The first issue of Wadabagei draws on the papers that were delivered at a conference commemorating the 10th Anniversary of the Caribbean Research Center at Medgar Evers College, held in October 1995. The conference theme was "Evolving Patterns in Caribbean Migration: Impact and Challenges". The articles included in this issue are the first set of articles from the conference that will be published. Some issues of the Journal will be thematic, others will be eclectic. Because of the conference, this issue is eclectic.
The issue begins with the opening statement for the conference by Roy Simon Bryce LaPorte, a leading authority on American immigration.
Holger Henke's "Granite Pampa', examines the contradictions in American Immigration policy as it relates to different groups of immigrants.
Calvin Holder's "Making Ends Meet: West Indian Economic Adjustment in New York City, 1900-1952" is a historical examination of the economic adjustment of Anglophone Caribbean immigrants in New York City in the first half of the twentieth century.
Marcia Bayne-Smith's article, "Health Promotion in New York City's Caribbean Community," addresses the interrelation of health and cultural issues of Caribbean immigrants in New York City.
Drawing attention to the larger issue of globalization and immigration, the last article by Charles Green, "Identity and Adaptation in the 1990s: Caribbean Immigrant Youth in New York City" posits that the changing adaptation patterns of immigrant youth in the host society must be considered in the context of the structural upheaval that is taking place in the Caribbean.
This issue also includes two book reviews. The first is a review of Ian Smart's Amazing Connections by Gordon Rohlehr and the second is of Irma Watkins-Owen's, "Blood Relations", by Joyce Toney.
It is our belief, as previously stated under the objective, that the Caribbean and its Diaspora are fruitful areas of scholarly research. It is our expectation, therefore, that Wadabagei will be a journal that serves to disseminate the critically important research findings in this area.