Founded as a key Atlantic port and later transformed by the construction of the Panama Railroad and Canal, Colón has long been a vital center of Afro-Caribbean presence, labor, and political struggle. Generations of Afro-descendant communities, particularly West Indian migrants and their descendants, have navigated racial segregation, economic exploitation, and systemic exclusion while developing enduring forms of cultural expression and civic engagement. From early labor organizing and diasporic media to contemporary youth and women’s movements, Afro-Colonense communities have continuously asserted their autonomy, challenged inequality, and redefined the contours of Panamanian national identity.
Colón is the capital city of Colón Province in Panama. The city’s population is estimated to be 261,671 (United States Census Bureau 2021). In the 16th century, Spanish colonizers brought individuals from Africa, the Iberian Peninsula, and other Spanish colonies as enslaved laborers in Panama. These individuals were called “Negros Coloniales” and had Spanish-sounding surnames (Priestley and Barrow 2008, 228). In the 1850s, 5,000 migrants from the Caribbean went to Panama to build the Panama Railroad. In the 1880s, over 50,000 more migrants, mostly from Jamaica, but also from Barbados, St. Lucia, and Martinique, traveled to aid the French attempts to build an interoceanic canal and railroads. Over 10,000 of those laborers died over the course of the construction processes, but many remaining migrants chose to stay and established a strong presence of Afro-Caribbean migrants and descendants in the region (Corinealdi 2022, 6).
When the Panama Canal was constructed from 1904–1914, the population of the region more than doubled, with 150,000–200,000 Caribbean migrants traveling to the region to help build the canal. Most of these migrants were from Barbados, with others from Jamaica, Saint Lucia, Martinique, and other parts of the Caribbean. Many died or experienced severe injuries during the building of the Panama Canal. After its construction, around half of the workers opted to stay, and many stayed in Colón, at the Atlantic entrance to the Panama Canal, leading to the majority of Colón’s population being of Afro-Caribbean descent. This demographic has led to a unique Afro-Caribbean culture in the region. Many of the occupants have also undertaken diasporic and local internationalist projects to connect Black people in the hemisphere (Corinealdi 2022, 6–8).
Between 1511 and 1513, the first enslaved people arrived on the American continent in what is now Panama (Lowe de Goodin 2012, 5). It was the beginning of centuries of Africans being forcibly brought to the Americas by the Spanish as enslaved labor. This enslavement was not passively accepted. Many fought for freedom from enslavement by taking and creating opportunities to escape. Collective violence was a common method used to obtain freedom. On slave ships traveling from Africa to the Americas, despite disadvantages to the captors due to weaponry and training, enslaved people would work collectively to kill the crew, seize the ship, and return to Africa (Lowe de Goodin 2012, 12–13).
Other methods of liberation primarily occurred in two forms: cimarronaje (marronage) and apalencamiento. Marronage was when rebels who freed themselves from slavery individually would regroup with others. They were called maroons and moved around frequently, often living in jungles or forests. Apalencamiento was when enslaved people would rebel in groups. Once they liberated themselves, they tended to form more permanent communities called palenques (Lowe de Goodin 2012, 14–15).
In 1519 and beyond, there were several maroon rebellions in Panama. Schwaller (2018) argues that due to the continuous work of the maroons, Spain wasn’t able to successfully conquer Panama, as their work was continuously undone by maroon interference. He states that the territory Spain would “conquer” would be reconquered by the maroons, demonstrating the continuous resistance that formerly enslaved people would fight for. The Spanish crown was eventually forced to make concessions to the maroons to maintain control over the region (Lowe de Goodin 2012, 14–15).
In the 16th through 19th centuries, despite much of the Panamanian population comprising individuals of African descent and the significant impact Black populations were having on the development of the region, a caste system based on race developed. The system privileged individuals who had the most resemblance to white people. This led to white and Creole people living in a walled area, while Black, Indigenous, and Mestizo people lived outside the wall in a place known as El Arrabal, or “The Suburb” (Lowe de Goodin 2012, 19, 21). This created a physical and architectural representation of racial hierarchical distinctions.
Eventually, the caste system weakened, often due to Black people filling essential, leading roles that the small number of whites in the area could not fill and growing cultural shifts. As the caste system weakened, so too did the number of enslaved people. By the 1840s, less than 1% of the Panamanian population was enslaved, and on January 1, 1852, slavery was abolished (Lowe de Goodin 2012, 26, 34).
In 1850, the Panama Railroad Company began construction of the Panama Railroad to aid with transportation of gold from the California Gold Rush. This construction was completed in 1855 through the contract labor of over 5,000 Afro-Antilleans from Jamaica (Lowe de Goodin 2012, 35). During the 1870s and 1880s, through a failed French attempt to build an interoceanic canal, over 50,000 workers, mostly from Jamaica, traveled to the region, and many stayed (Corinealdi 2022, 6; Lowe de Goodin 2012, 48).
From 1904 to 1914, hundreds of thousands of people traveled from the Caribbean islands to Panama to build the Panama Canal (Corinealdi 2022, 7). The U.S. also set up its own systems of governance, courts, policing, schooling, and more around the canal. These systems brought over Jim Crow-era policies from the U.S. and deliberately excluded and discriminated against Panamanians and non-white individuals working on the canal. The most explicit form of discrimination was through establishing the “gold and silver rolls” system. This system paid white U.S. citizens on a “gold” payroll with benefits and higher salaries and paid Black, Afro-Caribbean non-U.S. workers on a “silver” payroll, which lacked benefits and paid less. The pay for a “gold” worker was four times the pay of a “silver” worker. In the Canal Zone, the U.S. also established racially segregated towns: “gold” towns and “silver” towns that further divided the experiences in the region by race (Corinealdi 2022, 14–15).
The “gold and silver” system not only significantly exploited the labor of workers along racial lines but also had a significant burden on the West Indian women who also traveled to the Canal Zone. Joan Flores-Villalobos (2023), in her book The Silver Women, describes the experiences of these women. They would often cook and sell food, launder clothes, and work in the homes of white Americans. Beyond paid work, women also dealt with the unpaid labor of care and the emotional labor of losing the lives of loved ones to the project. Without the labor and sacrifices of women in Panama, the Canal project would have never been completed (Flores-Villalobos 2023, 2–4).
On February 24, 1920, frustrations surrounding the poor treatment of workers led to an international, diasporic strike that lasted nine days. The strike achieved the support of 90% of the workers, and 12,000–16,000 Afro-Caribbean workers joined the strike (Corinealdi 2022, 9; Lowe de Goodin 2012, 73). While the strike ultimately did not succeed due to heavy policing, this unifying strike set the groundwork for future strikes and bolstered the fight for labor unionism (Corinealdi 2022, 10).
Women like Amy Denniston, Amy Jacques Garvey, Maymie de Mena, Linda Smart Chubb, and Leonor Jump used the women’s sections of interwar Black newspapers such as the Panama Tribune and Workman to encourage women’s social critique, challenge the exclusion of women in the fight against racism, and advocate in Panamanian society (Corinealdi 2023, 41–44; Flores-Villalobos 2023, 208–09). Together, they “cultivated Afro-diasporic kinship networks, developed critiques of local xenophobia, engaged with Black nationalist politics, and championed early Black feminist causes” (Flores-Villalobos 2023, 208).
In the past century, Panamanians of African descent have continued to fight for equality and justice. Political leaders like General Omar Torrijos prioritized including Black and Indigenous voices, leading to several Afro-Panamanians being in positions of leadership in the Panamanian government (Lowe de Goodin 2012, 106). Afro-Caribbean activists fought for citizenship and to be recognized as Panamanian (Corinealdi 2023, 57). Organizations such as the Universal Negro Improvement Association (UNIA) were formed to support Afro-descendant communities by advocating for an end to racial discrimination through education, journalism, and more (Corinealdi 2023, 8–9, 163–64).
The parallel experiences of anti-Black exploitation of many Afro-Caribbean and Afro-descendant people in the Americas have “precipitated a new consciousness about the conditions that bound them together across national and colonial borders” (Flores-Villalobos 2024). Together, Afro-Panamanians have continuously advocated for change and created diasporic communities that have fought against xenophobia, racism, and white supremacy.
In 1941, Panama’s constitution was revised to make Spanish the country’s official language. It also included explicitly racist and xenophobic language against the immigration of Black people whose native language was not Spanish, those originating from North Africa, and Asia. While the 1946 revisions to the constitution eliminated the explicit racism, they kept Spanish as the official language, which was under the hopes of assimilating the Panamanian population into a Hispanic identity. There was, however, continuous progress toward equality. In 1972, the constitution was updated again to create a principle of equality that prohibited discrimination (Lowe de Goodin 2012, 89–90).
Panama is often portrayed as a rainbow society (crisol de razas) that claims to be free of racism. This narrative promotes racial ambiguity, whitening, and racial harmony between whites, Indigenous people, and Blacks of colonial origin. This system splits the Black population into two groups: the “Negros Coloniales” of colonial origin—with Spanish-sounding surnames—and the Antillanos or Chombos who are of Caribbean/West Indian ancestry—with English-sounding surnames. Only the Antillanos are considered Black under the Panamanian system, which minimizes the recognized presence of Blacks in the area, leading to discrimination and segregation that is often unrecognized by the government (Priestley and Barrow 2008, 229).
In 1999, a Black Movement in Panama grew and accomplished great gains. Two Panamanians of West Indian descent were appointed to the Supreme Court of Panama, a Coordinating Commission of Panamanian Black Ethnicity Day was started, and they worked to bridge the gap between Blacks of Caribbean descent and of colonial descent. Beyond that, they also reformed discrimination laws, participated in the World Conference Against Racism, and effectively lobbied to create a Special Commission for Black Inclusion in Panama, among many other things. The Black Movement continues its fight for equality and justice for the Afro-descendant community in Panama (Priestley and Barrow 2008, 231).
Today, Afro-Panamanians are continuously excluded from positions of political and economic power. Colón, where the majority of the population is of Afro-Caribbean descent, has a noticeable lack of support from government services and social sector investment. Panamanian society tends to value assimilationist mestizo cultural values of lighter skin tones and the mix of the “rainbow society,” which leads to discrimination against Black Panamanians in hiring practices, law enforcement, and government resource distribution.
In 2016, the Panamanian government created the National Secretariat for the Development of Afro-Panamanians (SENADAP), which sought to promote greater equality and rights for Afro-Panamanians. Other groups, including the National Coordinator for Afro-Panamanian Organizations (CONEGPA), have also continuously fought for Afro-Panamanian rights. However, Afro-Panamanians continue to be unrecognized in areas of daily life, which becomes apparent in the inequalities they face. Afro-Panamanians have high levels of unemployment, poverty, and literacy. They also have less access to healthcare in comparison to the rest of the population, which has led to a high prevalence of health issues such as diabetes and hypertension within Afro-Panamanian communities. Even so, Afro-Panamanian organizations and activists have continuously fought for their rights and continue to do so today (Minority Rights Group, n.d.).
● Universal Negro Improvement Association (UNIA) and Liberty Hall — The UNIA was one of the local Black nationalist organizations that helped fight against racism in Panama. It was based at Colón’s Liberty Hall (Flores-Villalobos 2023, 207). In Colón, the UNIA branch operated a school and bakery, owned real estate, and hosted weekly meetings. The UNIA helped organize labor strikes and connect African diasporic communities (Corinealdi 2023, 9).
● The Panama Tribune — The Panama Tribune was an English-language newspaper started and run by Afro-Caribbean Panamanians. It made a significant impact through its coverage by connecting Panamanians to the global experiences of people of color. The newspaper was a voice for the experiences of Afro-Caribbean Panamanians. As a community-run paper, it required community staffing, representation, and readership. The underrepresented voices of Afro-Caribbean descendants represented in the Tribune worked to inform community members of relevant events and experiences and provided a platform for discussion of topics including assimilation, racial or ethnic pride, and xenophobia (Corinealdi 2023, 25, 29–31).
● Pedro N. Rhodes — Pedro N. Rhodes was born in 1894 in Colón, Panama. He was trained as a lawyer and served on the Colón Municipal Council. He advocated for Afro-Caribbeans when naturalization and citizenship laws changed. Much of his work focused on petitioning against the nationality law, a discriminatory policy that increased the difficulty of obtaining Panamanian citizenship and created the risk of denationalization. Although his petitioning was initially unsuccessful, he and other Afro-Caribbean Panamanians called for a full-scale review of the 1941 Constitution. This led to the 1946 ratification of a new constitution that removed direct attacks against Afro-Caribbean Panamanians (Corinealdi 2023, 64–71).
● Fundación de la Etnia Negra de Panamá (FEN) — FEN is a civil society organization dedicated to promoting Afro-descendant culture in Panama. It has partnered with international organizations to strengthen Afro-descendant civil society organizations in Colón.
● Fundación Ubuntu — Afro-descendant community of Colón.
● PANAMAAFRO — A comprehensive and evolving registry of Afro-Panamanian organizations across the country, created to address the lack of an official state record of Afro-descendant groups. The directory includes legally recognized associations, informal community collectives, and grassroots initiatives that engage in cultural, political, and social advocacy relevant to Afro-Panamanian life.
● Dash Harris Machado — Dash Harris Machado, also known as diasporadash, is a Black Latina historian, consultant, journalist, and digital content creator. She uses her platforms to discuss anti-Blackness, racism, xenophobia, Black Latin American history, Latinx identity, and more. She is the co-founder of AfroLatino Travel and co-host of the Radio Caña Negra podcast. She is an activist who has produced documentaries about Latinx identity, published several personal essays, and creates informational videos on social media about Afro-Latinx history and experiences.
● Janvieve Williams Comrie — Janvieve Williams Comrie is an Afro-Panamanian human rights strategist, writer, grief companion, and death doula based between the Bronx and Panama. She is the founder of AfroResistance, an organization focused on racial justice and the human rights of Black and Afro-descendant communities across the Americas, and Radiant Grief, which works to make grief support accessible to traditionally underrepresented and underserved communities. Her work draws connections between personal and collective loss, migration, racial and gender justice, and Black diasporic experiences. Williams Comrie teaches at The New School and NYU Wagner Graduate School of Public Service and is the author of Dancing with Death: A Lighthearted Guide to Embracing Life’s Final Chapter. Across her human rights advocacy and grief work, she brings her experience as a Black Latina migrant to questions of loss, community, and collective care.
● Javier Wallace — Javier Wallace is a scholar, storyteller, and entrepreneur whose work brings together sports, history, and social justice. He is the founder of Black Austin Tours and co-founder of AfroLatinx Travel, platforms that center the histories and experiences of Black diasporic communities. A former Division I college athlete and graduate of Florida A&M University, Wallace earned his PhD from the University of Texas at Austin, where his research examined the intersections of race, culture, and athletics. His scholarship and public history work engage Black diasporic histories, including the experiences of Afro-Panamanians. He is the author of Basketball Trafficking: Stolen Black Panamanian Dreams (2025), which examines the experiences of Black Panamanian basketball players recruited to the United States.
Research and writing by Allie Schlicht (Georgetown University Laidlaw Scholar)
● Corinealdi, Kaysha. “Perspective | Jim Crow Was Hemispheric. So Was the Black Activism That Sought to Dismantle It.” Washington Post, February 18, 2022.
● Corinealdi, Kaysha. Panama in Black: Afro-Caribbean World Making in the Twentieth Century. Durham: Duke University Press, 2022.
● Doig-Acuña, Maya. "The Most Caribbean of Stories." Southern Cultures 26, no. 4 (2020): 12–23.
● Flores-Villalobos, Joan. The Silver Women: How Black Women’s Labor Made the Panama Canal. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 2023.
● Flores-Villalobos, Joan. “A Black Woman’s History of the Panama Canal.” Modern American History 7, no. 1 (2024).
● Lowe de Goodin, Melva. Afrodescendientes En El Istmo de Panamá 1501-2012. Panamá: Editora Sibauste, S.A., 2012.
● Minority Rights Group. “Afro-Panamanians in Panama.” Minority Rights Group. n.d.
● Priestley, George, and A. Barrow. "The Black Movement in Panamá: A Historical and Political Interpretation, 1994–2004." Souls 10, no. 3 (2008): 227–55.
● Schwaller, Robert C., ed. African Maroons in Sixteenth-Century Panama: A History in Documents. Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 2021.
● Schwaller, Robert C. “Contested Conquests: African Maroons and the Incomplete Conquest of Hispaniola, 1519–1620.” The Americas 75, no. 4 (2018): 609–38.
● Wallace, Javier. Basketball Trafficking: Stolen Black Panamanian Dreams. Durham: Duke University Press, 2025.
● Wallace, Javier L. "Lost In Translation: Reverted Black Panamanian Sporting Networks." Southern Cultures 29, no. 2 (2023): 24–37.
BCA is a platform dedicated to amplifying Black Central American history, culture, and scholarship. Through curated content, innovative programming, and collaborative initiatives, we explore the collective memory, cultural and political organizing, and creative place-making practices of Black Central American communities across the isthmus and its diasporas.
