The VICE Guide to Liberia
What Andy Capper, Vice UK Editor, is saying about the film: We arrived in Liberia with a small crew of three and quickly rendezvoused with a local journalist who would be our fixer and guide. Our first shooting location was the West Point slum, home to 80,000 people living in conditions that redefine squalor. Miles of rotting garbage surround the slum, which has no sewage system.
Pretty much everyone - even the local government officials - defecates and urinates in the open. Drugs, prostitution and armed robbery are the main industries. We got to know some of the residents of West Point, who told us their stories as they smoked heroin and cocaine and begged us for money.
Next we visited a local brothel. The women who lived there talked with us about the U.N. soldiers who have sex with the child prostitutes and beat the older women, and then leave without paying.
But perhaps the most revelatory portions of our trip to Liberia came from meeting the major warlords of the nation's civil wars. There's a tradition in Liberian militias of taking on extravagant noms de guerre. Hence, our subjects were named General Bin Laden, General Rambo and General Butt Naked. The latter, in particular, was one of the most notorious Liberian warlords. He claims to have personally killed 20,000 people including babies, and to have sometimes cannibalized his victims.
Today, General Butt Naked goes by his birth name, which is Joshua. During our time together, he told us that Liberia will surely implode into civil war again when the U.N. leaves next year. But in the meantime, Joshua wants to redeem himself. He offered us a glimpse of the Liberia that he wants to forge, and we found ourselves growing to like him. He took us to his church, where he rehabilitates child soldiers. We watched as he preached his way through Monrovia on a Sunday.
Is there a chance that his mission will succeed, and further civil war can be averted in this desperate country? That's one of the many questions that we came away with upon our safe return from Liberia. Watch our documentary about our time there and see what you think.
When I lived through the coup d'etat of April 12, 1980 there was a big difference: Many people were pointing and firing guns.
Thanks for the grit and courage it took to shoot this documentary. As a younger man (I'm 73 now) I crossed the Sahara 3 times and saw a lot of stuff. Things were tough then but they're tougher now. I salute you for doing your best to give a realistic picture of some very dicey places like Liberia. I'm headed for Somalia in February, inshallah. I know the brother of the former mayor of Mogadishu and he says he can possibly help me with security. Sometime I'd like to meet up with some of you guys and swap stories.
This is the most irresponsible documentary I have ever seen. Facts are wrong. Hasty reporting. Leading questions. Zipping in and out of the most vulnerable communities. Looking completely through the eyes of an American looking down on the people. Then you have to "get the hell outta here" because you f*cked up your interviews and riled people up by insulting them. Seriously? Move slowly. Talk to the rest of the people in Liberia who also lived through the war. They are offended by your film. The film only gets better because you actually spent time to get to know your main character and humanize him. Surely the other people deserved that too - or were you too busy holding your nose at the stench?
PS - Samuel Doe was not elected. He killed the President in a coup.
PSS - 70% of women are not raped. Misreported. 70% of women in program for survivors of sexual violence were raped and then the statistic was misrepresented and repeated over and over and over because it feeds into our imaginaries about Liberia.
PSS - Read Wikipedia and consider editing the film.
Get your act together, VICE. I'm all of 1 1/2 minutes into this documentary and you've already misidentified interim President Amos Sawyer as Samuel Doe. Jesus.
I love VICE. I'm a total fan. I wish I could work you, or have at least a tenth of your bravery.
Someone needs to a documentary on how VICE does documentaries.
When blacks are left to their own devices, Liberia is the result.
Violence, poverty & filth is indigenous to the species.
Another error: When the rapper at West Point is rapping, one sentence is captioned as "Every hand on the shoulder." He didn't say "shoulder"; he said "sugar".
At beginning of the movie, director wrongly states that Samuel Doe was elected. He was not. He and a handful of men raided Presidential Palace, killed most guards, killed President and people around him.
Typical. And for those of you who think that there should be more money thrown at Liberia, or any other country in Africa....are you insane? Billions of dollars, billions of man-hours, billions of lives lost in hopes of dragging the 'dark continent' into the 21st century. A country, a civilization, is only as good as the people who inhabit it. Get it? Probably not.....
After I' saw this Documentary I'have a second thought about humanity in Liberia what is going on right now it's the lowest point for Human beings, I' would even call them Humans they are Animals I never thought peoples can live like that
after watching Congo vice guide it prompted me to watch this.. I was really enjoying it until it got to part 4
(This vid has been removed , content violated youtubes terms)
I was gutted as i was really enjoying it, just for the benefit of others if you do a search in youtube for the title of the this docu you can find the missing 4th part.
just thought ide give you the heads up on that
that's what great about Christianity,,,there is redemption (and a job) even for rapists and killers
Liberia seems like my psychotic idea of fun. I mean, if you could call stalking and killing the warlords and war criminals "fun". Kinda like extreme camping. With cannibals.
Inspiring; Strange; sad, informative, hopeful, generous.Watch it.
hahahah when that prost. was demading all that stuff that guy was sitting there "ok... ok ... ok.... ok" hahahaha
5 mins into I am shaking my head! OMG they are monsters
Good doco. It shows how important it is to not only raise awareness of such issues but to also do something about it. Giving as little as $20 helps make a change in some of these communities. Don't just hum and ha about how bad it is but do something to help!
Thank you to the filmmakers for creating this important film. Watching the 1st couple of sections I was afraid that they were focussing on the grit and the sensationally dark side that is too often the focus of any media coverage on Africa. But having seen the entirety, I trust the filmmakers were presenting their honest impression. I commend their efforts.
Interesting to note that the US wanted to recruit these vicious killers to fight in Iraq. I wonder how many Liberians are doing the US' bidding in our wars today. Would be a good topic for another film/expose.
I'm so grateful for this website. Film is such a powerful medium and the works presented on this site need to be seen. Thank you!!
peace is the way forward
Tough to believe in good after watching this doc and some others. I believe that man is greedy, self serving and down right evil at times. I think a good old fashioned mass extinction is on the way and in my opinion can't come quick enough.
I disagree, the west must stay out of africa, the more america and the white coutnries go into africa the more problem they create even when they are well intentioned.
This reality is what most ignore, what most cannot fathom.
I have so much respect for the Vibe crew.
And if the teaching of Jesus, can allow "old sinners" to give their Soul to non-violence, vegetarian diets, and the spiritual protection of the youth, help me Jesus, and I will listen.
This doc' is a real eye opener.
Liberia. Liberia. Who will let, Liberia, be free from the hate?
Let's pray!
@ Dr. Dunkleosteus, wouldn't that be a noble idea ... :)
@african,
I agree, the USA is just making the situation worse and has historically been the cause of many of Africa's problems.
However, I feel the USA should be held more accountable and forced to repair the damage they have done. The USA pokes its fat nose in other countries' business all the time: Korea, Vietnam, Iraq, etc. This time, they should be made to correct the problems they helped to create. Just leaving Africa alone would be to allow the USA to get away with all the wrongs it has perpetuated there. That is my opinion.
@ Dr. Dunkleosteus, I like how u elaborated the situation to @ Sadie the Celt, although she could have gotten what u said just from watching the documentary. As to the solution, there is only one. The west needs to leave Africa alone, period! Every problem there is created and escalated due to outside interference.