Contribution short abstract:

This paper examines the story of Malaga Island a mixed-race fishing community off the coast of Maine, USA, evicted in 1911, in legend song, and history. While current-day rewritings of the Malaga story work to undo the othering present in prior ones, some continue to rely on a different binary.

Contribution long abstract:

Malaga Island lies in the New Meadows River off the coast of Phippsburg, Maine. For generations, it was home to a mixed-race fishing community, until 1911 when the state of Maine evicted its residents under the premise that they were “feeble-minded” and unable to take care of themselves and their homes and families, a decision motivated by the racist eugenics movement and an increased reliance on tourism in coastal Maine. For decades following the eviction, both descendants of the islanders and those on the mainland tried to cover up what happened, the former because of stigma and the latter because of guilt. For many people, the history of Malaga became untellable. In the twenty-first century, this has changed, and, although there are still some who want to hide the story, Malaga has received much attention among historians, writers, and artists in Maine and further afield. My paper examines stories, in the form of legend, song, and historical account, about Malaga’s residents over time and analyzes the motivations behind how they portray the islanders. Many of the older narratives told about Malaga and its residents in the years leading up to eviction and shortly afterward worked to cast them as an “other.” While many current-day re-writings of the Malaga story specifically work to undo this dynamic, there are others that, while still sympathetic to the islanders, unknowingly continue to rely on an “us vs. them” binary.