Podcast Summary: New Books Network – African American Studies Episode: Christina Cecelia Davidson, "Dominican Crossroads: H.C.C. Astwood and the Moral Politics of Race-Making in the Age of Emancipation" (Duke UP, 2024) Host: Kiana Knight
Guest: Dr. Christina Cecelia Davidson
Date: November 26, 2025

Overview of the Episode

This episode features Dr. Christina Cecelia Davidson discussing her book Dominican Crossroads: H.C.C. Astwood and the Moral Politics of Race-Making in the Age of Emancipation. Dr. Davidson’s work illuminates how the life of H.C.C. Astwood—a border-crossing minister, diplomatic operative, and social trickster—offers fresh perspectives on Black identity, the intersections of morality and race, and shifting forms of diplomacy in the 19th-century Caribbean. The conversation traces Astwood’s journey across the Caribbean, U.S., and Dominican landscapes, and explores how religion, morality, and racial negotiation created new spaces for Black citizenship and political power.

Key Discussion Points and Insights

Dr. Davidson’s Path to the Project and the Field

• Personal and Academic Influences: Davidson describes how undergraduate research in the Dominican Republic and connections with religious communities (especially the African Methodist Episcopal Church) piqued her interest in the historic links between African Americans, Dominicans, and Haitians ([03:35]).
• Original Dissertation and the Shift: Her dissertation focused on AME presence in Haiti and the Dominican Republic, but her research evolved into a different book centered on 19th-century hemispheric history ([04:50]).

“I was really interested ... in the ways in which people used language and language of morality to argue their case to gain an upper hand.”
— Dr. Davidson [05:41]

The "Moral Politics of Race-Making"

• Concept Genesis: Davidson explains that while courts and property disputes drove initial research, the recurring invocation of "morality" in sources led her to examine how ideas of virtue, duty, and Christian values intersected with racial categories in the 19th century ([05:41]).
• Morality & Race as Power: She argues that race and morality were deeply intertwined, acting as “currency of power” in negotiations over citizenship and political belonging.

“Discourses of morality end up constructing race, or in some instances for Astwood, deconstructing it. You construct and you deconstruct and it's...a currency of power, I argue.”
— Dr. Davidson [08:51]

Astwood’s Biographical and Analytical Treatment

• Astwood as "Cross-Border" Figure: Astwood’s mixed heritage and migratory life (Turks and Caicos-born, lived in the DR, US naturalization, US consul in DR) exemplify the intersecting racial, national, and social boundaries of the period ([09:24]).
• Trickster/Trickery Archetype: Davidson frames Astwood both as a historical actor and as an embodiment of the “trickster” or “tigre” (Tigere Dominicano) figure—a symbol of racial negotiation and resourcefulness in the Black diaspora ([12:38]).

"He's somebody who is very much representative of the times and is not afraid to use this moral politics...to his advantage."
— Dr. Davidson [11:58]

The "Tigre Dominicano" and Black Diaspora Tricksterism

• Tigre/Tigreaje as Survival: The concept is traced to Dominican urban history—often applied to poor, darker-skinned men as upwardly mobile “social climbers” spanning boundaries of class, race, and law ([12:38]).
• Diasporic Trickster Parallels: Davidson draws connections to trickster figures in African American folklore, arguing this archetype links Dominican experience to broader Black diasporic narratives and complicates simplistic readings of Dominican "denial" of blackness ([13:45]).
• Blackness and Playfulness: The trickster is playful yet dangerous—a metaphor for the hustle and negotiation embedded in Black history across the Americas ([15:27]).

"When we really consider the Dominican case as part of that [diasporic trickster] we bring Dominican historiography...into more of a Black studies space."
— Dr. Davidson [13:30]

Rethinking Black Political Strategy & Black Internationalism

• Nuances Beyond Heroism: Davidson challenges the urge to cast Black historical figures solely as liberators or heroes. Astwood’s actions show the multiplicity of Black responses to white supremacy—sometimes self-serving, sometimes collective, always complex ([16:39]).

“To talk about black people and to claim their full humanity, I think it’s really important to show all kinds of historical figures, all kinds of reactions to white supremacy...sometimes for themselves, sometimes...for their nation, and sometimes more broadly for black people. And Astwood does all of those things at one point or another, but he’s not somebody who you can easily place as a liberatory figure.”
— Dr. Davidson [17:00]

• Power in Discourse: Following Astwood exposes how “discourse becomes a form of power” that shapes political, diplomatic, and religious relations in 19th-century Santo Domingo ([18:10]).

Working with Fragmented and Silenced Archives

• Archival Challenges: Davidson details the “treasure hunt” of following Astwood through disparate archives—often contending with gaps or state silence around non-official Black and Protestant histories ([21:37]).
• Reading Between the Lines: She uses genre, rumor, and indirect evidence to reconstruct hidden networks—especially in the case of church records, social organizations like the Odd Fellows, and confidential government dealings ([22:50]).

"...by understanding who was on Astwood’s side and who was against him, I’m able to piece together some of the stuff that must have happened ... behind closed doors."
— Dr. Davidson [24:37]

Black Protestantism’s Influence on Dominican Political Life

• Religious Networks: The arrival of Black Protestantism (AME, Wesleyans) via African American migrants and British Caribbean missionaries shaped key intellectual and political figures in Puerto Plata and beyond ([26:02]).
• Intersection with Liberalism: Protestant churches offered alternative social and educational spaces, particularly under liberal governments. Their presence provoked anxieties and pushback from the Catholic hierarchy ([28:47]).
• Political and Social Influence: Protestant ties facilitated elite networking, language tutoring, and informed debates over secularism and public education ([29:45]).

"Protestants, they’re not necessarily out there to convert Catholics, but they do exist, right? ... under a liberal government...they can exist."
— Dr. Davidson [28:50]

Gender, Class, and Black Respectability

• Masculinity and Power: Astwood’s maneuverings were shaped by gender. His claim to leadership relied on both Black and mainstream ideals of male respectability, blending church authority with social mobility ([31:53]).
• Overlap and Divergence: Davidson explores how Black male authority converged with Catholic and Protestant concepts of masculinity, but also led to conflicts when these ideals were challenged ([33:10]).

"For him, a lot of it is black respectability and black male respectability. And, and through that, you get ideas about leading the home, leading government. This idea of the head man."
— Dr. Davidson [32:07]

Major Scholarly Interventions and Contributions

• Bringing Dominican History to Black Studies: Davidson wants to center Dominican narratives within Black Atlantic and diasporic studies, breaking from the traditional siloed focus on nation-states or "whitewashed" Dominican narratives ([34:24]).
• Race and Diplomacy: She highlights the role of race and morality in shaping US–Dominican relations in the 1880s—an underexplored facet of diplomatic studies ([35:00]).
• Complex Contact Zones: By linking sites like New Orleans, Puerto Plata, Santo Domingo, and Port-au-Prince, Davidson maps the region as a crossroads of diplomatic, religious, and racial negotiation ([36:45]).
• Morality as Method: Across her work, she demonstrates how moral discourse served as a tool of both racial construction and resistance ([37:38]).

Memorable Quotes & Notable Moments

• "I mostly just wanted to know what happened with Columbus’s bones."
  — Dr. Davidson, on her initial curiosity ([11:20])

• "Astwood as trickster...a little bit of playfulness, there's a little bit of danger there. There's a little bit of, you know, hustle."
  — Dr. Davidson ([15:10])

• "To claim their full humanity, it's really important to show all kinds of historical figures, all kinds of reactions to white supremacy."
  — Dr. Davidson ([17:10])

Timestamps for Key Segments

• [03:35] Davidson’s early experiences and motivation for studying Dominican history
• [05:41] Creation of the “moral politics of race-making” concept
• [09:24] Astwood’s biography and why he anchors the book
• [12:38] The "tigre" figure and Black trickster archetypes
• [16:39] Challenging hero/villain binaries in Black internationalism narratives
• [21:37] Navigating archival silence, rumor, and evidence
• [26:02] The role of Black Protestantism in Dominican society and politics
• [31:53] Gender, class, and respectability in Astwood’s trajectory
• [34:24] Davidson’s scholarly interventions and cross-regional impact
• [39:02] Future projects: expanding the study of Protestantism and religious networks

Closing

Dr. Davidson concludes by sharing thoughts on her forthcoming projects, which will further explore Protestantism, race, and morality in the Caribbean and Black Atlantic, as well as transnational religious and migration networks into the early 20th century ([39:02]).

Quote:
"I'm really interested ... in that broader story as part of a kind of a network of religious movements and really a US kind of religious vision for the island..."
— Dr. Davidson ([41:09])

Host: Kiana Knight thanks Dr. Davidson for her insights and urges listeners to engage further with Dominican Crossroads ([42:00]).