PHOTO: (L-R) The Author Moses Blonkanjay Jackson and the Liberian flag
By Teacher Moses Blonkanjay Jackson (MsEd, EdM)
The Mwalimu-Koh
August 22, 2023
Thinking Thoughts
In my thinking thoughts, a strange feeling of patriotism surged into my human agency that it would soon be August 24th when this small West African nation of Liberia would be celebrating its “National Flag Day.” This celebration would remind Liberians of the audacity exhibited by a colony of freed slaves when they severed themselves from their former slave masters and Big Brother, the United States of America (USA) as an independent nation-state, after being dumped on these mosquito infested Grain Coasts in 1822. To symbolize their bravery, a banner, the Lone Star Flag was hoisted on Montserrado’s fertile height announcing the expulsion of the cowardliness or pusillanimity experienced during the slavery days and to adopt an audacity to forever speak truth to power.
My fellow Brabbies, the Lone Star Banner was not an ordinary flag for it stood as a symbol of resistance to power, and as an expulsion of cowardliness. Unfortunately, since it was hoisted, despite the vicissitudes of time, it continues to float gracefully in turbulence and over scary, cowardice and pusillanimous men as if nothing has happened. Wow, what an audacious and tolerant flag!
The Audacious Lone Star Banner
For the sake of my Brabbies, to be audacious is to be brave. To exercise your rights or do something that although you know people will open their mouths and talk or attack and punish you, you still do it and stand ready to defend it. If a Zogoe Brabbie snatches a cellphone and takes off, that is audacity because he knows that if he is caught, he will be beaten mercilessly.
Fellow Brabbies, the Lone Star Flag was not hoisted as an olive branch to preach peace or reconciliation. It was rather a symbol of resistance to the misuse of power, advocacy against graft and greediness, and the right to live as a free person created by God. The men who chose to establish their own country and raised a flag had in hindsight that there would be a backlash from their guidance and former slave master, the USA, yet come what may, they rebelled and knitted a banner.
The seven ladies who knitted the Lone Star Flag must have worked covertly under peculiar situations that carried grave consequences because Independence Day was declared on July 26, 1847 without a flag while the flag was hoisted August 24, 1847. If the flag was available at that time, the brave men must have chosen to test the resistance from the USA, by announcing the nation state in July, and when nothing happened, raised their flag in August. I submit, it could have been for other reasons as history is often bridled by nuances, gaps, ambivalences and mystery. I believe this is what moved Edwin J. Barclay when he penned the patriotic song, “The Lone Star Forever”.
The first stanza conveyed the audacity when the dissents of the colony announced the severance and formation of the new West African nation-state.
Verse 1
When Freedom raised her glowing form; On Montserrado’s verdant height,
She set within the dome of night; -Midst lowering skies and thunderstorm, The star of Liberty!
And seizing from the waking morn, Its burnished shield of golden flame,
She lifted it in her proud name, And roused a nation long forlorn, To nobler destiny!
You see, although the first stanza portrayed bravery, the third stanza showed some form of scariness or pusillanimity that when “hell breaks loose and our former slave masters resist, or the original natives demand their land, or when a new generation arises and selects to misuse power, practice corruption, subject our people to abject poverty conditions while they swim in gross opulence; anytime a new age emerges where the rights of people will be trampled upon; where justice will be sold in the streets and marketplace; when a new age is announced where ballots and votes are sold for belly-satisfaction and the conscience of men becomes nonsense; when a new age begins where political leaders are so greedy that they tear one another down, condescend, and sell out their values; when this brand new nation-state ever shows signs of retrogression, be ready to march forward to defend the heritage and legacy; be ready to fight back “tooth and nail”, with your whole human agency, your whole body, your whole mind, and souls. Do not be pusillanimous, be audacious. This was the message in verse #3:
Verse 3
Then forward sons of freedom March; Defend the sacred heritage,
The nation call from age to age; Where’re it sounds ‘neath heaven’s arch
Wherever foes assail; Be ever ready to obey
‘Gainst treason and rebellion’s front; ‘Gainst foul aggression in the brunt
Of battle lay the hero’s way; All hail Lone Star all hail!
Despite the sacredness of those stanzas, the Lone Star Flag was hoisted to float and truly, it has floated over all kinds of situations, and will be floating again on August 24, 2023 and October 10, 2023, amidst the aggressive hustles for state power by all and sundry political animals.
Construct of Turbulence
My Brabbies, turbulence simply means a state of confusion, yah. It is a disorganized great commotion or agitation. A turbulent time, place, or relationship is one in which there is a lot of change, confusion, complaint, murmuring, and disorder. It is any situation characterized by protests, unrest and disorder whether in heaven, or here on mother earth.
According to Biblical accounts, there was turbulence in heaven when Lucifer and a band of disgruntled angels chose to revolt against Almighty God. To quell the confusion and disorder, God expelled Lucifer and his disgruntled angels from heaven and threw them down here to earth. From time immemorial Lucifer and his gangsters have been fighting to return to heaven applying all kinds of tricks with minimum success.
Lone Star Flag Floated in Turbulence in Liberia
In Liberia no matter how gross or terrible the turbulence, the Lone Star Flag has always floated gracefully with the winds. When President E. J. Roye allegedly tried to escape and drowned in that turbulence, the flag still floated. When President Tolbert was assassinated by a band of half-literate non-commission soldiers; when the 13 True Whig Party (TWP) government officials were executed by CIC Doe’s firing squad, that was turbulence.
When President Doe openly arrested and killed Gio and Mano people and endorsed Gen. Charles Julu’s alleged mayhem of dumping scores of Nimbaians including babies in a water well and covering them to their death; when rebel leader Charles Taylor recruited hundreds of illiterate, raw, clueless, and immature Gio and Mano youth and adults to wage an uncivil 14-year war on Liberia; when the Gio and Mano rebels sought out and killed innocent Krahns and Mandingoes as battle front victories instead of complying with rebel supporter Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf’s order to “bring down the Executive mansion and take Monrovia”, that indeed, was turbulence.
But wait o, Brabbies, when rebel leader Prince Y. Johnson arrested President Samuel K. Doe from the Freeport of Monrovia and butchered him alive, and recorded the whole incidence allegedly in defense of Nimba people, wasn’t that a gross turbulence as well? Let me ask again, when Supreme Court Justice Kabina Janeh was removed from the Supreme Court bench and stripped of his lifetime status because some members of the house alleged he did something wrong and he got vindicated by ECOWAS and nothing happened, wasn’t that turbulence? When Brownie Samukai won his senatorial seat and was denied because he carried out an order from President Ellen Johnson, and the Oldma just sat there and did nothing, wasn’t that turbulence? Lord have mercy, if the answer is no.
When both District #8 Representative Acarous Gray and District #10 Representative Yekeh Kolubah invaded the University of Liberia’s main campus with gronna boys, zogoes, and thugs, and brutalized peaceful students, that was a turbulent time similar to the situation when Armed Forces of Liberia (AFL) soldiers invaded the UL campus resulting to death and mayhem; when a group of CDC thugs and clueless youths allegedly attacked peaceful citizens who were protesting on July 26, 2022, that was turbulence; when the CDC Youth Chairman invaded the voters registration center in Sinkor Oldroad with gangsters under the guise to register and violence erupted, that was turbulence. When the protest staged by Henry Coasta and the CPP, on the grounds of the Capital Building was disrupted by police tear gas and arbitrary arrests, that was turbulence.
When CDC supporters campaigned with a casket symbolized as bearing the corpse of the presidential candidate of another political party, Ambassador Joe Bokai; during the political rally when stones were thrown, ears cut off and innocent people wounded by belly-driven party fanatics, that was turbulence. Despite all those turbulent times, the Lone Star banner still had the audacity to float gracefully as a Liberian flag.
You see, My Brabbies, to quell the confusion that Lucifer started in heaven, the Almighty God acted swiftly and decisively by throwing him down to earth. Unfortunately, in Liberia, when a turbulent situation occurs, men are not brave to step on it; they are pusillanimous.
Lone Star Banner Floated Over Pusillanimous CPP
Pusillanimous men are cowards. Pusillanimous means showing a lack of courage or determination. It is a word derived from a Latin construct “”very small spirit.” If you are pusillanimous, ” you don’t have the spirit, or the confidence or drive to step up or speak up when it matters.
Recently, in the opposition Coalition of Political Parties (CPP), instead of “men” sticking to the ideals of the marriage, they opted out and offered Musa Bility and Alexander Cummings an opportunity to assume the “bigger mind” status. The Alternative Liberian Party (ALP), and the Unity Party (UP) on the other hand, showed lack of courage or pusillanimity, when they opted out of the formidable powerful CPP which had flogged the “Mighty CDC” in two elections with wide margins. While all this unfolded, the Lone Star banner still floated gracefully over those scary men who have never seen the reason to re-think their thoughts that a united front is indeed a formidable front.
Lone Star Banner Floating Over Pusillanimous Liberian People
I witnessed an ugly scene on Gurley Street where a zogoe snatched an expensive I-phone from a young lady and did not even run but challenged her. As the young lady cried out for help from by-standers, the zogoe dared anybody to come and take the phone from his hand “Let somebody just try it”, as he walked quickly away leaving the young lady bewildered and in tears. We all stood there scared to grab the nasty Sanamaswine and retrieve the young lady’s phone. We all stood guilty as pusillanimous Liberians that did not show any courage to defend the sacred heritage as portrayed by the Lone Star Forever verses. I hated myself that whole day.
On another occasion, while driving to town, I also witnessed a taxi driver collar a uniformed police officer. The guy held the cop to his throat so firmly that he hardly breathed. Instead of one of us getting down from our air conditioned vehicles and kicking the taxi driver’s butt, and reminding him that the police officer was bearing the symbol of our heritage and should not be touched in such a manner, we simply drove by and went about our businesses. One of my colleagues even made fun of the grave situation, “But the policeman na learn karate at the academy?” Nonsense statement.
You see, this is the same attitude we Liberians exhibit when we refuse to say black is black and white is white. When things are going wrong, Liberian people are so scared that they justify because it has happened in the past, it is alright for it to happen again. Everybody is scare and nobody is brave or has the audacity to speak up or act out. The so-called educated lot are afraid that they would lose their jobs, the legislators are afraid that they might not get endorsements and might lose their lucrative seats, young people are afraid that they would not receive hand-outs and crumbs if they acted, market women even clap and applaud as they sit among dirt in market stalls where pupu water (feces) is oozing from sewer lines all around them.
When it is time for the common Liberian people to act they say “I na like politics because politicians can lie” But you na like politics before you are all up and down being trucked by greedy scary politicians to register at the wrong places? You na like politics but you are up and down in the rain and sun throwing stones at your fellow suffering masses to boil the soup pot of the rich people? You na like politics but have t-shirts and caps for 4 different political parties and accepting their bribes to tote their banners from all the way Saigon to Broad street? Liberians people will speak behind the backs of authorities but when “push comes to shove”, they pretend as if they appreciate their poverty and suffering situations. Those are the real nonsense Pusillanimous Liberians over whom the Lone Star Banner is brave to float on August 24, 2023 Flag day and October 10, 2023.
The Benediction
My Brabbies, as we observe Flag Day August 24, 2023, let us remain steadfast and sober knowing that we still have hope. Let us take cognizance that we have respective tasks to perform and roles to play no matter what the situation in Liberia, whether it is in turbulence generated by pusillanimous scary men or by mother nature itself. As we anticipate October 10, 2023, be aware that this Flag Day will be a transitional one because after this Flag day, the next one will announce the dawn of a new day.
To those ends, may the Compassionate Savior bless you and keep you. May He make His face to shine on this our country and give us genuine peace, in Jesus name. After all said and done, would join me to sing the patriotic song of our Republic: THE LONE STAR FOREVER. The music and lyrics of Liberia’s patriotic song were written by 19-years-old Edwin Barclay in 1909. He later became the nation’s 18th president in 1930.
LONE STAR FOREVER
When Freedom raised her glowing form; On Montserrado’s verdant height,
She set within the dome of night, Midst lowering skies and thunderstorm, The star of Liberty!
And seizing from the waking morn, Its burnished shield of golden flame,
She lifted it in her proud name, And roused a nation long forlorn, To nobler destiny!
Chorus
The lone star forever,
The lone star forever!
O long may it float o’er land and o’er seas!
Desert it, no never!
Uphold it, forever!
O shout for the lone star’d banner — all hail!
Verse 2
Then speeding in her course along; The broad Atlantic’s golden strand,
She woke reverb’rant through the land; A nation’s loud triumphant song, The song of Liberty!
And o’er Liberia’s alter fires; She raised the lone-starred flag unfurled;
Proclaiming to an expectant world; The birth of Afric’s sons and sires; The birth of Liberty
Chorus
Verse 3
Then forward sons of freedom March
Defend the sacred heritage,
The nation call from age to age
Where’re it sounds ‘neath heaven’s arch
Wherever foes assail
Be ever ready to obey
‘Gainst treason and rebellion’s front
‘Gainst foul aggression in the brunt
Of battle lay the hero’s way
All hail Lone Star all hail!
Simply Thinking Thoughts
About the author:
The CEO and founder of the Diversified Educators Empowerment Project (DEEP), Mwalimu-Koh Blonkanjay Jackson holds a Master of Education from Harvard University, and a Master of Science in Mathematics Education from St. Joseph’s University; he is a Yale University Teachers Initiative Math Fellow and UPENN Teacher Institute Physics Fellow. He is a part-time lecturer at the UL and Cuttington Graduate Schools. Mr. Jackson served the government of Liberia diligently for four years and returned to private practice as Development Specialist and Education Engineer. The Mwalimu-Koh can be reached at +231886 681 315/+0016105419114.