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Urban Islanders and Family Islanders 37

Here, islanders are employed in the tourism, banking, and service industries. Young people wear the same sort of clothing that you might see American teenagers wearing. Recreation for these urban Bahamians is varied. Many love to play and watch games of basketball or soccer. Others enjoy boating and water sports. Some like to barbecue. Still others like dancing. Almost all urban islanders love beauty pageants, and many con- tests—for both men and women—are held throughout the year. Family Islanders The outlying, or “Family Islands,” are home to quite a different breed of Bahamian. The residents of the Family Islands are, economically speaking, members of the Bahamas’ lower class. Most are fishers or subsis- tence farmers and are much less “modern” than their city cousins. Many are skilled at weaving straw bas- kets. The obeah religion, which is characterized by a belief in sorcery and magic ritual, is widely practiced. The lives of so-called family islanders aren’t so hard that they can’t find time for recreation, however. They tell folktales that have been passed down through generations. They lounge in the sun and wade

An Anglican priest performs a service in a hundred-year-old church in Albert Town, Long Cay. Albert Town today is uninhabited. Most people of the Bahamas are Christian, and about one-fifth of Bahamians follow the Anglican faith.