was a break for the
blacks to achieve independence through peasantry. Peasantry enlightened the social, economical
and political aspects lives of the blacks allotting them with the right to vote, cash sale and the
freedom to express their culture openly.