![]() ![]() There is hope, though, as Henry and Mateo become friends “Then we sit/ together, / medium- dark/ and dark-dark, / as if/ the bizarre/ Canal Zone rules/ did not/ matter. ![]() Especially compelling are sections containing poems from the voices of the jungle flora and fauna who also had to endure this environmentally disruptive project. Engle’s devastating free-verse novel eloquently lays out the racial injustice between the whites and Europeans who acted in more supervisory capacities, and those of color who had not only to deal with deplorable and dangerous working conditions, but also segregation and horribly inadequate living conditions. The blatant racism and horrific conditions surrounding the monstrous undertaking of the construction of the Panama Canal are told through the voices of characters such as Mateo, a 14-year-oldĬuban who lies about his age in order to be able to work on the project Anita, a young, female herb collector/seller Henry, a Jamaican hoping to send money back home and various U.S. ![]() Silver People: Voices from the Panama Canal. ![]()
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