HRC Events Calendar
YESU PERSAUD CENTRE FOR CARIBBEAN STUDIES - Jessica Pierre-Louis
Location: Oculus OC0.05
Lecture: Negotiated identity: Free people of colour and ‘passing’ in French Caribbean
In the French Caribbean during the 17th and 18th centuries, no law allowed a formal transition from the category of Free coloured people to that of White. Contemporary sources assert that some individuals nevertheless crossed the line. Jessica will examine the informal processes that enabled people to cross the colour barrier. Samples of notarial acts and the study of parish registers, more specifically in Martinique, has allowed the reconstitution of genealogies, enabling the examination of families over several generations.