Jews of the Dutch Caribbean (PDF)

Jews of the Dutch Caribbean addresses identity and ethnicity, through a detailed study of a little-known group in Curaçao Netherlands Antilles. It asks readers to take a broad perspective on the contexts that play a role in ethnicity - including, for example, ecology, history, kinship, commerce, and language use in everyday life and, crucially, rituals. Each chapter includes an extensive description of a selected ritual practice, either sacred or secular, in order to illustrate its theme. Finally the author conducts a reflective inquiry into the research ethics of anthropologists. Benjamin suggests that fieldwork is relational as much as scientific, involving subjectivity, power differences and trust.
In this fascinating study ethnic identity is treated as fluid and context-dependent rather than fixed. As such it draws on ethnographic research to extrapolate ideas about ethnic identity generally and to look at how it is shaped and negotiated. Benjamin takes a broad and innovative perspective, presenting ethnic identity as local as well as a transnational phenomenon, shaped by history and re-shaped through contemporary, everyday interactions. Drawing on work among members of the two Jewish congregations in the Dutch Caribbean, the author suggests that people construct cognitive, metaphoric maps of the different ethnic groups perceived to exist in the region they live.