Edward Wilmot Blyden On Liberia

Edward Wilmot Blyden (b. 8/3/1832 - d. 2/7/1912)

On August 3,1832, Edward Wilmot Blyden was born inwards Saint Thomas, U.S. Virgin Island, West Indies. He is considered by many historians as the manly individual parent of Pan-Africanism. His writings together with speeches are with the earliest plant on the dependent area of Africans returning to the continent after the deport upon of the European Trans-Atlantic slave trade, fifty-fifty predating the influence of the belatedly Marcus Mosiah Garvey, Jr..

Blyden was an educator, author together with diplomat who became real active inwards the the States together with inwards West Africa. He is noted to last with the outset iii Africans admitted to Harvard Medical School. He would afterward move an active political figure in Liberia, the West African nation settled yesteryear costless together with freed Africans primarily from the Americas together with West Indies.

When he married Sarah Yates, of the prominent Yates family of Liberia, he would last joining the prominent solid unit of measurement of Beverly Page Yates, the Liberian vice-president from 1856-1860. The Blydens had iii children. 

While inwards West Africa, Blyden also taught inwards Sierra Leone where he became an influential intellectual force. A frequent commentator on the political together with historical actions of African nations to their global diaspora, Blyden spoke publicly on Ethiopia's win on Nov 16, 1875 at the Battle of Gundet against an Arab Republic of Egypt led yesteryear colonial Arabs. Both Blyden together with his contemporary, Martin Robinson Delany, praised the Gundet win as an African victory.

A Pan-African Perspective of the Battle of Gundet, Ethiopia

Below is 1 of the many public speeches yesteryear Edward Wilmot Blyden. Published July 27, 1857, this spoken language addresses some of the pressing issues facing the new settlers at Republic of Liberia -- many of whom were newly freed from the Americas. Blyden addressed the occupation that arises when a public is driven yesteryear a want to last "rich", equally seen yesteryear the conspicuous consumption patterns Blyden notes in the novel inhabitants to Liberia. In this speech, Blyden also brings to the forefront of his listeners the economic perils ofdependence on the unusual assistance of the United States.

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 Liberia equally She is; together with the Present Duty of her Citizens  

[An Independence Day address given at Monrovia, July 27, 1857     

African Repository, Nov 1857, pp. 328-32.] 

 What then…are the moral causes of the acquaint evils inwards Liberia? …    … equally a people nosotros accept been inwards likewise much haste to last rich. Relinquishing the pursuit of those attributes that would tally us for the faithful discharge of our peculiar duties equally men, equally Liberians, equally an baby nation, nosotros accept used every possible stair out to lift our pecuniary importance; together with inwards the precipitate efforts at wealth, nosotros accept non been careful equally to what agency nosotros accept employed. The want to last rich, or to appear to last rich, pervades all classes. The honey of money…has grown upon us to such a flat that all other avenues of distinction seem but trifling inwards comparing of those which atomic number 82 to the acquisition of money.    To last rich seems with many “the principal destination of man”.  Hence, no talents, no endowment of the mind, no science or knowledge, no amount of education, is appreciated only so far equally it volition pay…. This fact has operated greatly inwards retarding the literary progress of our youth….  

CONSPICUOUS CONSUMPTION   

Another displace of our adversity may last seen inwards the unjustifiable extravagance inwards which nosotros indulge; inwards that luxury of expenditure for houses, for dress, for furniture, for food, constantly made the reprehensible remark yesteryear thinking foreigners.  We are inwards dreadful mistake inwards regard to our country, if nosotros suppose nosotros are really prosperous. Our prosperity is non real; it is false; it is fictitious.  The prosperity of a nation is existent when the springs of the prosperity are contained inside itself, inwards the hands of its citizens; when it depends for its beingness upon its ain resources; when it is independent.  But this is non the illustration inwards Liberia.  We are, equally a nation, upheld yesteryear foreigners. We are solely dependent upon foreigners for our schools, for churches, for preachers, for teachers.  Most of the talent of the solid reason is inwards the employ together with at the command of foreigners.  Those thus employed must ever concur their talents together with their efforts subservient, non to what they conceive to last the interests of their country, but to the desires together with direction of unusual employers…. What nosotros want to convey earlier our minds today is the humiliating fact, that nearly all the talent of Liberia—talent non inwards ordinary men, but inwards our principal men—is supported yesteryear unusual agency together with controlled yesteryear unusual influence.  And yet, inwards the seem upwards of these humbling realities, nosotros boast of our civilization, of our prosperity, of our independence, together with indulge inwards unjustifiable extravagance…    *     *     *    … the coin lavished upon houses, which add together zero to  wellness together with comfort; upon dress, which does non growth the dignity together with beauty of personal appearance; the large sums seat out inwards expensive furniture, … the neat amount consumed inwards the luxuries of the tabular array would move a neat way inwards keeping our streets clear of weeds, inwards felling the dense forests around us, inwards reclaiming the wilderness, inwards cultivating the soil, inwards civilizing our … brethren.    … Look at the numbers who … inwards lodge to advance to, or maintain this [extravagant] trend of living, flock to the fostering arms together with sheltering wings of these [foreign] societies.  Thus dis- honesty stalks abroad nether the semblance of piety; together with impiety assumes the appearance of religious belief for the sake of gain.  And … this extravagant mode of living…are made inwards the minds of many the criterion of respectability…we attach to a greater extent than importance to display than to reality.  There is real petty that is substantial nearly us…    *     *     *    …It is our duty to acquire that at that spot are other objects of infinitely greater importance than wealth inwards our rising country…A higher destiny is ours: our duty together with privilege is the laying of the foundation of hereafter empires inwards Africa…    … It is our duty to curtail our superfluous expenditures.  There should last retrenchment of our expenditures for fantabulous edifices….Let our surplus agency last beneficially expended; permit it last vested inwards the improvement of our country, inwards placing our prosperity upon a safer together with to a greater extent than permanent foundation—in rendering ourselves independent…    … It is our duty to labor.  We dwell inwards a solid reason rich inwards resources, which with petty exertion tin give the axe last called forth inwards sufficient diverseness together with abundance to homecoming us comfortable together with independent. But at that spot is a fatal lack of productive manufacture with us…. The commerce of the solid reason has e'er been inwards such articles equally our citizens accept had no business office inwards producing; thence nosotros acquire wealth from this origin without helping to exercise it.  We buy the palm crude oil together with camwood together with ivory from the natives giving them inwards central articles of unusual production …. The prosperity arising from our commerce is almost equally evanescent equally that based on missionary appropriations.  Foreigners on the 1 hand, together with the natives on the other, are our supporters.    *     *     *    … nosotros must either abandon our province of utter dependency upon foreigners, yesteryear creating the agency of supplying our ain wants, or relinquish our profession of freedom equally a nation.  H5N1 province of dependency is solely incongruous with a province of liberty….    …The…rich together with fertile soil…invites us to its cultivation. Nothing should last allowed to interfere betwixt us together with the soil…