Cultural Resources

Below is a short list of resources discussing culture and the history of Liberia. For more resources on Liberia see the Koloqua language page.

Videos:

• 1) In The Shadow of Ebola (Greg Mitman): A short documentary by Professor Greg Mitman (UW-Madison).
• 2) Land Beneath Our Feet (Greg Mitman and Emmanuel Urey): A longer documentary by Prof. Mitman and former doctoral student Dr. Emmanuel Urey, that investigates land rights in Liberia.

Books (Non-Fiction):

• 1) Between the Kola Forest and the Salty Sea (2016) by Carl Patrick Burrowes: Presents the early history of Liberia and attempts to demystify and demolish stereotypes of African culture.
• 2) Choosing the Hero: My Improbably Journey and the Rise of Africa’s First Woman President (2016)- K.Riva Levinson: Written by an American lobbyist, it presents the true story of the dealing that helped make Ellen Johnson Sirleaf the first female president in Liberia and Africa. The book is somewhat controversial in Liberia and hence why I present it here.

Books (Literature and analysis):

• 1) Nuggets of the African Novel: With Notes on the Liberian Literary Heritage (2005) by K. Moses Nagbe: Analyzes African literature with special references to stories and styles that originated in Liberia.
• 2) When the Wanderers Come Home (Poetry) (2016) by Patricia Jabbeh Wesley: Poems about the author’s return home and the pain and destruction that were a part of and followed from the two civil wars in Liberia.
• 3) In Monrovia the River Visits the Sea (children/young adult story) (2012) by Patricia Jabbeh Wesley: A childrens book that explores the relationship of two siblings near the Mesurado River.
• 4) She Would be King (2018) by Wayetu Moore: Is a recently released book and debut by Moore, that has garnered worldwide attention and praise. Written in a magical realist style, the book reimagines the early years of Liberia (19th century).

Music (Hipco): Below are several videos of Liberian Hip-Hop or Hipco.

• 1) What is Hipco?: A look inside the Liberian hip hop movement
• 2) Hollyghost– music video in Koloqua
• 3) Christoph the Change-music video in Koloqua
• 4) Gbanna Man-Christoph
• 5) Kemah-DenG

Dance:

• 1) Kpelle Traditional Dance

Art:

• 1) Visions From the Forests: An gallery of artwork from Liberia and Sierra Leone. Presented by the Smithsonian National Museum of African Art

Some Key Individuals(Presidents and Philosophers/thinkers)

• 1) Edward Wilmot Blyden
• 2) Alexander Crummell
• 3) Joseph Jenkins Roberts
• 4) William Tubman
• 5) Samuel Doe
• 6) Charles Taylor
• 7) Ellen Johnson Sirleaf
• 8) George Weah