Negotiating Space: Stigma and the Strategic Management of Ethnic Identity among Second-generation Haitians in The Bahamas.

This article examines how second-generation Haitians in The Bahamas strategically manage their Haitian identity amid pervasive anti-Haitian sentiment and stigma ingrained in Bahamian society. Drawing on interviews with twenty-eight individuals born and raised in The Bahamas to Haitian parents, the study argues that decisions to conceal or disclose Haitian heritage are active, context-dependent strategies aimed at navigating a hostile environment shaped by xenophobia, racism, and nationalistic fears. The article situates these identity negotiations within broader frameworks of stigma management and coming out literature, emphasizing the fluidity and complexity of ethnic identity disclosure. It highlights that while many Bahamians of Haitian descent face discrimination and are often seen as perpetual foreigners despite citizenship, they also assert their dual Haitian-Bahamian identities in varied and nuanced ways.