The Caribbean Roots Of Black American Icons Revealed

News Americas, New York, NY, June 26, 2025: While many celebrated African American icons are remembered for their influence on American culture and civil rights, lesser known are their immigrant roots – deeply connected to the Caribbean. According to research by U.S. archivist and historian Damani Davis, federal records reveal that the parents of several notable Black American figures were immigrants from the West Indies, underscoring the often-overlooked Caribbean dimension of African American history.

Renowned actress Cicely Tyson, known for her groundbreaking roles in film and television, was the daughter of William Tyson, who arrived at the Port of New York from Nevis in the early 20th century.

In Ancestors from the West Indies: A Historical and Genealogical Overview of Afro-Caribbean Immigration, 1900–1930s, Davis highlights the immigrant stories behind household names such as Cicely Tyson, Shirley Chisholm, Esther Rolle, and Cynthia Delores Tucker. Their family journeys, documented in federal archives, paint a broader picture of early 20th-century Caribbean migration to the United States – a movement that shaped the cultural and political landscape of Black America.

Renowned actress, the late, Cicely Tyson, known for her groundbreaking roles in film and television, was the daughter of William Tyson, who arrived at the Port of New York from Nevis in the early 20th century. Charles St. Hill, the father of Shirley Chisholm – the first Black woman elected to the United States Congress – was a 22-year-old Barbadian living in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, before traveling to New York aboard the SS Munamar.

Esther Rolle, best known for her role on the television series Good Times, was the first child in her family born in the United States. Her parents emigrated from the Bahamas and settled in Broward County, Florida, an area with a long-established Bahamian community. Similarly, civil rights leader Cynthia Delores Tucker, who helped found the National Political Congress of Black Women, was the daughter of Bahamian immigrants who lived in Richmond, Virginia, and New York City before putting down roots in Philadelphia.

“These federal records document an immigrant experience that is not widely recognized, but it is an experience that is a very important element of the larger Afro-American history and culture in the United States,” Davis, who served as as an archivist in the Research Support Branch of the Customer Services Division at the National Archives in Washington, D.C. states in his book. A graduate of Coppin State College in Baltimore, he holds an M.A. in history from The Ohio State University, Davis has lectured widely on African American genealogy and history, working to uncover the interconnected roots of Black identity across the Americas.

As the U.S. observes Caribbean American Heritage Month, Davis’s research stands as a testament to the essential role Caribbean immigrants played – and continue to play – in shaping African American life, leadership, and legacy.