ABSTRACT
This chapter explores nation-state tensions by examining the specific challenges of a matrifocal Black indigenous Garifuna nation in a patriarchal mestizo Honduran state. The chapter starts by looking at the tremendous influence of foreign and multinational fruit companies on a racialized and gendered labor hierarchy. These hierarchies, however, were not restricted to laborers in the fruit industry. Instead, these policies influenced a range of anti-Black policies and sentiments in the Honduran state, more broadly. Once that historical context is given as the baseline marginalization with which Garifuna contend, an exploration of the challenges during periods of natural and man-made crises is engaged. From hurricanes to coup d’états, Garifuna citizens have faced violent targeted repression during times of crisis in the state. Ultimately, a Transnational Black Feminist Framework is offered as a way of engaging the nuanced challenges of the Garifuna nation. In particular, the author shares some uncomfortable tensions navigated during her research journey.
