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<p> Colby's tightly focused research on race adds a new layer of understanding to the subject of U.S. domination in Central America. Concentrating on the varied environments of the Panama Canal Zone, self-defined 'white' Costa Rica, and Guatemala, with its large Mayan Indian population. Colby observes the different tactics and vocabulary employed by governments and company officials. Many actions that are seen as indicative of United States foreign policy, he argues, were, in fact, creations of the United Fruit Company. -Times Literary Supplement (1 June 2012)

<p> Colby builds upon earlier extensive scholarship on the subject to integrate, for the first time, corporate expansion and labor migration into the story of U.S. imperialism in the region. As a result, he shows how domestic racial paradigms shaped transnational US firms, highlights connections between the U.S. government and corporate colonialism, and illustrates the pervasiveness of labor control strategies in the region. -Choice (1 August 2012)

<p> Jason Colby's close attention to the United Fruit Company and his deft analysis of the interplay among Central American nationalism, West Indian migration, and UFC labor regimes remap the histories of Caribbean people in the networks of corporate capital. -Jana K. Lipman, Tulane University, author of Guantanamo: A Working-Class History between Empire and Revolution

<p> The Business of Empire demands that we think anew about a corporation that has long had a storied place in the history of U.S. imperialism, the United Fruit Company. Jason M. Colby reveals a previously hidden history of struggle and negotiation that helped to shape the Company's infamous attempts to exploit national, racial, and other kinds of differences among workers. Colby integrates his unprecedented research into the Company's operations in Costa Rica and Guatemala into a provocative reinterpretation of the broader sweep of U.S. empire that is truly transnational in scope. -Aims McGuinness, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, author of Path of Empire

In the United States this book will be seen as an important contribution to the 'America in the World' approach; in Central America it will be read as an influential revision of the impact of the 'Octopus' on internal processes. Without a hint of dependency theory (it used to be mandatory to refer to dependency when writing about UFCO), Colby's perspective sheds new light on the fruit company's impact on the economies, societies, politics and foreign relations of Central American countries. Hector Lindo-Fuentes, Journal of Latin American Studies (2013) The Business of Empire demands that we think anew about a corporation that has long had a storied place in the history of U.S. imperialism, the United Fruit Company. Jason M. Colby reveals a previously hidden history of struggle and negotiation that helped to shape the Company's infamous attempts to exploit national, racial, and other kinds of differences among workers. Colby integrates his unprecedented research into the Company's operations in Costa Rica and Guatemala into a provocative reinterpretation of the broader sweep of U.S. empire that is truly transnational in scope. Aims McGuinness, University of Wisconsin Milwaukee, author of Path of Empire Colby writes both a comparative and a transnational history. He presents a deeply researched, richly textured comparative study of the UFC in Costa Rica and Guatemala. The Business of Empire makes a worthwhile contribution to the social and cultural history of the UFC, the history of British Caribbean migrants in Central America, Central American labor history, and the inception of particular racialized forms of nationalism in Central America that, Colby convincingly argues, were logical reactions to U.S. 'corporate colonialism.' American Historical Review Jason M. Colby has researched and analyzed his topic the business of empire well. He exposes the intertwining of imperialism, expansion, racism, and corporate power. The Business of Empire is an insightful story about the interaction of U.S. overseas business and the U.S. and Central American governments. It will prove useful to scholars of U.S. imperialism, international business history, and U.S. Central American relations for generations. Journal of American History Colby's tightly focused research on race adds a new layer of understanding to the subject of U.S. domination in Central America. Concentrating on the varied environments of the Panama Canal Zone, self-defined 'white' Costa Rica, and Guatemala, with its large Mayan Indian population. Colby observes the different tactics and vocabulary employed by governments and company officials. Many actions that are seen as indicative of United States foreign policy, he argues, were, in fact, creations of the United Fruit Company. Times Literary Supplement (1 June 2012) Jason Colby's close attention to the United Fruit Company and his deft analysis of the interplay among Central American nationalism, West Indian migration, and UFC labor regimes remap the histories of Caribbean people in the networks of corporate capital. Jana K. Lipman, Tulane University, author of Guantanamo: A Working-Class History between Empire and Revolution Colby builds upon earlier extensive scholarship on the subject to integrate, for the first time, corporate expansion and labor migration into the story of U.S. imperialism in the region. As a result, he shows how domestic racial paradigms shaped transnational US firms, highlights connections between the U.S. government and corporate colonialism, and illustrates the pervasiveness of labor control strategies in the region. Choice (1 August 2012)

<p> Colby's tightly focused research on race adds a new layer of understanding to the subject of U.S. domination in Central America. Concentrating on the varied environments of the Panama Canal Zone, self-defined 'white' Costa Rica, and Guatemala, with its large Mayan Indian population. Colby observes the different tactics and vocabulary employed by governments and company officials. Many actions that are seen as indicative of United States foreign policy, he argues, were, in fact, creations of the United Fruit Company. -Times Literary Supplement

Author Information

Jason M. Colby is Assistant Professor of History at the University of Victoria, British Columbia.

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