Monrovia — President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf - familiarly known as 'Ellen' or 'Ma Ellen' by many Liberians - broke ground for the Angie Brooks International Center on Women's Empowerment, Leadership Development, International Peace and Security on Sunday. Celebrating International Women's Day, the ceremony marked the launch of an institution dedicated to the promotion of women's leadership and the advancement of women in society.
The event was part of the International Colloquium for Women's Empowerment, Leadership Development, International Peace and Security, which was hosted in Monrovia over the weekend. Global conferences are often networking sessions; where outcomes are limited to hundred-page reports that no one ever reads.
Not when Ellen is in charge. The Angie Brooks Centre will support the implementation and actions emerging from the women leaders who gathered in Monrovia this weekend for the two-day colloquium.
Who is Angie Brooks? She was a Liberian who, in 1969, became president of the 24th Session of the United Nations General Assembly - the second woman to serve in that post. As president, Brooks oversaw the transformation of European colonies into independent African States.
Think about what was happening in America at that time! 1969 was only one year after the US Congress passed the civil rights bill banning racial discrimination in housing and calling for de-segregation of the nations' schools.
Brooks was a trail blazer. As a young girl, she laundered clothes to earn herself a higher education in America. She then returned to Liberia to serve her country and ultimately the world body.
At the ceremony, Brook's eldest son recalled that two years ago, just shy of her eightieth birthday and months before she died, she told him of her dream to open a school in Liberia to support girl's leadership. Brook's son said that he dismissed the notion at the time, as his Mom was in ailing health and all energies were dedicated to her care. Angie Brook's dream became the new Liberian President's vision.
President Sirleaf closed the two-hour ceremony with the briefest of remarks and a shovel in hand. She articulated what everyone baking under the sun was thinking: it's so hot! She asked the audience to think of the dry season heat as the passion of the Liberian women for equality. She went on to say: "It's not about me, but those who came before."
Without Angie Brooks, she said, there would be no first woman president of Africa. Then she reached further back in time and spoke of Chief Suakollo, who held back intruders from different countries to preserve the integrity of what today is Liberia. She closed by saying that the Centre would be a living memorial to Angie Brooks that would uplift a new generation of women and women leaders.
Sign up for free AllAfrica Newsletters
Get the latest in African news delivered straight to your inbox
As I mentioned before, the highest value of these conferences is usually networking. I dined, debated and shared ideas with women leaders from Finland, Mozambique, Rwanda, Spain, Ireland, Kosovo and Cyprus. I watched my friend from Ghana, Abena, lead a great debate about whether women leaders should be supported just for gender equality or only when they remain true the principals of democracy, human rights, rule of law and the empowerment of girls and women.
But the most unrestricted fun I had was the last night when I huddled with my Liberian friends at a fashion show called 'Wearable Art'. Young Liberian women carried themselves like models on the catwalks in New York and Paris - tall, slender and striking. Their clothes captured the personality of African culture, with colors, patterns and the boldness of the statements they made, yet they were modern and updated. The designer was Abraham Pelham. The audience cheered and applauded,
"Can you believe these spectacular clothes are made in Liberia!" my friend Vida said. "This is the truest manifestation of a country that has moved beyond conflict."
