Elusive histories : Mozambican migrant laborers in Rhodesia, ca. 1900-1980 / Allen F. Isaacman, Joy M. Chadya, and Barbara S. Isaacman.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Isaacman, Allen F., author.

Chadya, Joyce Margaret, author.

Isaacman, Barbara, author.

Series:

New African histories series

New African histories

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Foreign workers, Mozambican--Zimbabwe--History.

Foreign workers, Mozambican.

Foreign workers, Mozambican--Zimbabwe--Social conditions.

Immigrants--Zimbabwe--History.

Immigrants.

Immigrants--Government policy--Zimbabwe.

Immigrants--Zimbabwe--Social conditions.

Mozambicans--Zimbabwe--History.

Mozambicans.

Mozambique--Emigration and immigration--History.

Mozambique.

Zimbabwe--Emigration and immigration--History.

Zimbabwe.

Zimbabwe--Emigration and immigration--Government policy.

Physical Description:

xii, 299 pages : illustrations, maps ; 24 cm.

Place of Publication:

Athens, Ohio : Ohio University Press, [2024]

Summary:

"At the heart of Elusive Histories is a long-neglected story of the clandestine journeys of Mozambican migrant laborers and their families to Rhodesia. Drawing from oral histories, court records, archives, newspapers, and popular magazines, the authors chronicle Mozambican migration, work experiences, and settlement in Rhodesia. Thousands of men, women, and children traveled long distances, often on foot, to reach Rhodesia. Starting with a trickle of workers seeking to avoid chibharo, a Mozambican agricultural forced-labor system, the number of migrants peaked in the 1950s. In 1958, the Rhodesian government passed legislation to bar new Mozambican migrants from entering large cities, redirecting them toward agriculture and mining. When Black Rhodesian laborers began to complain about losing jobs to Mozambicans, the restrictions became an outright ban to prevent further migrants from entering the country. Contrary to previous assumptions, Mozambican labor in Rhodesia was not contract labor derived from bilateral negotiations between the Mozambican colonial and Rhodesian governments. In fact, many Mozambicans who came to work and live in Rhodesia arrived as illegal migrants. The book also demystifies the widely held notion that all foreign migrant workers in Rhodesia who spoke Nyanja were Nyasalanders. Because Nyanja is widely spoken at the confluence of Malawi, Zambia, and Mozambique, many Mozambicans who came to work in Rhodesia were fluent. Despite the national, racial, and cultural differences and the discrimination in job placement, promotion, and housing, Mozambican migrant laborers creatively adapted and made Rhodesia home for the duration of their lives"-- Provided by publisher.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

9780821425756

0821425757

9780821425749

0821425749

OCLC:

1426287395