Liberian Literary Magazine
brings them face to face with the devastations of war . Andrew at one point remarks , “ This doesn ' t feel like my life ”, when confronted with the hollowed out structures his family had once inhabited . There is no sense of nostalgia to be found for the brothers in the physical structures of Liberia . They find that even Andrew ’ s simian friend , a research monkey named Betsy , is also dead . They are denied a safe , comfortable , nostalgic return to the images of their old photographs . As the brothers realize the physical landscape no longer reflects the Liberia they once knew , the focus lands squarely on the most important aspect of any nation , its people . The Topham ’ s in particular were determined to find a Liberian man who had worked for their family in their youth and who they had been especially close to , a man named James Morris . They were unable to find him , but they were able to find his son , Jefferson Morris , called “ Jeff ”, in honor of Jeff Topham , who his Father had minded as a boy . The film also introduces us to a bevy of Liberian Exchem exemployees , middle aged men now , all anxious for the company to return operations in Liberia and return a standard of living long since vanished . The brothers are careful to make it clear they have no real power in this matter , they ' re photographers , not Exchem reps , but they do set up a picture of the Liberian employees to take back to their Father in Canada . Along the way the Tophams earnestly struggle with legitimate feelings of guilt regarding the current state of Liberia . They openly as their Father if he thinks his shotgun shells contributed to the destruction of the 1990s . When they found Becky the monkey dead on their return , Andrew was humorously surprised that the Monkees did not welcome and console him as human beings would . When he purchases food for the remaining Monkees of the research group Becky was a part of , he realizes how much easier it is to help animals than human beings , a constant criticism many people have for well-meaning liberal activists . Helping human beings requires sustained effort for beings that have free will and may not repay your efforts in the ways one would expect . They realize this as they agonize over how to best help James
Promoting Liberian literature , Arts and Culture
son , Jeff ’ s namesake “ Small Jeff ”, who dreams for a chance to finish school and possibly be sponsored by the Tophams to study abroad . It is not indicated whether the two handsome brothers are married or not , but it seems they might be single bachelors without families . Taking on Small Jeff would seem to pose a large responsibility for men who have not had children of their own yet . But their return to Liberia and search for Jeff ’ s father , serving as ambassadors as well for their own parents , underscore their deep connection to the Liberian people . In the end , the Tophams contribute the most through their art form , photography . The great African American activist Frederick Douglas felt that pictures were a powerful weapon in the Black struggle for dignity and respect . In “ Liberia 77 ” photographs are a tool for remembering oneself and one ' s life . As a Liberian proprietor of a photo shop remarks , “ photo is life .” The Tophams render service to Liberia by giving gifts of their artistic photo ’ s to many people they meet , and eventually by meeting with Liberian government officials such as Madame Ellen Johnson Sirleaf herself . And their work has continued since the movie on the Liberia ‘ 77 website , where anyone can upload images of Liberia during more peaceful times , as a testament to our children that Liberia is a nation that had its conflicts , as all nations do , but is not a hellhole of perpetual war and instability . The Tophams in this way provide a magnificent example of how any Liberian artist or artist interested in Liberia can serve her , by using their talent to help people recognize the multi-faceted beauty of life in Liberian form . Please visit www . liberia77 . com to purchase the film on DVD and to participate in the Topham brothers ’ ongoing Liberian historic photography database .
Henrique Hopkins
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