Date of Award
5-2025
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Bachelor of Arts
Department
History
First Advisor
Dr. Manuella Meyer
Second Advisor
Dr. Nicole Sackley
Abstract
Illegitimacy, which refers to kinship units and births outside of the nuclear family, was a major issue in Jamaica. Following the 1938 Uprising, illegitimacy became even larger as an issue as the colonial administration blamed the lower class’s revolt on their kinship units. As for nationalists, the 1938 Uprising was a catalyst for them to rally the lower class to their side, but they, too, were concerned about their illegitimate kinship units. The colonial administration used illegitimacy as a way to push back against nationalists, while nationalists blamed illegitimacy on the colonial administration’s economic exploitation and mismanagement, as well as slavery. Illegitimacy determined one’s value as a subject of the British Empire or a citizen of a self-governing Jamaica. Black feminist nationalists took responsibility for combating illegitimacy and reforming the lower class into proper citizens adherent to the nuclear family. Ultimately, the construction of the nuclear family as a key component to one’s social value demonstrates how colonial ideology can be reinforced even amidst a growing nationalist movement.
Recommended Citation
Doherty, Ryan, "The Evils of Illegitimacy: The Construction and Contest of Kinship-Based Citizenship During Jamaica’s Nationalist Awakening (1930-1945)" (2025). Honors Theses. 1817.
https://scholarship.richmond.edu/honors-theses/1817
