id
stringlengths 9
15
| page_id
stringlengths 5
8
| page_url
stringlengths 31
312
| page_title
stringlengths 1
218
| text
stringlengths 21
2k
|
|---|---|---|---|---|
54827586_0_13 | 54827586 | https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Americo-Liberian%20people | Americo-Liberian people | Americo-Liberian people.
Americo-Liberians were credited for Liberia's largest and longest economic expansion in the early to late twentieth century, especially William V. S. Tubman, who did much to promote foreign investment and to bridge the economic, social, and political gaps between the descendants of the original settlers and the inhabitants of the interior. Most of the powerful old Americo-Liberian families fled to the United States in the 1980s after President William Tolbert was assassinated in a military coup. |
54827586_0_14 | 54827586 | https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Americo-Liberian%20people | Americo-Liberian people | Americo-Liberian people.
Although Liberianist scholars have neglected internal stratifications such as class and geography among the Americo-Liberian society, regional and local socio-economic differences among the Americo-Liberians resulted in slight cultural differences between rural 'upriver' Americo-Liberians such as those based in Clay-Ashland and city-based Americo-Liberians, particularly those based in Monrovia who were sometimes referred to 'Monrovia Americo-Liberians.' Americo-Liberians based in Monrovia were portrayed as more urbane than their rural counterparts and were perceived by some Americo-Liberians as wielding too great an influence on national political affairs. |
54827586_0_15 | 54827586 | https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Americo-Liberian%20people | Americo-Liberian people | Americo-Liberian people. Settlements
The Americo-Liberians settled in Monrovia, Careysburg, Clay-Ashland, Buchanan, Maryland, Mississippi-in-Africa, Cape Mount, Greenville, and in a number of small towns along the St. Paul River. Notably, the families originally from Barbados, which included the Barclays, Morgans, Bests, Thorpes, Weeks, and Portemans, settled in Crozierville. |
54827586_0_16 | 54827586 | https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Americo-Liberian%20people | Americo-Liberian people | Americo-Liberian people.
The original "Congo people" were settled in New Georgia. Immigrants from Sierra Leone and the Gold Coast likewise settled in Monrovia. |
54827586_0_17 | 54827586 | https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Americo-Liberian%20people | Americo-Liberian people | Americo-Liberian people. Political developments in Liberia
As founders of the nation, and taking up about five percent of the Liberian population, upper-class Americo-Liberians had a leading role national politics from the founding of the colony. Following the Liberian Declaration of Independence in 1847, Americo-Liberians controlled much of Liberia's political and social institutions. Liberia was initially dominated by two political parties that were supported by Americo-Liberians, the Republican Party and the True Whig Party (TWP). After TWP candidate Anthony W. Gardiner was elected president in 1878, the TWP went on to govern Liberia for over a century, cementing Americo-Liberian political dominance. While opposition parties were never made illegal and Liberia was not classed as a dictatorship, the TWP more or less ran the country as a one party state and held a monopoly on Liberian politics. Liberian presidents from that date onwards were either of full or partial Americo-Liberian origin. |
54827586_0_18 | 54827586 | https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Americo-Liberian%20people | Americo-Liberian people | Americo-Liberian people.
During his rule, Americo-Liberian president William Tubman was widely regarded as the father of modern Liberia. The Tubman administration embarked on a mass modernization program, including improving literacy among the population, updating the nation's infrastructure, courting close relationships with the United States and attracting foreign investment to stimulate the economy. As a result, Liberia experienced a period of rapid development and economic prosperity in the 1960s. |
54827586_0_19 | 54827586 | https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Americo-Liberian%20people | Americo-Liberian people | Americo-Liberian people.
After coming to power, TWP Americo-Liberian president William Tolbert sought to introduce some liberal reforms including addressing imbalances between Americo-Liberians and the indigenous peoples by bringing more native figures into the government. However, these reforms proved unpopular among some of the Americo-Liberian population (including members of his cabinet) who felt Tolbert was undermining their position and accused him of "letting the peasants into the kitchen" while native Liberians felt the changes were happening too slowly. In 1980, native Liberian Samuel Doe led the 1980 Liberian coup d'état in which Tolbert was assassinated and Americo-Liberian political dominance came to an end. |
54827586_0_20 | 54827586 | https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Americo-Liberian%20people | Americo-Liberian people | Americo-Liberian people.
There is a debate among academics about how upper-class Americo-Liberians were able exert a political power and influence greater than their population. Some academics attribute the influence of the Americo-Liberians to the consolidation of economic and social interests across the various facets of Americo-Liberian society despite the fact that some initial divisions in early Americo-Liberian society were based on state of origin in the United States, educational levels, socio-economic class, free or freedmen status, and perhaps "colorism", particularly because the first president was of mixed race, as were numerous immigrants, reflecting the nature of African-American society in the Upper South. |