Chinese Cubans - (Envisioning Cuba) by Kathleen M López (Paperback)

About the Book

In the mid-nineteenth century, Cuba's infamous "coolie" trade brought well over 100,000 Chinese indentured laborers to its shores. Though subjected to abominable conditions, they were followed during subsequent decades by smaller numbers of merchants, craftsmen, and free migrants searching for better lives far from home. In a comprehensive, vibrant history that draws deeply on Chinese- and Spanish-language sources in both China and Cuba, Kathleen Lopez explores the transition of the Chinese from indentured to free migrants, the formation of transnational communities, and the eventual incorporation of the Chinese into the Cuban citizenry during the first half of the twentieth century.

Book Synopsis

In the mid-nineteenth century, Cuba's infamous "coolie" trade brought well over 100,000 Chinese indentured laborers to its shores. Though subjected to abominable conditions, they were followed during subsequent decades by smaller numbers of merchants, craftsmen, and free migrants searching for better lives far from home. In a comprehensive, vibrant history that draws deeply on Chinese- and Spanish-language sources in both China and Cuba, Kathleen López explores the transition of the Chinese from indentured to free migrants, the formation of transnational communities, and the eventual incorporation of the Chinese into the Cuban citizenry during the first half of the twentieth century.
Chinese Cubans shows how Chinese migration, intermarriage, and assimilation are central to Cuban history and national identity during a key period of transition from slave to wage labor and from colony to nation. On a broader level, López draws out implications for issues of race, national identity, and transnational migration, especially along the Pacific rim.

Review Quotes

"Chinese Cubans is the most comprehensive history of the Chinese in Cuba and in extremely insightful. Scholars interested in Cuba, the Chinese diaspora, immigration, race and ethnicity, and related topic will definitely want to read this book." -- Journal of Caribbean Studies

"Chinese Cubans is necessary reading for Latin American, Caribbean, East Asian Latino, and Asian American historians. Because the writing is clear and free from unnecessary jargon, this book would also be useful and rewarding for the educated general public." -- Hispanic American Historical Review

"A finely researched study...Fills a gaping need in several fields." -- New West Indian Guide

"Copiously referenced and gracefully written. . . . It will no doubt leave its mark on many literatures." -- Journal of Latin American Geography

"Long overdue....A welcome contribution to both Chinese and regional studies as well as transnational history." -- Journal of Latin American Studies

"This history is both well told and worth knowing about. Recommended. Upper-division undergraduates and above." -- CHOICE

About the Author

Kathleen López is assistant professor of history and Latino and Hispanic Caribbean studies at Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey.