About Us

It is intended to tell the often untold story of the separate and unequal lives, lived on the “Zone” by the former West Indian residents, their children, and quite often their extended family members. While the Isthmian Canal Commission, and later the Panama Canal Company, were the operating authorities that managed the operations of the Panama Canal, it was the Canal Zone Government that governed all other aspects of daily life within the Zone. Although the Canal Zone was well maintained, and its operations efficiently run, the Canal Zone Government utilized a Jim Crow like system in its administration. To reside in the Canal Zone, West Indians needed to be employed by a U.S. government agency, unfortunately that was the extent of their equal treatment. From their designation as “silver roll employees” and meager wage compensation, to the substandard housing provided, to the overt segregation instituted throughout the Zone, West Indians simply made it work.