# Panamanian Americans

Panamanian Americans (Spanish: panameño-americano, norteamericano de origen panameño or estadounidense de origen panameño) are Americans of Panamanian descent.
The history of Panamanian immigration to the United States is intertwined with the complex diplomatic relationship between the two nations, which formally began in 1903 following Panama's separation from Colombia. Early migration patterns were significantly influenced by the construction and operation of the Panama Canal.
Panamanian Americans are the second smallest Central American ethnic group in the United States as of 2010.
The Panamanian-American population in the United States grew significantly from 100,000 in 2000 to 240,000 in 2021, representing a 134% increase over two decades. Many Panamanian-Americans reside near army-based cities. As of 2021, Panamanian Americans are primarily concentrated in five states including Florida, New York, California, Texas, and Georgia.

## History

Although many Panamanians settled in the United States before the 19th century, they were not recorded in immigration records. U.S. Immigration officials did not differentiate among the many nations of Central and South America at the time. According to the 1940 Census, 7,000 Americans were Central American and several hundred were likely Panamanian or descended from the lands of Colombia that became the republic of Panama.
Immigration to the United States from Panama accelerated quickly after World War II. In 1960, the Census Bureau began differentiating between South and Central American groups, and Panamanians were one of the largest Central American groups in the country.
Panamanian immigration increased after U.S. immigration regulations were adjusted in order to encourage relatives of American residents to immigrate, but other Central American groups began to overtake Panamanian Americans, particularly as turmoil in countries like Nicaragua drove refugees into the U.S.
About twice as many women immigrated to the United States as men, a curious statistic that tends to be found in Central and South American groups. Many of the women took jobs as maids, as housekeepers, in other domestic professions, or in the service or restaurant industry, and many sent money home to take care of their families. Some were low-level white-collar workers, like typists, data entrants, and clerks. As of 2013, the number of Panamanian migrants who worked in the domestic field was still about a fifth of the total population.
Panamanian Americans were the second smallest Central American ethnic group in the United States as of the 2010 Census. The Panamanian-American population in the United States grew significantly from 100,000 in 2000 to 240,000 in 2021, representing a 134% increase over two decades. As of 2021, Panamanian Americans are primarily concentrated in five states including Florida (17%), New York (17%), California (10%), Texas (9%), and Georgia (8%).

### New York City

A mass migration of Afro-Caribbean Panamanians to New York City began in the 1940s due to Panama's 1941 Constitution. Immigration patterns show that over 10,000 non-US citizens departed from Panama for the United States between 1946 and 1949. This constitution denationalized individuals with foreign-born parents from "prohibited races," which significantly impacted the Afro-Caribbean Panamanian community.
Though Harlem was the initial home for many Panamanian immigrants, the expansion of subway lines connecting Manhattan to Brooklyn in the late 1930s led more Afro-Caribbean Panamanians to settle in Brooklyn during the 1940s. Brooklyn's residential patterns were characterized by racial segregation, with North and Central Brooklyn areas designated for non-white residents. These residential restrictions reflected similar segregation practices implemented in both the Canal Zone and Panama. These communities maintained Panamanian cultural traditions while integrating into New York City culture. Many participated in both Spanish and English-speaking social spheres, where they formed connections with broader Black diaspora communities throughout the borough.
Las Servidoras was a scholarship-granting organization founded by Afro-Panamanian women in Brooklyn, New York in the early 1950s. On April 20, 1963, on the tenth anniversary of the organization’s founding, all of its members became lifelong NAACP members. The organization Las Servidoras promoted a broader concept of Panamanian identity (ser panameño) that included communities living outside Panama's borders, expanding the traditional nation-based definition of citizenship.
A 1952 Amsterdam News article documented the cultural practices of Brooklyn's Afro-Caribbean Panamanian community through its coverage of a birthday celebration. The event featured traditional elements such as tamborito dances and folkloric attire, illustrating how the community preserved Panamanian customs in their new urban setting.
Panamanian Americans made significant contributions to the development of reggaeton music, particularly through their work in New York during the late 1980s and early 1990s. While the initial reggae en Español movement originated in Panama, the Panamanian-American music scene in New York played a crucial role in transforming it into early reggaeton through the incorporation of urban American music styles. This fusion occurred primarily through production work in New York studios, where Panamanian-American producers and artists combined Caribbean rhythms with elements of hip-hop and house music, creating a distinctive sound that would later influence reggaeton's development in Puerto Rico and other regions.

### Florida

From 1904, the Panama Canal Zone fostered a distinct American community known as "Zonians", who enjoyed U.S.-style amenities and infrastructure. The Zone maintained a rigid social system dividing white "gold roll" workers from West Indian "silver roll" laborers, who faced discrimination and hazardous work conditions. After the Zone's closure in 1979, former residents continued their community connections through yearly gatherings in Tampa, Florida.
The Panamanian American Chamber of Commerce was established in Miami during the 1990s to support Panamanian exiles who fled to South Florida during the Noriega dictatorship.
As of 2010, there were 17,301 Panamanians living in Florida, with Miami hosting 13,529 and Tampa with 3,772. This is due to MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa, Florida.

### Georgia

The Panamanian-American dance troupe named Orgullo Panameño from Hinesville, Georgia performed at the Fiesta Latina festival on River Street in Savannah, Georgia in 2013. They performed dressed in polleras and diablicos sucios.

## Notable figures
### Musicians

Billy Cobham, born in 1944, is a Panamanian-American drummer, composer, and bandleader who played a pivotal role in developing jazz fusion music. His 1973 debut solo album "Spectrum" became a landmark recording in the genre, blending rock instrumentation with jazz complexity. Cobham is known for his drumming technique, including the use of two drumsticks in each hand, and has collaborated with notable artists including Miles Davis, John McLaughlin in the Mahavishnu Orchestra, Carlos Santana, and the Grateful Dead.
Panamanian Americans made significant contributions to the development of reggaeton music, particularly through their work in New York during the late 1980s and early 1990s. The most notable Panamanian-American figure was producer Michael Ellis, who worked from New York City to create fusions of Spanish reggae, hip-hop, and house music that helped define the early reggaeton sound. Ellis's production work, particularly with Panamanian artists, was instrumental in introducing Spanish reggae to Puerto Rico and other parts of Latin America.
Singer and rapper Aloe Blacc is Panamanian-American.
Making Movies is a Kansas City-based band formed by two sets of brothers; Panamanian-American siblings Enrique Chi (guitar) and Diego Chi (bass), alongside Mexican-American brothers Andres Chaurand (drums) and Juan-Carlos Chaurand (percussion/keyboards). The band's personal experiences inform their work. Due to changes in U.S. immigration law, Enrique and Diego Chi held different citizenship statuses despite being born to the same American citizen father. They have collaborated with the Panamanian singer and activist Rubén Blades.
Los Rakas are a Panamanian-American hip-hop duo.

### Writers

Quibián Salazar-Moreno, a Panamanian-American writer named after a 16th-century chief who resisted Columbus, immigrated to Denver as a child and navigated multiple cultural transitions including his mother's death, his grandmother's arrival from Panama, and his father's remarriage to an Italian-American. Now living in Los Angeles, he maintains ties to his Panamanian heritage while raising his children to embrace their multicultural Afro-Latina background.

### Visual Artists

Panamanian-American Debi Hasky is a visual artist that spotlights daily street harassment faced by women.
Sabrina Shumaker is a Panamanian American visual artist based in Central Florida. Born in Texas, she works across multiple mediums including sculpture, oil painting, and illustration, with a particular focus on murals. One of her well-known works is "Night Owl," a 15-foot-tall mural located on Burton's Thornton Park in Downtown Orlando, Florida.

### Actors

Sarunas Jackson's, a Panamanian-American actor, role as Dro on the television series Insecure initially called for a Black Mexican character. However, Jackson advocated for changing the character's background to Afro-Latino of Panamanian descent. This change represented a significant milestone in the representation of Afro-Latino identities in U.S. mainstream media.

### Fashion

Liliana Damaris Pope is a Panamanian American apparel and accessories designer based in Austin, Texas. She is known for discussing her Afro-Latina identity on social media, inspired by a Google Doodle featuring a Panamanian American nurse who founded the National Association of Hispanic Nurses.

### Businesspeople

Angela Spring, a Panamanian and Puerto Rican American entrepreneur, founded Duende District, a pop-up bookstore business in Washington, D.C. that operates through multiple locations and focuses on serving communities of color through curated literature and cultural programming.

### List of Panamanian-Americans

* Rolando Blackman - former NBA player
* Tatyana Ali - actress and singer
* DJ Clue - DJ, record producer, radio personality and record executive
* Linda Martín Alcoff - philosopher
* Ra Un Nefer Amen - founder of the Pan-African religious organization Ausar Auset Society, dedicated to providing Afrocentric-based spiritual training to people of African descent
* Cirie Fields - American reality TV contestant, famously known for competing on ‘Survivor’.
* Nancy Ames - American folk singer and songwriter; granddaughter of former President of Panama Ricardo Joaquín Alfaro
* Gwen Ifill - American Peabody Award-winning journalist, television newscaster, and author, daughter of a Panamanian immigrant of Bajan descent
* Braulio Baeza - American Thoroughbred horse racing Hall of Fame jockey
* Cliff Clinkscales - basketball player
* Tyson Beckford - actor and model
* Uri Berenguer - play-by-play announcer for the Boston Red Sox Spanish Beisbol Network
* A. R. Bernard - founder, Senior Pastor and CEO of Christian Cultural Center (CCC), in Brooklyn, New York; born in Panama and emigrated to New York with his family when he was four
* Roberto Blades - Panamanian salsa singer
* Rubén Blades - salsa singer
* Jordana Brewster - actress
* Pop Smoke - rapper from New York; of Panamanian and Jamaican descent
* Jeff Buckley (1966–1997) - American singer-songwriter and guitarist; son of musician Tim Buckley; his mother was a Panama Canal Zonian of mixed Greek, French, American and Panamanian descent
* Rod Carew - Baseball Hall of Famer
* Eddie Castro - Panamanian-born jockey in American Thoroughbred horse racing
* El Chombo - American-born Panamanian producer and artist
* Emayatzy Corinealdi - American film and television actress
* Ed Cota - American professional basketball player
* Melissa De Sousa - actress
* Ruben Douglas - professional basketball player
* Roberto Durán - Boxing Hall of Famer
* Adrian Fenty - American politician who served as the sixth mayor of the District of Columbia
* Gary Forbes - Panamanian professional basketball player who plays for the Houston Rockets
* Hulk Hogan - professional wrestler; of Italian, French and Panamanian descent
* Sam Hoger - American mixed martial artist
* David Iglesias - American attorney from Albuquerque, New Mexico
* Shoshana Johnson - former United States soldier; first black or Latina prisoner of war in the military history of the U.S.; Panamanian born and American raised
* Kaliii - rapper from Roswell, Georgia; of Panamanian descent
* Clark Kent
* Bobby Lashley – American professional wrestler and mixed martial artist
* Olga F. Linares - Panamanian–American academic anthropologist and archaeologist
* Ricky Lindo (born 2000) - American-Panamanian basketball player in the Israeli Basketball Premier League
* John McCain - American politician, long-time U.S. Senator from Arizona from 1987-2018, and 2008 Republican nominee for President of the United States; was born in Panama to parents who were serving in the U.S. Navy, but raised in the United States
* Anthony Michaels - tattoo artist, contestant on Ink Master
* Scott A. Muller - American-born Panamanian Olympic slalom canoer
* Sigrid Nunez - American writer
* Demitrius Omphroy - American-born Panamanian soccer player; of Panamanian and Filipino descent
* Jeremy Renner - American actor; maternal grandmother was born in Colón
* J. August Richards - American actor; known for his portrayal of vampire hunter Charles Gunn on the WB cult television series Angel; of Panamanian descent
* Mariano Rivera - New York Yankees pitcher
* Michele Ruiz - broadcaster and founder of SaberHacer.com
* Christian Duke - American lawyer and activist
* Clarence Samuels (1900–1983) - first photographer of Latino American of African descent in the United States Coast Guard and first to command a cutter
* Tessa Thompson - American actress of Afro-Panamanian and Mexican descent
* Daphne Rubin-Vega - Panamanian-born American dancer, singer-songwriter and actress.
* Jorge Velásquez - thoroughbred horse racing Hall of Fame jockey
* Nick Verreos - American fashion designer and contestant on the second season of the reality television program Project Runway; Greek-American father and Panamanian mother
* Juan Williams - journalist and political analyst