'ALL AH WE HUSTLIN NOW' Economic and Social Change in an

526 Pages·2009·31.1 MB·English

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'ALL
AH WE HUSTLIN NOW'
Economic Social Change in East Indian
and an
Community in Guyana
Eric Raymond Hanley
Ph. D.
University Edinburgh
of
1981
y
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ABSTRACT
The is
innovation,
thesis a study or technical
economic change and
in
East Indian
ethnicity the context farming
of an in
rice
community
Guyana, South
America. The
follow-up
research
was a to
a previous
study of the community, following
and concentrated the
on
questions:
1)
Why had
the
predicitions of the
previous study concerning
future
the
agricultural the been borne
of village
not
out?
How
is it for decision-making
necessary innovation
about to
be
in
seen terms
of a series of constraining
administrative
contexts?
3)
To
did Hechter's 'internal
what extent
model of
colonialism'
apply to the in Guyana?
post-independence situation
How
in
-+) effective were modernisation theories explaining the
in
changes experienced the research
community?
5)
What implications did have for
these changes the pattern of
Guyanese
ethnicity?
The
had been
research showed that the system of rice production
heavily by
had disadvantageous
modified mechanisation, which proved
farmers. These by
to
many were only able to survive economically
in in Georgetown,
engaging regular employment the capital, which was
distance. This
within travelling move to urban employment was
by but by increasing
paralleled not only young men, also an number of
females, in East Indian
and represented a major change traditional
economic patterns.
The forms had implications,
new of economic activity also wider
had been African
the traditionally
since urban employment market an
Thus intrusion Indians likely be
preserve. the of was to seen as an
interests, in
economic threat to their and was turn reflected at the
level. The in
national political thesis examines the ways which these
its
processes affected the community and changing relation to
Government.
Finally the thesis reviews anthropological approaches to the study
in light
of ethnicity and social change the of the research
findings.
DECLARATION
declare has been
I hereby that the thesis composed
I
is based
that
by and on research
myself
conducted.
I
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Page
INTRODUCTION
7
The Study Social Change
8
of
The Evolution Present Study
13
the
of
The Research Topics
19
The Format Thesis 26
the
of
Fieldwork 27
Acknowledgements 29
A Note Currency 30
on
CHAPTER 1: THEORETICAL ISSUES IN THE STUDY OF GUYANESE SOCIETY 31
Introduction 32
General Theories 32
Modernisation 32
Dependency 41
Pluralism 50
Ethnicity 57
The Study Guyanese Society 72
of
Summary Conclusions 8U
and
CHAPTER 2: HISTORY OF WINDSOR FOREST 87
Introduction 88
General History Guyana 89
of
92
Agriculture Guyanese Coastal Plain
the
on
96
Indenture
98
The Movement Plantations
the
off
99
Windsor Forest
103
The Establishment Land Settlement Scheme
of a
111
The Pressure for Sale
115
The Committees Enquiry
of
119
The Working Leasehold System
the
of
122
The West Demerara Estates Colonial Politics
and
128
Summary Conclusions
and
CHAPTER 3: WINDSOR FOREST AND THE TRADITIONAL SYSTEM
134
OF PRODUCTION
135
Introduction
135
The Establishment Rice Farming
of
143
The Establishment Mill ing
of
145
The Traditional System Production
of
156
Milling
160
The Farm Enterprise
162
Summary Conclusions
and
2
Pa
ge
CHAPTER 4: WINDSOR FOREST IN 195b AND 1972
167
Introduction
168
The 195b Study
168
Layout
Physical Amenities
171
and
Population
178
The Household
187
Kinship
194
Marriage
196
Domestic Life
205
The Household Economy
210
Education
215
Religion
218
Hindus
219
Muslims 222
Christians
226
Administration 227
Stratification
231
Summary Conclusions 239
and
CHAPTER 5: FARMING IN WINDSOR FOREST 242
Introduction 24 3
The Development Rice Industry 244
of the
Rice Government Policy 25u
and
Production in Windsor Forest 258
272
Milling
Landholdin, 276
Implications 288
Mechanisation
of
The Economic Viability Rice Farming 297
of
315
Other Agricultural Activities
325
Summary Conclusions
and
331
CHAPTER WORK BUSINESS
b: AND
332
Introduction
333
Traditional Employment Patterns
336
The Beginnings Change
of
339
Shops
34 2
The Growth Urban Employment
of
351
Getting Job
a
355
Non-Government Employment
356
Clerical Related Workers
and
361
Female Economic Activity
363
Female Employment
374
Reactions Problems
and
377
Businesses
392
Local Employees
395
Local Female Economic Activity
399
Summary Conclusions
and
3
Pa
Se
7:
CHAPTER THE LOCAL POLITICAL SYSTEM 403
Introduction
404
Early Administration 405
The Settlers' Committee
408
National Political Developments 412
The Disturbances Windsor Forest 415
and
The PNC Governments 422
The Move Local Authority 425
to
a
The Rate Payers Association 430
The Community Development Committee 441
The Changing Relationship Government 449
with
Other Organisations 454
The Hechter Model 403
Summary Conclusions 468
and
CHAPTER 8: CONCLUSIONS 471
472
Introduction
The Research Questions 473
495
Social Change
501
APPENDICES
502
1) The Guyanese Economy
504
2) Rice Acreages Yields Guyana
and -
505
3) Occupations Windsor Forest Employees
of
507
4) Urban Employers Windsor Forest Workers
of
509
5) Census Schedule
515
BIBLIOGRAPHY
4
TABLES
Page
2/1 Income Expenditure, Windsor Forest
127
and
Ethnic Compostition Windsor Forest 1972
4/1 179
of
42 Indian Population Windsor Forest 1956 & 1972 183
of
-4/3 A Household Composition 195b & 1972 Overall 190
-
B Household Composition 1956 & 1972 "Aale-headed.
-
,
-4/3
households
192
4/3 C Household Composition 1956 & 1972 Female-headed
-
households
193
Legal Status Unions 205
4/4
of
4/5 Nouvelle Flanders/La Jalousie Local
Authority
230
Allocations
5/1 Importation Tractors Combines into Guyana 251
of and
5/2 Rice Shipments KMB by Windsor Forest Mills 276
to
5/3 Total Acreages Planted by Windsor Forest Farmers 277
5/4 Location Rice Land Holdings 278
of
283
5/5 Labour Inputs Under Hand Mechanised Cultivation
and
5/6 Tractor Purchases by Windsor Forest Farmers 284
301
5/7 Comparative Costs Rice Production
of
314
5/8 Ages Male Rice Farmers by Location Occupation
of of
322
5/9 Milk Shipments Georgetown
to
337
6/1 RMB Employees Employees
and other
339
6/2 Windsor Forest Shops
345
6/3 Dates Commencing Employment Males
A
of -
346
6/3 B Dates Commencing Employment Females
of -
348
b/y Ages Male Employees
of
350
6/5 Place Work Males
Occupations
and of -
387
Fowl
Ownersnip
b/6 of
394
6/7 Local Male Employees
Ages
of
MAPS
Pie
7
1) The Caribbean
15
2) Guyana
18
3) West Demerara
21
Crops
4) Coast Demerara Main
West
-
170
5) Windsor Forest
280
holdings
farmers'
6) Location Windsor Forest rice
of
Introduction
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INTRODUCTION
The S, Social Change.
of
-
-uiy
Present Study.
The Evolution the
of
-
The Research Topics.
-
Thesis.
The Format the
or
-
Fieldwork.
-
Acknowledgements.
-
Currency.
'.
ote on
-
Introduction
THE STUDY OF SOCIAL CHANGE
"Change
is It
is
a constant. taking
place at varying
degrees
"
rates and everywhere
and always.
(Herscovits
1966: 40)
Despite
this
panoramic view of social be
change, which appears to
a
major commitment on the part of the social sciences, has
a convention
developed in Social Anthropology Sociology 'social
and that is
change'
diciplines,
an area or sub-branch of the with the associated
being
attributes of special courses taught on this subject and a
literature Yet it is
specific relating to the area of activity.
is
possible to argue that change precisely what the social sciences
have been indeed it
always studying, and that was the questions of the
human initially
evolution of social organisation that contributed most
diciplines.
to the establishment of the social science
Thus for
the great social thinkers of the nineteenth century, who
focus
in
this the of their
played such a crucial role endeavour,
human
interest
was primarily the evolution of society as a whole.
distinctive
These
grand explanatory schema exhibited a number of
characteristics, one of which was the use of polar extremes of a
For
continuum to characterise the effects of social evolution.
between
distinction
Durkheim, for found in
the
this
example, was
for Maine it
'mechanical' 'organic'
forms
whilst
and of solidarity,
'status'
from
to
to be located in his distinction of the move
was
Gemeinschaft
'contract'
for Tonnies in of and
the
characteristics
and
the
Gesellschaft. A further was to consider
tendency these writers
of
the
being with
unilinear,
process of social evolution as essentially
Victorian in lived being the more sophisticated
they at
society which
by later
led
has in to the accusation
the turn
end of continuum, which
Introduction
generations that these analyses exhibit bias.
an ethnocentric
distinctive
One
the
of most characteristics of these
classic social
is
theories this emphasis on unilinear evolution. This in turn leads
being
to
a conceptualisation of change as essentially
endogenous,
which is also a characteristic which is to be found in the
work of
This
Marx as well. tendency to see social change in
such unilinear
is in Western
evolutionary terms so pervasive social thought, that
Nisbet has been its back Greek
able to chart origins to
ancient
(1969).
writing
with decline in
the popularity of the evolutionary perspective
during development
the present century and with the of the social
sciences one might think that the emphasis on endogenous
decline. One
conceptualisations of social change would also would
functionalist
be in
particularly expect this to so the case of the
held for long in both Social
theories that emerged and sway so
frequently
Anthropology Sociology. Funtionalist
theories are
and
being
one sees a marked
conceived of as ahistorical, and certainly
between 'timelessness' Evans Pritchard's
analysis of
contrast the of
Nuer
Nuer later have to the
the the that sought set
and commentaries
(Sahlins
into historical
perspective
a more specific and evolutionary
1961; Gough 1971; Southall 1976).
deal
Nevertheless functionalist did to with
attempt
analysts
'culture
formulations
is by Malinowski's about
change,
as exemplified
Radcliffe Brown's
be,
and
contact', though they might
unsatisfactory
distinction between in to the system
the and changes
changes system
those
(1952). of
Of the writings
were
more significance