Marie Tyler-McGraw

An African Republic:

Black and White Virginians

in the Making of Liberia

Original airdate: February 15, 2008

It’s Black History month and the Library of Virginia brought in Liberia scholar Marie Tyler-McGraw to discuss her book “An African Republic: Black and White Virginia and the Making of Liberia.” I was able to catch up with her in her Omni Hotel room and have a sit-down about the book. The following program aired on Friday on WRIR. The audio file of that interview is posted below.

“An African Republic: Black and White Virginia and the Making of Liberia” was an academic book- even she recommended that I skip the first four chapters because they’re tough to get through. The story, despite the author’s caveat, was fascinating.To paraphrase what you’re about to get into: For the Southerners of all colors, distinguishing who was a slave and who was free was an ever growing problem in the early 1800s. In an attempt to settle the problem, a group of Virginians called the American Colonization Society felt that these free people weren’t going to be able to thrive in this country with the oppressive mindset of the white population. I’m not saying that the beginning thoughts of a “Liberia” were philanthropic, but colonization was their way of solving the disparities between the classes. What happened next is what this audio is all about.

Please feel free to send comments. Every week I do this alone and could use the feedback.Books are available for purchase at the Library of Virginia bookstore.

Sincerely, Liz Humes

Listen to the show:

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