Ah yes. Liberia. Liberty they claimed. I always wondered how the freed people made it "back" to Africa. After all the kidnappings, slavery, abuse, etc., we will now send you back to a place you're not from and never have been. So very generous of them. And of course, you're not free to refuse. We're sending the sheriff to get you. The stories are just horrendous. Thank you for revealing the truth.
No wonder they didn't want to go to a wilderness beset with warfare with the indigenous Africans there. Here's an excerpt from information I obtained online some years ago:
Although the Liberian-civil war was ignited by the brutal dictatorship of President Samuel Kanyon Doe, there were underlying ethnic hatred coupled with political dictatorship which permitted the crisis to implode. For over 174 years of its history, the Liberian governments fostered ethnic hatred and political dictatorship. This national-ethnic rivalry and political dictatorship began during the early years of the Liberian state.
The first political movement that was formed to oppose political dictatorship in Liberia was called "Independent Volunteer Company.” This organization which was disguised by the African-American repatriates as a social organization, was actually formed to check the political excesses of Jehudi Ashmun, the white American from Champlain, New York, who was sent out by the ACS and the American Government to run the colony. Ashmun was totally convinced that African-Americans were not capable of running their own political affairs, and therefore singlehandedly ran the executive, judicial and legislative branches of the colony, although these powers had not been granted to him by the Board of Managers of the American Colonization Society.
During the election for Vice-Agent in 1826, the Independent Volunteer Company candidate ran and won. According to Jehudi Ashmun's biographer, when Jehudi discovered what had happened, he refused to "confirm the chosen candidate in office, and stated his reasons, which were entirely of a political nature."
That afternoon, the leaders of the Independent Volunteer sent out a circular, which protested the annulment in the following words:"..the right of election conferred by the Board of managers [of the American colonization Society] on the people of the colony, as it never had been, so it never should be interfered with by the Agent; consequently appointments to offices of trust in the Colony, once legally made by the concurrence of the popular choice, with his own approbation, should never be rescinded by any arbitrary act on his part; and that the actual incumbents must remain in their offices till removed in the only way prescribed by the provisions of Government; that is, by vote of a majority of the electors of the Colony."
In response to their protest, Jehudi Ashmun noted that the leaders of the Independent Volunteer Company were, "high spirited young men, all excellent soldiers, but bad politicians." The Agent rescheduled another election, in which his handpicked candidate won the election under manipulative conditions. Commenting on the results of the new elections, Jehudi said, "The Agent...has the high satisfaction of finding himself sustained by a body of assistants, in whose good dispositions and capacity he has great confidence."
Subsequently, the rigging of elections in Liberia became the norm over the years. This eventually led to a de facto one-party dictatorship.
Institutionalized ethnic and racial hatred also contributed to the crisis. Back in 1822, after the ACS and the American government took possession of the Liberian settlement through fraudulent means, the indigenous people who own the land rose up and attempted to evict the new emigrants through lethal means, but failed. For another 158 years, the struggle continued between the descendents of repatriate African-Americans and "Congos" (those recaptured by the American navy and settled in Liberia) on the one hand, and the indigenous people who attempted to gain for themselves, a prominent place in Liberian political and economic life.
A lot of the research I do takes me through dark places but at the end I feel enlightened when I can make more sense of what I already knew by providing context. The history is also helpful in understanding the present because it tends to repeat itself.
Each time I see one of your "Notes" I stop. I ask myself whether I am in a strong enough frame of mind to learn something that I need to know, yet I don't want to know. I am not a college graduate. I do not have any degrees. But I feel it is my responsibility to learn the true history of black America. And each time I read your posts I feel ill. I feel disgusted. I feel numb. The worst part to me is that It continues. Day after day, year after year, century after century.
The federal government had plenty of experience with forced removal. Probably it was because black people were more numerous than Native Americans and also more integrated into the White controlled economy that the idea wasn’t more popular.
Happy Constitution Day, guy! On this day in 1787, the 12th year of Independence, the Constitutional Convention approved it and sent it to the states to ratify. It was, on the following June, 1788, still being in the 12th year of our Independence. Washington was inaugurated end of April, 1789 in the 13th year of Independence! We had yet to celebrate our 14th year of independence!! The Constitution says he had to reside in the United States for 14 years!!! HOW DID THAT BOY DO THAT??
Ah yes. Liberia. Liberty they claimed. I always wondered how the freed people made it "back" to Africa. After all the kidnappings, slavery, abuse, etc., we will now send you back to a place you're not from and never have been. So very generous of them. And of course, you're not free to refuse. We're sending the sheriff to get you. The stories are just horrendous. Thank you for revealing the truth.
No wonder they didn't want to go to a wilderness beset with warfare with the indigenous Africans there. Here's an excerpt from information I obtained online some years ago:
ASHMUN ROLE IN LIBERIAN CIVIL WAR (http://pages.prodigy.net/jtell/Civilwar.html)
The Underlying Factors of the Civil War.
Although the Liberian-civil war was ignited by the brutal dictatorship of President Samuel Kanyon Doe, there were underlying ethnic hatred coupled with political dictatorship which permitted the crisis to implode. For over 174 years of its history, the Liberian governments fostered ethnic hatred and political dictatorship. This national-ethnic rivalry and political dictatorship began during the early years of the Liberian state.
The first political movement that was formed to oppose political dictatorship in Liberia was called "Independent Volunteer Company.” This organization which was disguised by the African-American repatriates as a social organization, was actually formed to check the political excesses of Jehudi Ashmun, the white American from Champlain, New York, who was sent out by the ACS and the American Government to run the colony. Ashmun was totally convinced that African-Americans were not capable of running their own political affairs, and therefore singlehandedly ran the executive, judicial and legislative branches of the colony, although these powers had not been granted to him by the Board of Managers of the American Colonization Society.
During the election for Vice-Agent in 1826, the Independent Volunteer Company candidate ran and won. According to Jehudi Ashmun's biographer, when Jehudi discovered what had happened, he refused to "confirm the chosen candidate in office, and stated his reasons, which were entirely of a political nature."
That afternoon, the leaders of the Independent Volunteer sent out a circular, which protested the annulment in the following words:"..the right of election conferred by the Board of managers [of the American colonization Society] on the people of the colony, as it never had been, so it never should be interfered with by the Agent; consequently appointments to offices of trust in the Colony, once legally made by the concurrence of the popular choice, with his own approbation, should never be rescinded by any arbitrary act on his part; and that the actual incumbents must remain in their offices till removed in the only way prescribed by the provisions of Government; that is, by vote of a majority of the electors of the Colony."
In response to their protest, Jehudi Ashmun noted that the leaders of the Independent Volunteer Company were, "high spirited young men, all excellent soldiers, but bad politicians." The Agent rescheduled another election, in which his handpicked candidate won the election under manipulative conditions. Commenting on the results of the new elections, Jehudi said, "The Agent...has the high satisfaction of finding himself sustained by a body of assistants, in whose good dispositions and capacity he has great confidence."
Subsequently, the rigging of elections in Liberia became the norm over the years. This eventually led to a de facto one-party dictatorship.
Institutionalized ethnic and racial hatred also contributed to the crisis. Back in 1822, after the ACS and the American government took possession of the Liberian settlement through fraudulent means, the indigenous people who own the land rose up and attempted to evict the new emigrants through lethal means, but failed. For another 158 years, the struggle continued between the descendents of repatriate African-Americans and "Congos" (those recaptured by the American navy and settled in Liberia) on the one hand, and the indigenous people who attempted to gain for themselves, a prominent place in Liberian political and economic life.
A lot of the research I do takes me through dark places but at the end I feel enlightened when I can make more sense of what I already knew by providing context. The history is also helpful in understanding the present because it tends to repeat itself.
Each time I see one of your "Notes" I stop. I ask myself whether I am in a strong enough frame of mind to learn something that I need to know, yet I don't want to know. I am not a college graduate. I do not have any degrees. But I feel it is my responsibility to learn the true history of black America. And each time I read your posts I feel ill. I feel disgusted. I feel numb. The worst part to me is that It continues. Day after day, year after year, century after century.
This is disturbing, no wonder it’s hard to uncover. It’s hard to read these historical facts. I have been fearful to learn more.
The federal government had plenty of experience with forced removal. Probably it was because black people were more numerous than Native Americans and also more integrated into the White controlled economy that the idea wasn’t more popular.
Happy Constitution Day, guy! On this day in 1787, the 12th year of Independence, the Constitutional Convention approved it and sent it to the states to ratify. It was, on the following June, 1788, still being in the 12th year of our Independence. Washington was inaugurated end of April, 1789 in the 13th year of Independence! We had yet to celebrate our 14th year of independence!! The Constitution says he had to reside in the United States for 14 years!!! HOW DID THAT BOY DO THAT??
Wow
I wonder what became of those who survived “removal” to Liberia?