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April 1980 - Monrovia Liberia

  • Writer: Stephanie Duncan
    Stephanie Duncan
  • May 2
  • 3 min read

This week, many Liberians reflected on a pivotal chapter in our nation’s history, April 1980. It was only 46 years ago, and countless people who lived through that era are still here to recount it. In April 2026, many took time to remember their loved ones, reflect on the tragedy, and, for some, extend forgiveness.


And then, as always, came the callous comments from those who seem incapable of empathy.

One of my favorite comedians, Dave Chappelle, once delivered a powerful monologue on Saturday Night Live. Speaking about devastating wildfires that destroyed homes in one of California’s wealthiest neighborhoods, including those of some of his friends, he noted the overwhelming outpouring of support from people everywhere. But he also mentioned those who said, “It serves these celebrities right. I hope their houses burn down.” His response was both humorous and deeply insightful: “And this is why I can’t stand poor people. They can’t see past their own pain.”


Funny? Absolutely. Profound? Even more so.

And before anyone gets offended, poor meaning the mindset. True success will never come from celebrating another person’s suffering or withholding compassion in the face of tragedy.

Fast-forward to this week. As I read the many recollections of the coup d’état and the public executions of several Liberians, fathers, sons, husbands, grandfathers, and friends, I was moved by the compassion shown to the surviving families. These families have done an extraordinary job preserving their loved ones’ legacies and ensuring their stories are never forgotten.

Yet, predictably, there were those so consumed by hatred that they, too, could not see beyond it. Lumpenproletariat!


Some offered sweeping claims about “Congo people killing indigenous people,” yet provided no names, no dates, no historical context, just empty rhetoric. As Liberians would say, some people simply talk to be talking and to be in things. Such behavior reflects the very mindset that has too often held Liberia back. Lumpenproletariat!


Some even implying that very same families and friends of victims should recognize the indigenous people who were murdered by the Congo people. Again, no names, no dates, no historical context of these Congo killers or their victims. Lumpenproletariat!


Liberian history is complex. It contains triumph and tragedy, justice and injustice, multiple perspectives, and difficult truths. No one is stopping anyone from telling the stories of their ancestors. In fact, those stories deserve to be told. But they must be told accurately. We will always challenge falsehoods, distortions, and historical revisionism.


What we will not do is allow hatred to masquerade as historical analysis.

History will forever remember those men who were publicly murdered as victims, as fathers, as patriots, and as heroes. Their names will endure. Their stories will live on. As for their murderers, history has a way of reducing such men to footnotes, if it remembers them at all.


To the grieving families, your na ma ya

Eye-level view of a vibrant community gathering in Liberia

Source: Dash, Leon (April 14, 2022). "Tolbert family calls for decent burial". The New Dawn. April 22, 1980 – Thirteen officials executed by the Samuel K Doe Regime publicly executed 13 officials: Remembering the names of the victims:




 
 
 

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