The US President, Donald Trump, appreciated the Liberian President, Joseph Boakai, for his fluency in the English language. Both countries ’ presidents had a meeting on July 9, when Donald Trump was impressed by Joseph Boakai’s fluency in American English. However, Liberia is a country that has English as its official language, which triggered some Liberian natives. The meeting was held with five African Leaders at the White House, including the Liberian President. In the middle of the meeting, Trump asked Boakai where he learnt to speak English so beautifully and appreciated his accent. On the comment, Boakai informed him about his education in Liberia, which sparked his curiosity. According to Trump, most people at the table are not fluent in English.
Liberia’s History of the English Language
In 1822, the American Colonization Society founded Liberia, intending to resettle the freed slaves in Africa. For years, Liberia was under the influence of the American Colonization Society. However, in 1847, Liberia declared itself an independent country that was no longer under the control of the Americans. Furthermore, the country has several languages in different sections of society, but they chose to make English their official language. This was because among the diversity of languages, English was a common medium to converse with the nation.
However, after Trump’s comment, many Liberians are showing their aggression on the offensive statement. According to them, the comment was less of an appreciation but a derogatory remark on Liberia’s colonization by the American people.
Reaction of Liberians to Trump’s remark
An advocate from Liberia, Archie Tamel Harris, expressed his disappointment as he felt insulted that their country speaks English. He also shed light on the tone of the US President, Donald Trump, who looked like they still believed that Africans are illiterate.
Another diplomat added that the comment was inappropriate to make when you are with an African leader from an English-speaking country. Meanwhile, a South African Politician, Veronica Mente, reacted by saying that the African leaders must have left the room after this.
On these reactions, the White House Press Office came forward to defend their President in front of the media.
The White House Press Office defends the US President.
Massad Boulos, the senior advisor for Africa, mentioned that he was in the meeting during this conversation. He claimed that the meeting was nothing but an appreciative time for both sides. In addition, he also referred that Africa is friends with the US President, Donald Trump.
Anna Kelly, the deputy press secretary, spoke out on the offense of a ‘compliment’ given by the US President, Donald Trump. According to her, the comment was filled with appreciation and had nothing to do with Liberia’s past colonization. She brought to view that Trump has invested in the stability of African countries more than Joe Biden has in 4 years.
Liberia’s Foreign Minister, Sara Beysolow Nyanti, clarified that the comment was not derogatory at all. She mentioned how many people face difficulty understanding Africa’s language accent, which astonished Trump at the meeting. An American influence on Liberia’s linguistic demography was what made him appreciate the similarities between the accents.
Trump’s records of appreciating other leaders’ English
It was not the first time that Trump complimented any leader’s English speaking skills. He once praised the German Chancellor, Friedrich Merz, for his English-speaking ability during a meeting. The same curiosity was present when he heard him speak English fluently despite belonging to a German-speaking country.
Moreover, Trump is very assertive towards the idea that ‘the US is a country where we speak English,’ since his debate in 2015. Additionally, he declared English as an official language of the US in 2015, showing his love for American English. In such a case, his astonishment is justified as every country has their accent of English speaking that might get difficult to understand.
Trump and his relations with Africa
Trump had indeed said some rough things about Africa in the past. This aggravated the relations between him and the African natives. However, his demeanor was quite different while the African leaders sat with him in the White House for their proposal.
In 2018, he once called the migrants from Africa and other nations, coming from ‘shithole countries,’ which sparked a high opposition against him. In May, he was found bashing South Africa’s President on a matter. As said, he didn’t believe Cyril Ramaphosa’s claims, stating that South Africa’s white farmers were victims of genocide.
In contrast, his behaviour was nothing but respectful towards the continent and its leaders. He also praised the African land and its locations with beautiful adjectives, which didn’t go unnoticed by Africa’s leaders. Additionally, he was in favor of investing in African land to develop their natural resources and beautify their countries.
Conclusion
African natives are offended because of Trump’s comment on African Leader, Joseph Boakai’s English speaking ability. However, the President has no grudges against Trump as he understands that some people find it difficult to understand the African accent. He took the compliment with grace and kept his proposal with other African leaders for investment in Africa’s land.
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