u/moderndaybathsheba

i’ve been wondering about this for a while and i’m genuinely curious how people from the wider Caribbean, especially people from CARICOM countries, view the Caribbean facing communities of Central America
i’m mainly thinking about places like Livingston in Guatemala, the Bay Islands of Honduras, the Caribbean coast of Nicaragua and Limón in Costa Rica. these regions have distinct Caribbean histories and communities, including Afro Caribbean, Creole and English speaking populations, as well as white English islanders with British and wider Caribbean ancestry. many also have longstanding connections to places like Jamaica, the Cayman Islands, Belize and elsewhere in the Caribbean, alongside histories shaped by British colonialism
i’m from the Bay Islands myself, so this is something i’ve thought about a lot. our Caribbean identity is often overlooked or absorbed into the broader idea of being Honduran, despite our history, culture and language. at the same time, the Bay Islands are very much recognized globally as Caribbean, especially through tourism. we’re internationally known for our diving and our connection to the Mesoamerican Barrier Reef, and our cruise ports regularly receive some of the largest cruise ships in the world
so i’m not asking whether we’re “Caribbean enough,” or whether i consider myself Caribbean. i already know where i stand on that. i’m genuinely asking whether people from the wider Caribbean were aware of these communities and their histories, and if so, how you perceive them
do you see these places as part of the broader Caribbean cultural sphere despite being politically and geographically part of Central America, or do you view “Caribbean” more specifically through the islands and societies that developed there?
i’d genuinely love to hear perspectives from people across the Caribbean, especially anyone who may not have known much about these communities before. and if you ever get the chance to visit, i’d encourage you to come see it for yourself. we’re here, we exist, and our history and heritage are very real

as overlooked as my little corner of the Caribbean can be, i’m incredibly proud to be a Bay Islander and proud of the culture and history that comes with it. my pride in where i’m from has never depended on how much recognition it gets, and having such a strong sense of culture and connection to where i come from is something i’m genuinely grateful for 🤗

no es algo nuevo, algo que siento que está demasiado normalizado en honduras es cómo los hombres sexualizan a las mujeres, y peor todavía, a las niñas, hay hombres que se quedan viendo el trasero de una mujer en la calle y ni siquiera intentan disimularlo, literalmente se te quedan viendo y les vale que una se dé cuenta

no sé cuántas veces me ha pasado que voy en un taxi y el conductor se queda prácticamente con los ojos torcidos tratando de ver por debajo de mi falda o vestido, o que un hombre casi se tropieza por ir tan concentrado mirándome el trasero o los pechos, es demasiado descarado y parece que ni les importa que una se dé cuenta

y me acuerdo clarito de una vez que iba para el colegio con unas doce niñas más, todas teníamos entre 12 y 15 años y andábamos con el uniforme, con las faldas debajo de las rodillas y las calcetas cubriendo lo que quedaba descubierto, en la calle principal había unos albañiles trabajando y empezaron a gritarnos cosas y a hacernos comentarios sexuales

ÉRAMOS NIÑAS

o sea, era OBVIO que éramos menores, íbamos para el colegio y andábamos en uniforme, y hombres de 30 y tantos años estaban ahí diciéndonos cosas sexuales a un grupo de niñas de 12 a 16 años, qué putas?

traigo esto a tema porque justo hoy volví a ver lo mismo con unas niñas que iban para el colegio, son estudiantes, andan en uniforme y por cómo se ven no pasan de 14 o 15 años, tienen literalmente cara de niñas, y aun así hombres adultos, incluyendo el taxista en el que iba, se quedaban viéndolas y hasta les gritaban cosas

siendo sinceros, cómo puede estar tan normalizado que un hombre vea a una niña y la sexualice de esa manera? y luego salen con “así son los hombres”, “solo están viendo” o “no les hagás caso”, no, qué mierda, deberíamos dejar de normalizarlo, qué asco, es repugnante

this was truly one of Disney Channel’s best crossovers ever, at the time, i loved every single show involved, so seeing them all come together for this Halloween crossover was EVERYTHING. they really did their thing with this one. one of Disney’s best Monstobers ever. i rewatch EVERY halloween

i’m a born and raised roatan islander, and my family has been here for at least seven generations on both sides. every time i hear my great grandparents’ stories or look at old photos of what the island used to be, i feel really conflicted. sometimes i even catch myself wishing honduras wasn’t so close to the us, or wishing the bay islands had stayed more of a hidden gem. i know that’s not realistic, and i understand why people fall in love with this place. i love it too. i just miss the feeling of the island being more for the people who have always called it home.

i work in tourism, so at least once every day i get asked by a foreigner about moving here, retiring here, or buying property here. i completely understand why people want to. it’s beautiful here. but as someone who has always called this place home, it breaks my heart to watch housing become more and more out of reach for locals.

i think a lot of people are quick to blame islanders for charging “foreigner prices,” but i think it’s more complicated than that. if the lot next to yours sells for an international market price, why would you sell yours for much less? if you build apartments near a tourist area and every comparable rental is charging prices that foreign retirees or remote workers can afford, why would you rent yours based on local wages? and if the minimum wage is low, why would many employers choose to pay more when they don’t have to? the market encourages these decisions, even if the end result hurts the community.

what makes me especially sad is knowing that many properties bought from island families decades ago are now being rented or sold again for several times what they originally cost. it’s hard not to think about how different things could have been if there had been stronger protections in place.

i don’t blame people for wanting to visit roatan. tourism is important and it’s part of my job. what worries me is affordability and whether future generations of islanders and hondurans will still be able to afford to live here.

whenever i’m on the mainland, i meet hondurans who tell me they’d love to visit roatan or even move here one day. i wish that felt more realistic. i wish more hondurans could afford to live in one of the most beautiful parts of their own country instead of feeling priced out by an international market.

i also wish honduras had stronger regulations around property sales and housing so there was a better balance between investment and protecting local communities. development isn’t always a bad thing, but i don’t think the people who have lived here for generations should become an afterthought.

i don’t expect everyone to agree with me, but i wanted to share the perspective of someone who was born here and has watched this place change throughout my life.

edit: i remember once speaking with a tourist who genuinely thought Roatan was just the cruise port area, like another private island or cay owned by a cruise line or resort. they had no idea that people actually live here, that there are communities with generations of history, and that this is our home.

and honestly, that moment stuck with me because it shows how easily the reality of islanders can get hidden behind the image of “paradise,” “investment opportunities,” and “vacation destination.” but behind that image are real people whose lives are being affected by the changes happening here.

soy isleña, nací y crecí en roatán y mi familia ha vivido aquí por al menos siete generaciones de ambos lados.
trabajo en turismo y por lo menos una vez al día un extranjero me pregunta cómo puede mudarse aquí, retirarse aquí o comprar una propiedad aquí. entiendo por qué quieren hacerlo, yo también amo estas islas, pero como alguien que ha vivido aquí toda su vida, me duele ver cómo cada vez es más difícil para los locales comprar o alquilar una casa.

a veces hasta desearía que honduras no estuviera tan cerca de estados unidos o que las islas de la bahía hubieran seguido siendo un “tesoro escondido.”

también siento que es muy fácil culpar a los isleños por cobrar “precios de extranjero”, pero si el terreno de al lado se vende a precio internacional, por qué venderías el tuyo mucho más barato. si todos los apartamentos cerca de las zonas turísticas se alquilan a precios que un extranjero puede pagar, por qué alquilarías el tuyo mucho más barato. el mismo mercado termina empujando esas decisiones.

cuando voy a la tierra firme conozco a muchos hondureños que sueñan con visitar roatán o hasta vivir aquí. ojalá eso fuera más fácil para ellos. me gustaría que más hondureños pudieran vivir en una de las partes más bonitas de su propio país sin sentir que compiten con un mercado internacional.

de verdad creo que honduras necesita mejores regulaciones sobre la venta de propiedades y el desarrollo inmobiliario para proteger a las comunidades locales. no estoy en contra del turismo, estoy en contra de que quienes siempre hemos vivido aquí terminemos siendo los que menos podemos permitirnos vivir aquí.

qué opinan ustedes?

hi everyone ☺️

i’ve been thinking about adoption for as long as i can remember. even as a child (i know, crazy), i always imagined my future family including adopted children, and as i’ve gotten older i’ve started thinking about it more seriously.
i’d really love to hear from people who were adopted about what that experience was like for you.

did being raised by your adoptive parents feel natural, like a true parent-child relationship? did you feel fully loved, supported, and like you truly belonged? were there any challenges or things you wish your adoptive parents understood?

i’m also curious about your relationship with your biological parents. did you ever feel the desire to know more about them, search for them, or reach out to them? if you did, how did that affect your feelings about your adoption and your adoptive family?

i know everyone’s experience is different, but i’d really appreciate hearing the good, the difficult, and everything in between. i’m asking because adoption is something i genuinely hope to consider in my future, and i want to learn from adopted people themselves.

thank you to anyone willing to share your story :)

Hay algo del idioma que siempre me ha parecido geográficamente inconsistente.

Los gentilicios continentales normalmente abarcan a todas las personas nacidas en un mismo continente, independientemente de su país.

Alguien de Camboya, Japón o Taiwán es asiático. Alguien de Australia, Fiyi o Nueva Zelanda es oceánico. Alguien de Chad, Madagascar o Egipto es africano. Alguien de Eslovenia, Irlanda o Bélgica es europeo.

Entonces, siguiendo esa misma lógica, alguien de Chile, Nicaragua, Canadá o Estados Unidos también es americano, porque todos pertenecen al continente americano.

Sin embargo, en inglés, y cada vez más en otros idiomas, se ha normalizado utilizar “americano” exclusivamente para referirse a las personas de Estados Unidos. Aunque ese sea el uso más extendido, sigue siendo una convención lingüística, no una realidad geográfica.

Algo similar ocurre cuando muchas personas llaman “Australia” a todo Oceanía, dejando en segundo plano a Fiyi, Nueva Zelanda, Papúa Nueva Guinea y decenas de otros países e islas del Pacífico. El lenguaje no es neutral: refleja relaciones de poder, procesos históricos y, en muchos casos, dinámicas de colonialismo e imperialismo que terminan colocando a un solo Estado como representante de toda una región.

Sé que este no es un tema nuevo; he visto este debate muchas veces. Pero últimamente siento que veo “americano” usado exclusivamente para Estados Unidos en todas partes, y me hizo volver a pensar en ello.

¿Ustedes qué opinan? ¿Les parece lógico que un solo país monopolice el gentilicio de todo un continente, o creen que el uso ya está tan establecido que dejó de importar?