by B. Sham Moteelall (Author)
This book delves into the lives of various East Indian indentured servants bound to British sugar plantations in the Caribbean between 1838 and 1917. During that period some 1.2 million Indians embarked into a contractual agreement to work for a specified period at those establishments. Many were lured with false promises that resulted in an atrocious system that undermined human dignity. People came under a servitude process that resulted in a system that replaced, redefined and re-invented slavery. That system determined that not all people were created equally and the establishments treated them like chattel. This reflection focuses on the country of Guyana. It progressively talks about ancestors who endured the severity of plantation life and the abuses associated with their daily lives. Those people suffered tremendous hardships. Some died while still bound to the estates leaving orphans behind. Many endured, survived and prospered. This is their story.