Liberia: Remembering the Future

Monrovia, early 1990s.Aaron recalls his early teens.Home, school, and the compound on 8th Street, where there was food and somewhere to sleep.His father is unwell. Money is tight. He cleans classrooms to stay in school.There is music. There are friends. Arguments, laughter, the usual awkwardness of being that age.Some nights there is shooting nearby. Other nights there isn’t.At one point, he shares a room with another boy – the same age – who has his own story to tell.At the time, it doesn’t feel like anything unusual.Years later, he comes back to these memories and begins to ask what they meant. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit liberiartf.substack.com/subscribe

Episode 2: Charles Taylor Finds His VoiceIn this episode, Gerry Naughton and Aaron Weah explore how Charles Taylor emerged not just as a rebel leader, but as a powerful communicator during the early years of the Liberian Civil War.The discussion focuses on Taylor’s use of radio – particularly the BBC World Service programme Focus on Africa – to reach Liberian audiences and shape public perception.Key themes:Taylor’s rise as a media figure during the early 1990sThe role of the BBC as an unintended platform for influence“Domestic propaganda” and psychological warfareHow radio brought the war into everyday lifeThe gap between stated and underlying objectives in the conflictThe proliferation of peace agreements and their limited impactThe lead-up to Operation Octopus (1992)The episode also touches on Aaron Weah’s later attempt to interview Charles Taylor in prison – and the weight of confronting such a figure directly.Next episode:Aaron's WarAdditional links:Audio references to BBC Focus on Africa theme music will be shared in accompanying Substack posts. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit liberiartf.substack.com/subscribe

You’re listening to Liberia: Remembering the Future.In this first episode, we start with Liberia's seat on the UN Security council, which is due to last for two years from January 2026. We ask what status or influence does this give, and what might change as a result? We also go into Liberia's presence on the world stage over the last 180 or so years.Aaron brings the grounded, lived perspective – as a researcher, teacher, and Liberian. Gerry brings the long view – first arriving in 1992, and still learning things that surprise him.We also explore the idea at the heart of the series: remembering the future. Not just recalling the past, but putting it back together – re-membering – in a way that helps make sense of the present. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit liberiartf.substack.com/subscribe

This episode traces the early stages of Charles Taylor’s rise and the outbreak of Liberia’s civil war. We begin with the little-known background – Taylor’s position within government, his time in the United States, and the network of relationships that shaped his path back to Liberia. From there, we move to the pivotal moment of December 24, 1989, when a small group of fighters crossed into Nimba County and set in motion a conflict that would transform the country.We explore how quickly the situation escalated. What began as a relatively small incursion developed into a multi-front war, with internal splits, shifting alliances, and a rapidly expanding force. As resistance to Samuel Doe grew, Taylor’s movement gained momentum, drawing in fighters and support while also exposing the absence of any clear or unified political vision behind the violence.The episode also looks beyond Liberia’s borders, examining how the conflict was connected to wider regional dynamics in West Africa. At the same time, we begin to confront one of the most disturbing developments of the war – the emergence of child soldiers. Not as an abstract concept, but as something rooted in fear, survival, and the breakdown of society. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit liberiartf.substack.com/subscribe

Episode 7 – The Fall of President Doe (Part 3 of the Doe mini-series)In this final part of the Samuel Doe mini-series, we move to his final collapse after nine years in power: the disputed 1985 elections, the failed Quiwonkpa coup, and the rise of Charles Taylor set the stage for a country sliding towards war. Dr Aaron Weah describes how ethnic narratives were shaped – and often manipulated – while Gerry Naughton reflects on how those same stories were simplified for outsiders.The episode brings rare depth through Aaron’s personal testimony: memories of soldiers occupying his family home, the fear and uncertainty of Monrovia in 1990, and a striking moment of humanity in the middle of conflict. These lived experiences sit alongside a wider analysis of how the civil war began, how quickly Liberia changed, and how Doe lost power, allies, and ultimately his life.We close by asking what remains of Doe today – his legacy as a soldier, a patriot, and a deeply flawed leader. This episode marks a turning point in the series, where history, memory, and personal experience come together – and sets the stage for the Taylor years and the long, complex road that followed. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit liberiartf.substack.com/subscribe

Episode 6 of Liberia: Remembering the Future – and Episode 2 in our Samuel Doe mini-series.In this episode, we move from the aftermath of the 1980 coup into the pivotal year of 1985.We discuss the first election after five years of military rule, allegations of rigging, the return and failed coup attempt of Thomas Quiwonkpa, and the reprisals that followed. The conversation also explores how that moment added an ethnic dimension to Liberian politics that would bring long term repercussions.Along the way, Aaron reflects on the internal tensions of Doe’s rule, the People’s Redemption Council, the pressures of constitutional change, and the wider atmosphere of fear, violence and uncertainty in the first half of the 1980s.Topics include:- Samuel Doe and the People’s Redemption Council- Thomas Quiwonkpa and the split within the 1980 coup leadership- Liberia’s 1985 election- allegations of rigging- the November 1985 coup attempt- reprisals against Gio and Mano communities- the ethnicisation of Liberian politics- Liberia, the Cold War, and US backing under ReaganLiberia: Remembering the Future is a conversational podcast hosted by Gerry Naughton and Aaron Weah, exploring Liberia’s history, politics, culture and future through informed, accessible discussion. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit liberiartf.substack.com/subscribe

Part 1 in our three-part mini-series on Samuel Kanyon Doe.In this episode:- Samuel K. Doe's pivotal role in Liberian history- How he rose from soldier to ruler- Understanding the 1980 coup- The promises and contradictions of the Doe era- Why Doe still provokes strong feelings todayHosts:Gerry NaughtonAaron WeahPodcast:Liberia: Remembering the Future – conversations about Liberia’s history, culture, politics, identity and future.Subscribe / follow:- Spotify- Apple Podcasts- SubstackAlso available:Transcript and more available on Substack: https://liberiartf.substack.com/Coming next:Samuel Doe Part 2 This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit liberiartf.substack.com/subscribe

Bonus episode – SuakokoToday is International Women’s Day, so we’re sharing a short outtake from our conversation about Liberia’s early history.It begins with a question – what if Liberia had never become an independent republic? – and ends with the remarkable story of Chief Suakoko, a woman who helped open the interior of the country to negotiation and dialogue.A small digression, but a fascinating one. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit liberiartf.substack.com/subscribe

Episode summaryIn this episode Aaron and Gerry explore the long presidency of William V.S. Tubman and the reformist ambitions of William Tolbert.For more than three decades Liberia appeared politically stable under the True Whig Party. Yet beneath that stability deeper tensions were building – tensions that would eventually reshape the country.Topics covered• Tubman’s rise to power in 1944• The consolidation of the True Whig Party state• Liberia’s role in Pan-African diplomacy• Economic modernisation and inequality• Tolbert’s reform agenda• The growing tensions of the late 1970sListen to the full seriesYou can listen to Liberia: Remembering the Future on:• Substack• Spotify• Apple Podcasts• Pocket CastsAbout the podcastLiberia: Remembering the Future is a podcast exploring Liberia’s past, present and future through memory, history and conversation.Hosted by Aaron Weah and Gerry Naughton. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit liberiartf.substack.com/subscribe

In this episode, Gerry Naughton and Aaron Weah explore the political foundations and contradictions of Liberia’s First Republic. The discussion centres on the 1930 forced labour scandal, when Liberia was accused of practices indistinguishable from slavery, leading to the resignation of President Charles D. B. King. They unpack how fraudulent elections, economic crisis, and elite capture of the state shaped this period.The conversation also examines the League of Nations investigation, its devastating findings, and the moral shock it caused at home and abroad.Moving beyond villains and heroes, the episode reflects on the legacies of figures such as J. J. Roberts and Edwin Barclay, the rise of the True Whig Party, and deep class divisions within settler society. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit liberiartf.substack.com/subscribe

In Part 1, we sketched the basic shape of the relationship – the founding myth, the strange intimacy, the blind spots, the dependency, the pride. In Part 2, we stay with the same question but get more concrete: what does “US influence” actually look like when you’re living it?We talk about how power travels – through money, through institutions, through culture, and through habits of thinking you barely notice until you try to name them. We also look at the ways Liberians have navigated that influence with intelligence and pragmatism, not just as victims of history.This is not always a neat picture, which is the point: it’s messy, layered, sometimes contradictory. Liberia’s relationship with the US isn’t simply a story of control; it’s also a story of imagination, strategy, and people working with what’s in front of them.If you’re new to the series, Liberia: Remembering the Future is a set of short, informal backgrounders – rigorous on the facts, but conversational in tone. Aaron brings the grounded expertise; Gerry brings the outsider’s questions and a long memory of how Liberia is usually talked about. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit liberiartf.substack.com/subscribe

In this episode, we begin a longer conversation on US influence in Liberia: from the country’s founding to the deeper assumptions that still shape politics, power, and identity today. We look at how Liberia’s relationship with its ‘big brother’ was formed, how it functions in practice, and why its legacy remains so complicated.This is Part 1 of a two-part discussion. Bonus material for subscribers will be published alongside Part 2. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit liberiartf.substack.com/subscribe

What we coverWho Dr Amos Sawyer was, and why he mattered at a critical moment in Liberia’s historySawyer’s role as an academic-president — and why that mattered in a post-war contextThe tension between institutional reform and personal power in Liberian politicsMemory, restraint, and why some political virtues are easier to admire than to inheritHow Sawyer’s legacy still challenges Liberia today This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit liberiartf.substack.com/subscribe

Our plan was to discuss the significance of the podcasts’ title. Instead, we discussed two books that have helped shape how Liberia’s story is being told - and its history is being remembered.The first book, by Stephen Ellis, is well-known inside and outside the country. The other, by three young, inexperienced but enthusiastic, writers - including our own Aaron Weah - tries to make sense of their own experiences in the chaotic context leading to Liberia’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission.Our conversation is not just about history, but about who gets to define what a country remembers - and therefore what kind of future is possible.Extract.Aaron Weah (quoting Stephen Ellis): One of the difficulties with how Liberia’s war has been written about is that explanation can begin to replace listening.Liberians today often look back to the mid-twentieth century as a golden age. But that period doesn’t offer a simple blueprint for the present. When people talk about wanting to return to the 1940s or 1950s, they’re not just talking about government or bureaucracy — they’re talking about a whole social world that no longer exists.It was a time when society was close-knit, when children were raised by communities, not just by parents. That social order collapsed long before the war itself, and the violence exposed what had already broken down.That’s why remembering the past isn’t straightforward. Memory carries longing, loss, and idealisation — and it’s very easy to mistake that for a practical plan for the future.Links:https://www.amazon.co.uk/Mask-Anarchy-Updated-Destruction-Religious/dp/0814722385#https://www.amazon.co.uk/Impunity-Under-Attack-Imperatives-Commission/dp/1535198427* If you know anyone who is interested in Liberia or African history, feel free to share this post with them.* And if you want to subscribe, and receive updates on everything we post direct to your inbox, you can do so below.* You can also follow the podcast on Apple or Spotify, as well as podcast apps like Pocket Casts and Podcast Addict. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit liberiartf.substack.com/subscribe