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Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects CUNY Graduate Center
2-2015
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LaToya Asantelle Tavernier
Graduate Center, City University of New York
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ON THE MIDNIGHT TRAIN TO GEORGIA: AFRO-CARIBBEANS AND THE NEW
GREAT MIGRATION TO ATLANTA
by
LATOYA A. TAVERNIER
A dissertation submitted to the Graduate Faculty in Sociology in partial fulfillment of the
requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy, The City University of New York.
2015
© 2015
LATOYA A. TAVERNIER
All Rights Reserved
ii
This manuscript has been read and accepted for the Graduate Faculty in Sociology in satisfaction
of the dissertation requirement for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy.
Prof. Vilna Bashi Treitler
Date Chair of Examining Committee
Professor Philip Kasinitz
Date Executive Officer
Prof. Philip Kasinitz
Prof. Nancy Foner
Prof. Charles Green
Supervisory Committee
THE CITY UNIVERSITY OF NEW YORK
iii
Abstract
ON THE MIDNIGHT TRAIN TO GEORGIA: AFRO-CARIBBEANS AND THE NEW
GREAT MIGRATION TO ATLANTA
by
LaToya A. Tavernier
Advisor: Vilna Bashi Treitler
In the 21st century, Atlanta, Georgia has become a major new immigrant destination. This study
focuses on the migration of Afro-Caribbeans to Atlanta and uses data collected from in-depth
interviews, ethnography, and the US Census to understand: 1) the factors that have contributed to
the emergence of Atlanta as a new destination for Afro-Caribbean immigrants and 2) the ways in
which Atlanta’s large African American population, and its growing immigrant population,
shape the incorporation of Afro-Caribbeans, as black immigrants, into the southern city. I find
that Afro-Caribbeans are attracted to Atlanta for a variety of reasons, including warmer climate,
job opportunities, higher education, lower costs of living, and opportunity for homeownership,
but the most salient reason is race. Being black plays a significant role in Afro-Caribbean’s
decision to migrate to Atlanta and in their experiences living there. Atlanta is a 21st century
Mecca of black wealth, higher education, and power. These characteristics, and Atlanta’s large
black population, especially its large number of black professionals, are attracting Afro-
Caribbeans from traditional immigrant destinations in the US (i.e., New York City, Boston,
Miami), the Caribbean, and other cities abroad. Afro-Caribbeans are developing their own
communities, organizations, and spaces in Atlanta; however, they are also using their
experiences and networks from their former communities to adjust to their new lives in Atlanta.
Afro-Caribbeans’ reception and incorporation are greatly shaped by the presence of “visible”
iv
immigrants, particularly Latino immigrants, and by their relationship with the city’s large
African American community. Though Afro-Caribbean’s shared racial status with Atlanta’s
African American population has allowed them to seamlessly integrate into Atlanta, unlike the
city’s growing Asian and Latino immigrant populations, it has not automatically granted them
access to networks long-established by the city’s African American middle class. Over the past
two decades, the influx of Afro-Caribbean immigrants, and a large, diverse group of other
migrant newcomers from Africa, Asia, Latin America, and the United States, to Atlanta has
triggered an unprecedented series of changes in the social, cultural, economic, political, and
ethno-racial landscapes of the southern metro and has ushered in a new era in its history.
v
Preface
Migration is in my blood. I was born in Boston, Massachusetts, the oldest child of two
black immigrants from the small Caribbean island of Dominica. When I was 18 months old, my
maternal grandmother took me back “home” with her as a surprise for the family which then
sparked four years of traveling back and forth between Dominica and Boston, spending months
at a time in each place, until I was 5 years old. Since then, I have seen my “home” in Boston
become a first stop for several family members emigrating from Dominica to the US, as my
mother served as hub for those looking to start a new life in the “states.” At an early age, I
learned the processes involved in obtaining family-sponsored immigrant visas and US
citizenship. I remember vividly when my parents each became naturalized United States citizens.
My migration history and experiences have had a significant impact on my life, as they inspired
my interest in migration stories and fueled my desire to further our understanding of the
experiences of Afro-Caribbean immigrants through scholarly research.
vi
Acknowledgements
Working on this dissertation has been one of the most exciting, yet also one of the longest
and most difficult, experiences of my life. I am deeply indebted to the many people who helped
me along the way. First and foremost are the four amazing members of my committee: Vilna
Bashi Treitler, Nancy Foner, Charles Green, and Philip Kasinitz. Without your critical and
constructive guidance, I would not have been to complete this project. For guiding me through
the hardest, loneliest, and most stressful parts of the writing and revising process, Vilna in
particular deserves my utmost gratitude and admiration; she taught me how to survive and thrive
in life and academia. To have someone as talented and yet also down-to-earth and genuinely
supportive as she is, always cheering me on (and making me feel like I am not crazy), inspires
me.
I also acknowledge the generous assistance of the Social Science Research Council-
Mellon Mays Graduate Initiative Fellowship Program, University of California-Santa Barbara
Black Studies Dissertation Fellowship Program, the Office of Research and Sponsored Programs
and the Alliances for Graduate Education and the Professoriate Program at CUNY-Graduate
Center, and the Woodrow Wilson National Fellowship Program. I want to express immense
gratitude for the moral support and sustenance provided by the staff of Haley House Bakery Café
in Dudley Square (Roxbury, MA). I am greatly thankful for the comfortable space and good
energy that I got every Tuesdays and Thursdays (and other days) while I was writing, revising,
editing, and trying to stay sane and healthy. I owe a tremendous debt to many people who
assisted me while I was in Atlanta. I am especially grateful to the 33 Afro-Caribbean respondents
who graciously let me in their homes, met me at cafes, and talked with me over the phone and
shared their migration experiences with me. I hope that this dissertation does your stories justice.
vii
Kristy Johnson, my very talented dissertation editor, deserves enormous praise for going
through my drafts and for helping me mold it into its current, much improved form. I thank her
dearly for her time, attention, and patience. A host of people helped me, in ways both big and
small, to either brainstorm ideas, listen to me ramble off on my project, or edit my streams of
consciousness into something readable and coherent. They include Karen Rhau (nèe Quartey),
Winston Thompson, Nazreen Bacchus, Kevin Moseby, Damien Schnyder, Ricardo Gabriel,
Danielle Jackson, Nigel Rawlins, Elizabeth Hall, Dasef Weems, Regine Jackson, Violet Johnson,
Sharon Robinson, Ricco Wright, Rati Kashyap, Abra Mason, Demond Mullins, Tamara Mose
Brown, Carl Hart, Reena Goldthree, Tinia Snow, Kaleefa Munroe, Candace Arthur and Joseph
Panchamsingh. I give a special thanks to the wonderful, intellectual queens in my Mellon
writing/accountability group, Cassi Pittman and Marie Brown, for supporting me and keeping me
on track. Your support through this dissertation journey is proof that the Mellon-Mays program
truly is a lifelong network of support. I also must a give a special thanks to Zandria Robinson for
reading several (rough) chapter drafts during her summer break and giving such insightful and
helpful critiques, comments, and suggestions. If I have forgotten anyone, I apologize and please
know I truly appreciate you.
Finally, all of my love also goes out to my wonderful family and friends. My parents,
Margaret Joseph and Edmund Tavernier, who provided unconditional support and love during
the entire dissertation process, raised me in a culturally-rich Dominican community in Boston,
and taught me to be proud of my Caribbeaan heritage. You both have ignited a lifelong passion
for immigration studies and exploring the experiences of Afro-Caribbean immigrants and their
children in the United States. Though I did not plan to move home during the final stages of
dissertation, I am extremely grateful for the opportunity to have spent so much time with you
viii
both at this stage in my life and career, as well as for the free room and board, dinners, life
histories, and Caribbean words of wisdom. Not to be forgotten, I want to thank my countless
friends that have provided their support and entertainment over the past 9 years, lending me a
shoulder to lean on, an ear to talk into, food and drinks in my belly, a place to sleep, and a good
laugh to remind me of the many wonderful things and people in my life outside of graduate
school. To my best friends Thu Tuyen To and Aisha Cort, I am truly blessed to have met such
amazing, loving, patient, and funny women in my lifetime. Thank you for listening to me,
sticking with me, and willing me through the darkest parts of this journey.
ix
Description:focuses on the migration of Afro-Caribbeans to Atlanta and uses data collected from in-depth interviews Caribbeans from traditional immigrant destinations in the US (i.e., New York City, Boston,. Miami) . shoulder to lean on, an ear to talk into, food and drinks in my belly, a place to sleep, and
