Results tagged “liberia”

There are entire populations in this world that you simply cannot imagine. Not because their culture is so different or their location so astounding; rather, just because they are alive. On CNN or MSNBC or the Drudge Report or the Huffington Post, numbers get thrown around about ‘displaced people’ or ‘war-torn populations’. Numbers that (objectively) are big, but also too unwieldy; they cease to have any real context at a certain point because it’s just really, really hard to imagine suffering on such a massive scale. But the numbers are real, and there are people - unimaginable survivors - behind those numbers that simply cannot be ignored or bound by legalese and theoretical direction. There is an absolute need for someone, anyone, to step in and get their hands dirty. Enter MSF.

LA has a diverse cast of characters. Whether it's the characters with stirring stories or interesting occupations or the people who are just simply characters, this town has them all. In an effort to get to know some of those characters a little better, we've created "Seven Questions with..." If you have a suggestion for a future Seven Questions subject send us an email.

The Republic of Liberia, tucked warmly between Sierra Leone and the Ivory Coast on the African-Atlantic seaboard, is supposed to be a success story. Loosely founded in 1822 by freed American slaves in search of hope, homogeny, and a life of freedom, Liberia immediately became a West African beacon of choice and political change. By 1847 they had established independence, relying heavily on U.S.-educated leaders and the deeply entrenched social norms of the great American South; they even spoke English.