Identity and Secession in the Caribbean : Tobago Versus Trinidad

Identity and Seccession in the Caribbean chronicles the Tobago movement for autonomy in Trinidad in the time of the union of these two Caribbean islands from 1889 to 1980 when Tobago gained internal self-government. It argues that the problems Tobagonians complained about in the few years before internal self-government were long-standing and can be traced throughout the history of the union. The work puts the several calls for separation within the theoritical framework of identity. It posits that identity was the major buttress in the movement for autonomy. The unique contribution of Luke's workis it's "integrationist-separatist continuum" by which the author assesses the responses of British, colonial and local officials. This work adds to the historiography of the Caribbean, and Trinidad and Tobago in particular, and is a useful case study of the issue of succession in the Caribbean.