The generous genius of Brinsley Samaroo

Abstract

Professor Brinsley Samaroo made a sterling contribution to the field of history, particularly that of Indian indentureship and the atrocities of the colonial past. He was a historian of the people, had entered national politics in one phase of his career and continued all his life to serve as a public intellectual for the society of Trinidad in defence of many groups and causes. In this tribute to his life, the author establishes the intellectual heights he had plumbed by the age of 83 and draws on the testimonies of four persons whose lives have been influenced by him in different ways. Each individual underscores the wealth of his knowledge, his generosity as a scholar, his accessibility, gregarious nature and penchant for storytelling. Yet all of this was packaged in a disciplined and no-nonsense individual who was deeply committed to recovering the voices of those who have not yet been heard in history.