Liberia is a nation located in West Africa that was established by free people of color who had previously lived in the United States. The American Colonization Society provided financial support and organizational support for the departure of African Americans who were either free or had recently been freed (ACS). These early immigrants had one of the greatest fatality rates ever reliably documented in the annals of human history. Only 1,819 of the 4,571 people who immigrated to Liberia between the years 1820 and 1843 managed to make it through the journey alive.
Joseph Jenkins Roberts, the first black person to hold the position of governor in Liberia, approached the Liberian assembly in 1846 with a proposal to proclaim independence from the United States, but in a way that would let the country to keep in touch with the ACS. A referendum was called for by the legislature, and the results of the vote showed that Liberians favored independence. The proclamation of Liberia’s independence as a country was made by a group of eleven signatories on July 26, 1847. Even into the 1870s, the American Colonization Society (ACS), along with a number of state governments in the north and local colonization chapters, continued to provide emigration and financial support. The government of the United States of America did not comply with requests from the American Colonization Society (ACS) to make Liberia a colony of the United States or to establish a formal protectorate over Liberia; however, it did exercise a “moral protectorate” over Liberia by interceding when threats emerged to Liberia’s ability to expand its territory or maintain its sovereignty. Following Liberia’s declaration of independence, Roberts won the election to become the country’s first president. [6]
During the late 19th century, when European colonial powers were engaged in a “Scramble for Africa,” Liberia managed to maintain its independence while also remaining inside the area of influence of the United States. During the administration of President William Howard Taft, providing assistance to Liberia was a top concern for the United States. Beginning in the 1920s, the economy became more reliant on the extraction of natural resources. The economy was mostly driven by the rubber sector, and more especially by the Firestone Company. Up to the year 1980, political power in Liberia was held by Americo-Liberians, also known as descendants of the first African-American settlers in the country. These people made up just a small portion of the country’s overall population. second for the years 1999–2003.
Colonization (1821–1847)
Article fundamental: the Colony of Liberia
Additionally, you may check out the American Colonization Society.
People in the United States who disapproved of the institution of slavery began formulating strategies about the year 1800 to free additional slaves and finally to do away with the system altogether. At the same time, slaveholders in the South were hostile to the idea of free Blacks living in their states because they considered that the presence of free blacks represented a threat to the equilibrium of their slave communities. Slaves were progressively set free in the Northern states, but the process took much longer than most people believe; the census in 1840 found hundreds of slaves in Northern states, and the census in 1860 found thousands of slaves in New Jersey. Former slaves and other black people who were free endured a significant amount of social and legal prejudice since they were not citizens of the country and were seen by many as undesirable immigrants who stole employment from white people by working for less pay. Along with states in the South, many Northern states and territories (Illinois was one of them, and the Lecompton Constitution suggested this for Kansas) severely limited or outright forbade the immigration of free African Americans.
Despite the fact that many black people’s ancestors had been living in the United States for many generations, some abolitionists held the belief that black people should move back to “the African homeland.” This was a belief held by prominent black abolitionists such as ship builder Paul Cuffe or Cuffee. The idea that free African Americans and former slaves “might construct a wealthy colony in Africa” was Cuffe’s ideal. This colony would be built on emigration and commerce. [9] Cuffe established the Friendly Society of Sierra Leone in 1811; it was a cooperative black society with the goal of encouraging “the Black Settlers of Sierra Leone, and the Natives of Africa generally, in the Cultivation of their Soil, by the Sale of their Produce.” Cuffe was a freed slave. According to historian Donald R. Wright, “Cuffee wanted to send at least one vessel each year to Sierra Leone,” with the intention of delivering African-American immigrants and supplies to the colony, and bringing marketable African items back to the United States. [9] Unfortunately, Cuffe passed away in 1817, taking his idea with him.
On February 6, 1820, the Elizabeth, the first ship sent out by the American Colonization Society, set sail from New York City bound for West Africa with 86 colonists. The American Colonization Society established the first settlement in the area that would later become known as Liberia between the years 1821 and 1838. On July 26, 1847, Liberia promulgated a proclamation that established the country as an independent sovereign state.
The first concepts of colonization
Even throughout the time of the American Revolution, many white members of American society had the belief that African Americans could never make it as free individuals in their society. This belief persisted far into the 20th century. Others argued that the racism and cultural division that had resulted from slavery were insurmountable impediments to the integration of the races. Many people believed that whites were superior to blacks in both their physical and mental capabilities. Colonization in Africa was one of the ideas put up by people like Thomas Jefferson, who advocated moving free blacks to lands outside of the new nation.
Africa had a number of colonies.
In the year 1812, Paul Cuffee.
In the year 1787, the British government began relocating the “black poor” of London to the colony of Freetown, which was located in Sierra Leone. Many of them were African-Americans who had been emancipated from slavery in the United States in exchange for their efforts during the American Revolutionary War. They were known as Black Loyalists. In addition, the Crown granted resettlement to emancipated slaves who had previously been sent to Nova Scotia by the Crown. Both the environment and the persecution that they faced at the hands of white Nova Scotians were extremely trying for the Black Loyalists who lived there. See also: Black Nova Scotians. Paul Cuffe, an affluent African-American shipowner, was of the opinion that colonialism was something that should be supported. In 1816, at his own expense, he was able to convey 38 black Americans from the United States to Freetown, Sierra Leone, with the assistance of members of Congress and British officials. Although he passed away in 1817, his personal initiative was crucial in stimulating popular interest in the concept of colonization.
Colonization societies
Charles F. Mercer, a politician from Virginia, and Robert Finley, a Presbyterian pastor from New Jersey, laid the groundwork for what would become known as the American Colonization Society (ACS) in 1816. The African Colonization Society (ACS) was established with the intention of relocating free blacks living in the United States to other countries, specifically Africa.
The American Colonization Society began sending ships to West Africa from New York in January of 1820. The first vessel carried a total of 88 free black immigrants together with three white ACS agents. The mission of the agents was to locate a suitable location for a community. The Nautilus, the second ship belonging to the ACS, brought in more of the organization’s representatives. They purchased Cape Mesurado, a 36-mile-long (58-kilometer-long) stretch of land near the city of Monrovia that belonged to the indigenous monarch King Peter in the month of December 1821. (perhaps with some threat of force). [16]
The indigenous peoples, whose area the colonists were encroaching on, such as the Malinké tribes, assaulted the settlers very immediately after they arrived. In addition, they were afflicted with sickness, faced the adverse effects of the environment, were deprived of food and medication, and lived in substandard housing.
Up until the year 1835, five additional colonies were established by the colonization societies of five different states in the United States (the Republic of Maryland, Kentucky-in-Africa, Mississippi in Africa, Louisiana, Liberia, as well as that which was established by the Pennsylvania state colonization society and one which was planned by the New Jersey colonization society), as well as one by the United States government in the area surrounding the ACS settlement. The first settlement at Cape Mesurado eventually expanded both along the shore and inland, sometimes via the use of force against the indigenous peoples that lived there. The Commonwealth of Liberia was established in 1838 by the coming together of these communities (which?). The capital will now be located in Monrovia. By the year 1842, four of the other American colonies [which?] had been absorbed into Liberia, while the fifth settlement [clarification needed] had been destroyed by native people. Americo-Liberians are the name that was given to the colonists who were of African-American heritage. Many of them have ancestors from other continents, including Europe. They continued to be African Americans in their education, religion, and culture, and they viewed native people the same way that white people had treated them: as barbarians from the jungle who were unwelcome as citizens and did not deserve the right to vote.
The United States’ non-acceptance of colonialism as legitimate
From the very beginning of the movement, the vast majority of free people of color in the United States were opposed to the concept of going to Liberia or anyplace else in Africa. There were, however, a few significant exceptions to this rule. Even though the majority of them had spent several generations in the United States, and even though they desired better treatment, they did not wish to leave the country, Frederick Douglass had the following answer when asked about the suggestion that black people go to Africa: “Shame upon the wicked wretches that dare propose, and those that condone such a plan.” We intend to live here, as well as live here, have lived here, and have the legal right to dwell here.
The decline in support for colonization began in 1831 with the launch of William Lloyd Garrison’s new journal, The Liberator, and continued in 1832 with the publication of his Thoughts on African Colonization. This decline was most pronounced in the northern free states. Immediatism was a political ideology that was espoused by Garrison and his supporters. This ideology advocated for the immediate liberation of all slaves as well as the legal ban of slavery across the United States. According to what Garrison had to say, the ACS was “a creature without heart, without brains, eyeless, inhuman, hypocritical, ruthless, and unfair.” According to his point of view, it was not a strategy to do away with slavery but rather a method to preserve it.
Abolitionists who wanted to put an end to slavery—it was easier to have slaves freed if they consented to travel to Liberia—and slaveholders who wanted to get rid of free people of color were both members of the American Colonization Society (ACS). The ACS was formed in 1833.
Henry Clay, who was one of the founders of the organization, had inherited slaves when he was a small kid, but in the 1790s, under the influence of his mentor George Wythe, he converted to antislavery ideas. Garrison made the point that in compared to the number of slaves in the United States, the number of free people of color who actually relocated in Liberia was extremely low. One of his admirers phrased it this way: “As a solution for slavery, it must be listed among the grossest of all fantasies.” In the span of fifteen years, it has delivered less than three thousand people to the coast of Africa; but, during the same time period, their population has increased by almost seven hundred thousand!
A high rate of death
Since modern record-keeping started, Liberia has had the greatest death rate for any country’s emigrants than any other country in the world.
Only 1,819 people out of a total of 4,571 immigrants who landed in Liberia between the years 1820 and 1842 managed to live until 1843.
Even though the ACS was aware of the high mortality rate, they kept sending additional people to the colony anyhow. The author is Professor Shick.
[T]he organization kept sending personnel to Liberia while being acutely aware of the precarious nature of the situation there for them. The individuals who were responsible for founding the A.C.S. saw themselves as humanitarians who were carrying out God’s will. Because of this mindset, they were unable to accept the truth about several aspects of their campaign. Any kind of difficulty, including that caused by illness and death, was considered to be one of the ordeals and tests that God allows for the purpose of determining a person’s capacity for bearing suffering. The management in Liberia just increased their efforts every time there was a fresh news of a calamity in that country. After the organization and the auxiliary were set up, a new force emerged, which not only kept the Society from acknowledging the severity of the mortality problem, but also hindered the Society from addressing the issue. The motivation to ensure the continued existence of the corporate entity emerged as an important consideration. It would have been the end of the organization if they had confessed that the rate of mortality rendered the cost of emigration much too expensive to continue doing business as usual. It would appear that the management were unprepared to deliver the news that their project, and by consequence, their own employment, would be terminated.
The Amerio-Liberians were given charge of the operation.
The location of Liberia on a map of West Africa from 1839
The administrators of the ACS eventually allowed the developing colony more autonomy in its day-to-day operations. It was reconstructed in 1839 into what is now known as the Commonwealth of Liberia. Joseph Jenkins Roberts became the first non-white person to serve as governor of the Commonwealth when he was selected for the position in 1841 by the governing board of ACS. At the beginning of the year 1847, the ACS instructed the leadership of Liberia to publish a declaration of independence. The liberated and independent Republic of Liberia was founded on July 26, 1847, by eleven individuals who had previously signed the Liberian Declaration of Independence. It was not until several years later that other countries, most notably Britain in 1848 and France in 1852, acknowledged Liberia’s independence as a sovereign republic. The political faction that represents the South in Congress in the United States refuses to acknowledge Liberian statehood. However, in 1862, after the majority of Southern lawmakers had left as a result of the American Civil War and the secession of Southern states, the United States officially established diplomatic ties with Liberia and invited a delegation from Liberia to Washington.
Americo-Liberian rule (1847–1980)
A tiny group of African-American colonists and their descendants, who are referred to as Americo-Liberians as a collective group, held the majority of political and economic power in Liberia between the years 1847 and 1980. The Americo-Liberian minority, of which a large number were people of mixed race who were African Americans, saw the native majority as “racially” inferior to themselves and treated them in a manner that was very similar to how white Americans had treated them. The Americo-Liberians engaged in the practice of endogamous marriage in order to prevent “race” contamination. [source: missing citation] Over the course of more than a century, the indigenous people of the country were not granted the opportunity to vote or participate meaningfully in the key decisions that were made about the country’s governance. The Americo-Liberians worked together to centralize power in their own hands. They received financial backing from supporters in the United States, but the native people did not. They created companies and plantations, and in general, they were wealthier than the indigenous people of Liberia. As a result, they wielded an overwhelming amount of political influence.
Politics
A map of Liberia around the year 1856
Two political parties had the majority of power in Liberia’s government during the time. In order to dissuade native Liberians from participating in elections, the Americo-Liberians narrowed the franchise and made voting more difficult. The Liberian Party, which would later become the Republican Party, received the majority of its support from African Americans of mixed race who came from less affluent backgrounds, in contrast to the True Whig Party, which received the majority of its support from blacks who came from wealthier backgrounds. The Liberian Party has been the preeminent political force in the country since since the first presidential election in 1847. It made advantage of the authority it held in order to make its opponents’ lives more difficult.
However, the Whig Party, led by Edward James Roye, was victorious in the election for president in 1869. In spite of the fact that Roye was removed from office after just two years and that the Republicans recovered control of the government, the Whigs retook control in 1878 and remained in power without interruption for well over a century.
Between the years 1850 and 1920, the indigenous people of Liberia was involved in a number of uprisings. These uprisings took occurred throughout the country. An uprising led by the Grebo and the Kru people in 1854 compelled the newly established African-American state of Maryland, which was located in the area, to merge with Liberia. At the time, Maryland was known as the Republic of Maryland. As a result of Liberia’s growth, the colony found itself in conflict with both the French and the British over its borders with French Guinea and Sierra Leone, respectively. The presence of the United States Navy in West Africa until 1916 helped to ensure that neither Liberia’s territorial expansion nor its independence were ever in danger of being challenged.
Americo-Liberians and indigenous people were segregated from society from 1847 to 1940.
On the steps of the Peace Palace in The Hague (the Netherlands), 1927, President Charles D. B. King, who served as Liberia’s 17th president from 1920 to 1930, was accompanied by his entourage.
Americo-Liberians held a dominant position in Liberia’s social order for a long time. The ancestors of the majority of Americo-Liberians had been born in the United States for several generations prior to migrating to Africa, despite the fact that they are descended primarily from people of African origin and frequently have some white DNA as a result of an owner impregnating an enslaved female (for more information, see “Children of the plantation”). As a direct consequence of this, they had the cultural, religious, and social ideals of the United States. The Americo-Liberians, like many Americans of the time, had a solid belief in the theological supremacy of Christianity. As a result, indigenous animism and culture were brutally suppressed.
The Americo-Liberians established towns and a society that were patterned after the American culture that they were familiar with from their time in the United States. They communicated in English and constructed houses and churches in architectural styles that were reminiscent of those seen in the southern regions of the United States. The Amerio-Liberians controlled the access that the local peoples had to the ocean, as well as to modern technology and skills, literacy, higher levels of education, and valuable links with many of the United States’ institutions, including the American government.
The Americo-Liberians established a cultural and racial caste structure, with themselves at the top and indigenous Liberians at the bottom. This system was modeled after the segregation practices that were prevalent in the United States at the time. They held the belief that all people living in Liberia has the capacity to become “civilized” if they received an education in the western manner and converted to Christianity. This was seen as a type of “race equality” on their part.
Alteration of society, 1940–1980
During the course of World War II, tens of thousands of indigenous Liberians moved from the country’s rural interior to the coastal districts in pursuit of employment opportunities. The government of Liberia had long been hostile to this type of migration, but it was no longer able to prevent it from occurring. After 1945, the government of Liberia was given unfettered foreign investment totaling hundreds of millions of dollars. This led to the economic instability that plagued Liberia during the decades that followed. The amount of money coming into the government increased dramatically, but a significant portion of it was being stolen by various government employees. Increased economic disparity between indigenous communities and Americo-Liberians led to a rise in hatred between the two groups.
As a result of the socioeconomic tensions, President Tubman granted voting rights to Liberia’s original citizens in either 1951 or 1963. (accounts differ). Tubman and his Whig Party continued to suppress political opposition and manipulate election results throughout his presidency.Overview and History of Puerto Rico
