Beyond Reconciliation in Liberia

Wed, 24 Jun 2009 05:00:00

Beyond Reconciliation in Liberia

Emmanuel Dolo

Liberia's Truth and Reconciliation Commission released its final report this week. It looks back over decades of economic unrest and war that led to thousands of deaths and countless displaced Liberians.

Emmanuel Dolo was a young boy in Monrovia when the Liberian civil war separated him from his family. He later learned his father was killed in the violence. After he watched a woman die in the street, Emmanuel vowed that when he grew up, he'd find a way to help people. Emmanuel now works with leaders from feuding tribal groups to help bring a new kind of peace and reconciliation to Liberia - a process he sees as different from the country's national reconciliation project. Emmanuel talks with Dick Gordon about what it means to him to help mend the wounds of war, and how he found his own forgiveness toward those who killed his father.

Emmanuel was a 2009 fellow at iLEAP.
Learn more about Emmanuel's organization.

Summer job: Toe-Checker

Mel Miskimen

Mel Miskimen has been listening to our series on summer jobs and how they can change us. Mel just knew she had to tell us her job. Mel took a summer job as a “toe checker” at the local pool after graduating from high school. It involved looking carefully at all kinds of people – and their feet. Mel tells Dick that she used this low-paying job to take revenge on middle school snobs by enforcing the rules and making them wear unattractive bathing caps. And she paid her way through college.

The Story from APM - Beyond Reconciliation in Liberia

Beyond Reconciliation in Liberia

Beyond Reconciliation in Liberia

Summer job: Toe-Checker