Local authors launch book exploring cricket’s role in Caribbean identity

Exploring how cricket intersects with race, colonial legacy and economic inequality across the Caribbean, two local authors, Dr Harold Harris and Dr Elijah James have launched a new book entitled “Cricket, Race, and Economics in West Indian Society” yesterday.

Attended by Governor General Sir Rodney Williams, the book emerged from Dr Harris’s PhD dissertation research that took him to Cave Hill in Barbados and England for extensive study.

Following the publication of his research, Dr Harris said, his family found his 200-300 page academic work too complex to read.

“They congratulated me but then they let me know in no uncertain terms that they would never ever read it; it’s too complicated. So, I’m burdened with the need to share what I have experienced travelling around, searching, researching,” he said.

Guest speaker at the event, Vere Hill described how cricket shaped an entire Caribbean generation’s confidence and worldview.

He recounted how after accomplishing what clients called a “nearly impossible mission” in South America, they asked what made Caribbean professionals so confident.

“Firstly, growing up, all the good people I knew looked like me. My teacher looked like me, my pastor looked like me, my doctor looked like me, my Prime Minister looked like me,” he said. “Secondly, it was cricket. That one thing that unites us as a Caribbean people, that one thing that we dominated the world for over 15 years, that gave us confidence wherever we went.”

Former West Indies cricket administrator Zorol Barthley, the first Antiguan to captain the West Indies under-19 team, emphasized cricket’s continuing economic value.

Barthley described how cricket connections open doors globally, from flight upgrades to business opportunities.

“We meet people because of cricket. You call names and I can relate to those names. It’s amazing how those doors open,” Barclay said. “We have punched above our weight in international cricket. We need to be proud of it.”

The book traces cricket’s evolution from a tool of British colonial domination to an instrument of resistance, identity formation and national pride.

It examines who gets selected, who gets paid, who gets to lead, and whose voices are heard in boardrooms and dressing rooms.

According to Harris, the work explores economic underpinnings including funding, sponsorship, professional contracts, player migration and globalization’s impact on what was once a dominant cricketing region.

The authors said they focused on reaching common readers rather than deeply entrenched intellectuals, while keeping the book affordable.

Dr harold harris (left) and dr elijah james (seated) with governor general sir rodney williams (far right) and producer & event coordinator, koren norton during the launch of their new book. jpg