In
addition to being called “Decoration Day,” today's holiday in the
African nation of Liberia is also called “Memorial Day.” This
gives you a good hint of just what Liberians will be decorating:
Graves
of loved ones.
Today
many people will go to the cemetery to clean, repaint, and decorate
the graves of their family members. It is a time to say thank you to
those who have come before for their contributions and sacrifices.
Some will even sing and pour “libations” (alcoholic beverages)
onto the graves.
 |
Do you see any similarities between
the Liberian flag and the U.S. flag? |
Liberia
has a unique history. While most nations in Africa were colonized by
European countries, Liberia was settled by freed slaves from the
United States and never had a colonial master. These freed slaves had
ties to the U.S., spoke English, and considered themselves
Christians, and the culture they set up in Africa had many features
in common with the American south that was the only life they had
known. The official language of the nation remains English, and more
than 85% of the population are Christian. The nation's capital,
Monrovia, was named after James Monroe, the fifth U.S. president, and
the government structure was patterned after the United States
government.
 |
Leymah Gbowee was an
influential leader in creating the
peace talks that finally ended
the civil wars that had torn
apart Liberia. |
However,
in 1980 a military coup overthrew the Americo-Liberian leadership,
and twelve years of civil war devastated the country economically.
Peace was declared again in 2003, and democratic elections began to
be held again in 2005, but the enormous amount of poverty is a
reminder of those harsh years.
(About
85% of the population live below the international poverty line.)
To
learn more about Liberia...
Read
a Liberian folk tale.
There are also links to recipes, clip art, and a lesson about
Liberia.
- Check
out Philip Martin's text-map
about living in Liberia.
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