Archive Liberia is entering its fifth year of fall study groups. Launched in 2022, these study groups use collective study to build collective consciousness around Liberia’s histories, its future possibilities on the African continent, and its connections to Black histories in the U.S. and the Caribbean. From the beginning, the approach has been intentionally anti-imperialist and anti-colonialist, with the aim of pushing Liberian Studies to the Left.

Rather than focusing on a single theme, this year’s study group will bring together multiple texts and transcripts that explore Liberia’s histories prior to the 1800s, its place within the trans-Atlantic slave trade and Black Studies, and possibilities for a sovereign future guided by an “African personality.”

I’m excited to welcome Dr. C. Patrick Burrowes, who will present in Session 2 as we discuss Liberia’s place in the trans-Atlantic slave trade and its fight against slavery; Dr. Robtel Neajai Pailey, who will co-facilitate Session 3 as we consider a reimagining of Liberia; Bry Reed, who will co-facilitate Session 4 as we explore Liberia’s place in Black Studies; and Erica Caines, who will present in Session 5 as we use Kwame Nkrumah’s “African personality” to envision a sovereign future.