Hilary Beckles: Difference between revisions

{{Use dmy dates|date=FebruaryApril 20132022}}

| alma_mater = [[University of Hull]]<br><small> ([[Bachelor of Arts|B. A.|BA]] 1976, [[Doctor of Philosophy|Ph.D.PhD]] 1980)</small>

'''Sir Hilary McDonald Beckles''' [[Knight or Dame of St. Andrew (Barbados)|KA]] (born 11 August 1955) is a [[Barbados|Barbadian]] historian,. heHe is the current [[vice-chancellor]] of the [[University of the West Indies]] (UWI) and chairman of the [[CARICOM Reparations CommitteeCommission]].

Beckles was born in Barbados, and began his secondary education at Coleridge and Parry Secondary School in [[Speightstown]], [[St.Saint Peter, Barbados]]. He was sent to England to complete his schooling, attending Pitmaston Secondary School and the [[Bournville College|Bournville College of Further Education]] in [[Birmingham]]. Beckles went on to the [[University of Hull]], completing a [[Bachelor of Arts|BA (Hons)]] and [[Doctor of Philosophy|PhD]] with the university's Department of Economic and Social History.<ref name="cv">[https://web.archive.org/web/20140808055057/http://aswadiaspora.org/candidates09/Beckles.pdf Curriculum vitae of Hilary Beckles] – Association for the Study of the Worldwide African Diaspora. Retrieved 3 January 2013.</ref>

Beckles joined the [[University of the West Indies]] (UWI) as a history lecturer at its campus in [[Mona, Jamaica|Mona]], [[Jamaica]], in 1979, but transferred to its [[University of the West Indies, at Cave Hill | Cave Hill campus]] in 1984.<ref name="bio">[http://www.cavehill.uwi.edu/principal/biography.asp Office of the Principal: Biography] – University of the West Indies. Retrieved 3 January 2013.</ref> Having been named a senior research fellow at the [[London]]-based [[Institute of Commonwealth Studies]] in 1986, he was named Chairman of the History Department at UWI in 1992, a role he served in until 1996, and he subsequently served as dean of the Faculty of Humanities from 1994 to 1998.<ref name="cv"/> Beckles received a personal professorship in 1993, the university's youngest appointment to the position.<ref name="bio"/> His work has covered a variety of areas within the broader topic of [[Afro-Caribbean history]], with works covering early slave rebellions in Barbados, the role of women in the slave trade, and the greater effects of [[colonialism]] on present Barbadian society. Other works have focused more specifically on [[History of Barbados|Barbadian history]], including education, telecommunications, the labour movement, and sporting culture.<ref name="cv"/>

Having authored several papers and essays on the role of cricket in British West Indian culture, Beckles was the driving force behind the establishment of the Centre for Cricket Research at the Cave Hill campus in 1994, which resulted in the refurbishment of the on-campus [[3Ws Oval]]. Two years later, in 1996, he convinced the [[West Indies Cricket Board]] (WICB) to organise a match between the touring New Zealanders and a team selected by the university's vice-chancellor.<ref name="pelican">[http://sta.uwi.edu/pelican/archives/jj07/vcvpoint.asp VC Viewpoint: Symbols of the West Indian Spirit] – ''The Pelican''. Retrieved 2 January 2013.</ref> Matches between touring sides and the Vice Chancellor's XI have since become a regular, almost annual, event.<ref>[https://cricketarchive.com/Archive/Teams/1/1335/Other_Matches.html Other matches played by University of West Indies Vice Chancellor's XI] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181215122949/https://cricketarchive.com/Archive/Teams/1/1335/Other_Matches.html |date=15 December 2018 }} – CricketArchive. Retrieved 2 January 2012.</ref><ref>Buchanan-Hind, Elizabeth. [http://sta.uwi.edu/pelican/archives/jj07/article2.asp Tracing the Journey: The Vice Chancellor's XI cricket match] – ''The Pelican''. Retrieved 2 January 2013.</ref> In 1999, Beckles published a two-volume series on the history of cricket in the Caribbean, entitled ''The Development of West Indies Cricket''.<ref name="cv"/> Three years later, prior to start of the 2002–03 cricket season, the WICB announced that the expanded [[WICB Cup|Red Stripe Bowl]], the premier [[List A cricket|limited-overs]] competition in the West Indies, would feature the [[University of the West Indies cricket team|university's cricket team]]. UWI's two-season stint in the tournament was largely a result of the efforts of Beckles' efforts.<ref>Popplewell, Georgia (2004). [http://caribbean-beat.com/issue-66/who%E2%80%99s-really-who-west-indies-cricket "Who's Really Who In West Indies Cricket"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130114153311/http://caribbean-beat.com/issue-66/who%E2%80%99s-really-who-west-indies-cricket |date=14 January 2013 }} – ''Caribbean Beat''. Issue 66 (March/April 2004). Retrieved 2 January 2013.</ref> He remains a director of what is now the [[C. L. R. James]] Centre for Cricket Research (named in honour of [[C. L. R. James]]), and is also overall sports coordinator for the university.<ref name="bio"/>

* Independent Director and Member of Corporate Governance & Ethics Committee, Sagicor Financial Corporation (2005 onwards)<ref name="businessweek">[http://investing.businessweek.com/research/stocks/people/person.asp?personId=34513025&ticker=SFI:LN&previousCapId=20385456&previousTitle=Jamaica%20Pegasus%20Ltd. Executive Profile: Hilary McD Beckles B.A. (Hons.) Ph.D.]{{dead link|date=April 2023|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}} – ''[[Bloomberg Businessweek]]''. Retrieved 3 January 2013.</ref>

* Board member, [[Association for the Study of the Worldwide African Diaspora]] (2013 – 2015)<ref>{{cite web | url=http://aswadiaspora.org/officers/past-officers/ | title=Past Officers | publisher=ASWAD | accessdate=April 20, April 2016}}</ref>

* ''Cricket without a Cause: Fall and Rise of the Mighty West Indian Test Cricketers'', Jamaica: [[Ian Randle Publishers]], 2017. {{ISBN|978-9766379605}}

* ''Britain's Black Debt: Reparations for Caribbean Slavery and Native Genocide'', [[University of the West Indies Press]], 2012. {{ISBN|978-9766402686}}

* ''A History of Barbados: From Amerindian Settlement to Caribbean Single Market'', [[Cambridge University Press]], 2006. {{ISBN|978-0521678490}}

* ''The Development of West Indies Cricket: The Age of Nationalism'', vol. 1, [[Pluto Press]], 1999. {{ISBN|978-0745314624}}

* ''Afro-Caribbean Women and Resistance to Slavery in Barbados'', [[Karnak House]], 1988. {{ISBN|978-0907015260}}

{{Reflist|30em}}

[[Category:Barbadian academicsAfricanists]]

[[Category:Cricket historians and writers]]

[[Category:Cricket players and officialspeople awarded knighthoods]]

[[Category:HistoriansCulture of colonialismthe African diaspora]]

[[Category:CultureVice-chancellors of theuniversities Africanin diasporaBarbados]]