Singleton authors new book
Theresa Singleton,
associate professor of anthropology, is the author of a new book, Slavery Behind the Wall, An Archaeology of a
Cuban Coffee Plantation, published by University Press of Florida. In this, her third book, she examines slavery in Cuba - the largest slave society of
the Spanish colonial empire - where the plantation owner at Santa Ana de
Biajacas sequestered slaves behind a massive masonry wall.
In the
first archaeological investigation of a Cuban plantation by an English speaker,
Singleton explores how elite Cuban planters used the built environment to
impose a hierarchical social order upon slave laborers. Behind the wall, slaves
reclaimed the space as their own, forming communities, building their own houses,
celebrating, gambling, and even harboring slave runaways. What emerged there is
not just an identity distinct from other North American and Caribbean
plantations, but a unique slave culture that thrived despite a Spartan
lifestyle. Singleton's study provides
insight into the larger historical context of the African diaspora, global
patterns of enslavement, and the development of Cuba as an integral member of
the larger Atlantic World. Her book has
been described as "a
significant contribution in Caribbean archaeology” and “a reference point for
future studies on Afro-Cuban archaeology."
Throughout her career,
Singleton has combined her research interests with developing museum
collections, exhibitions, lectures, workshops, and publications. She has completed comparative studies of slave
societies in the Americas. She began her study of slavery in coastal
Georgia where African-Americans descended from the former slave population are
known as the Gullah. Since that time, she has conducted research, contributed
to exhibitions, and published on various aspects of African-American life in
United States. 06/04/15