President of Liberia, Nobel Laureate Ellen Johnson Sirleaf click here
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In Nazi Germany, in Liberia, in Florida, we are all "us". click here
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The Vice President of Liberia visits New Jersey and Pennsylvania. SJ Dodgson. MJoTA 2013 v7n1 p0623
A 4-day visit to the Delaware Valley ended today for the Vice President of Liberia, a soft-spoken, slow-moving elderly gentleman with good things to say.
I saw him at 3 events; at the Camden City Hall reception on Friday June 21; at Rowan University Investment Forum on Saturday June 22, and then later on that afternoon at a Lutheran Church in Drexel Hill, Pennsylvania.
Wonderful
welcome at City Hall, Camden, NJ on Friday night by the mayor Dana Rudd and some elected officials and dignitaries.
I was startled when he told us he was grateful to come to this beautiful city. I have never heard anyone say that.
Camden is the murder capital of the US, I only hope events like this will
help to turn it around. At the Saturday afternoon town hall, what really made the audience happy was his saying that dual citizenship has been approved.
Which means that American citizens can still be Liberian citizens, can still vote in Liberian elections, can still run for office. An electorate or more for the Liberian Diaspora? Not yet.
The town hall started late, about 3 hours after the expected time, so I had time to walk around the church with huge stained glass windows and high wooden ceiling and read the 2 placards of protest. Everyone was well-behaved, the vice president gave a calm speech, as did the ambassador, and the commissioner of police in Upper Darby welcomed the delegation, and all Liberians, to Drexel Hill.
Then the protesters started shouting. The large plain clothes detective wearing a lime green tie and a wire into his ear, and he was white, his attempts to blend in failed on so many levels, walked slowly towards the protesters and called inside the 3 Upper Darby police who had been waiting outside.
The Liberian protesters moved outside, shouted for video cameras, and the vice president answered questions. First happily explaining that freedom of speech is a right in the US, and in Liberia.
What impressed me is that we all were able to walk into and out of the church freely.
Anthony Kesselly calmed everyone down, which is what he has been doing since he was a leader in the university in Liberia more than 30 years ago. He was a leader in the Philadelphia Liberian communities for years, and was traveling with the vice president as his policy adviser. Anthony moved back to Liberia last year, it was great to see him.
No-one was patted down before or after, or asked to identify themselves. Very civilized.
Liberia is in good shape.
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