Family Migration Brief
By Katrina
The object that I brought in is a
newspaper article published in the St. Petersburg Times, in Florida on
June 13, 1999. This article is very important because it holds some
history about my family and their fight for their land. The story is
told that a little-known shipwreck off the northwest peninsula of
Trinidad in the 1880’s was spotted by three brothers, one being my Great
Great Grandfather. In their rowboat, the brothers rescued the survivors
which turned out to be members of the British royal family. In
appreciation, Queen Victoria issued the brothers a royal grant of 377
acres at Scotland Bay. This same land turned into several large United
States military bases during World War II. Over 36 years later, after
the US troops left Trinidad, the large legal battle over the former
bases began. The government of Trinidad is promoting the unspoiled
paradise for investors
and land developers when in reality they should be returning the land
back to the rightful owners.
My family came from the island of Trinidad and Tobago which is the southern most Caribbean island. The first ones who initiated the move to the United States were my grandparents, in 1969, about 36 years ago. The reason for this move was due to the fact that my grandparents wanted a better life and opportunity for their family. My grandparents moved to New York and opened up a small West Indian roti shop (very similar to tortillas, or pita bread). However, my father did not move right away with his family. Instead, he stayed in Trinidad to finish up his schooling. He later moved to the United States with his own family which included his wife, son, and third daughter in 1986.
To view the Newspaper Article Click Below!