Wilton Sankawulo, Sr.

A Letter to Robert H. Brown

Courtesy of Dr. Robert H. Brown

Dear Brother Brown:

Thank you very much for the package you sent me, which contained two copies of my novel, The Rain and the Night, as well as stories and articles you have published. I did not have a single copy of any of my published works including that first novel of mine. Words are inadequate to express the depth of my gratitude and appreciation not only for this gesture of kindness, but also for your reopening of the line of communication between us. Your intellectual growth and development place you above the petty and the ephemeral to the noble and the enduring. My assessment derives from your wisdom, magnanimity, and commitment to truth as reflected in your works. It is unfortunate that our country does not appreciate its great minds, but, through the print media, you will leave an imprint succeeding generations will find useful in building a better world. I feel proud to have the privilege of being a friend to one of the great men of our time. I hope that our friendship will continue to grow and be mutually rewarding for many years to come.

I thank you for your brilliant review of The Rain and the Night. It helps readers understand and appreciate the novel and our traditional values. The review educates me about my own work; you made meaningful observations I never suspected. Certainly, it will be included in any future edition of the novel.

I am especially grateful for your pointing out my problem with grammar. The American System of education, which we maintain, does not emphasize grammar. All is well if you don’t have a writing job. I have come to realize, however, that grammar is the only defense to any piece of prose; it gives you the confidence of having said what you want to say exactly. Let readers disagree with you, but they should never be in doubt about your intended meaning. I was compelled to master grammar and to encourage my students to master it, too, so that it may not interfere with their writing.

I was certainly impressed by your comprehensive knowledge of the Liberian situation. This was especially manifest in your Some Problems of Writing in Liberia and Prospects for Liberian Writers, and Approaches to the Development and Implementation of a Bilingual Educational Programme in Liberia. The Liberian tragedy is primarily due to lack of commitment on the part of the ruling class for national development. When a majority of the people are illiterate, poor, having no access to communication; and when the ruling class, a bare fraction of the population, exploits all the nation‘s resources for themselves alone, the growth and development of the country is jeopardized. Indeed, Liberians have come to believe that foreign aid is a substitute and not a supplement (as it should be) to their own efforts. And all this is because the founders of the nation never perceived Liberia as a homeland but rather as a farmland where they may gather produce for consumption in America and other countries. Nearly all of them maintain homes here, send their children to school here, and come here regularly with funds they steal in the country.  Unfortunately, such unpatriotic attitude has become a precedent for a majority of the elite. While Ghanaians and Nigerians look for money abroad to send home to build their countries, Liberians predominantly rob their country and send the money abroad for their own enjoyment, as well as that of their families and relatives. Do you know that a Liberian ambassador sold our embassy in London? How wicked and selfish!

The pen is still mightier than the sword. We must tell the truth about our country in our works, as you noted in one of your essays. We should, of course, maintain love and respect for our people so that we may remain focused on the issues rather than on personalities. Our people do the wrong thing because they never saw good examples to follow. Our duty is to convince them that the goodness within them can come to fruition without external factors.

Your dissertation about our language problem is timely and quite informative. Many times the question of adopting a Liberian language as our national language has arisen, but was never properly addressed due to lack of commitment. Other Africans take pride in their languages, but Liberians are ashamed of theirs. No effort is even made to teach our people correct English, which we consider our national language. In consequence, we have only ruined our image and self-confidence, and allowed the communication gap to widen. When we begin putting all the emphasis on the national interest rather than on personal interest, it‘s only then that Liberia will take its rightful place in the world community.

I enjoyed your stories immensely. Although they are based on the Liberian experience, they reflect the human situation as a whole. Clearly, you master this art form and are endowed with a rich vocabulary and rhetorical felicity that make your writing meaningful and enjoyable. Your stories are classics. I hope that they will, one day, be collected and published for the benefit of contemporary and future generations. I also hope that To Seek a Newer World will eventually be published by Heinemann so that it may represent Liberia in the African Writers Series. Thank you for the addresses you sent me. Two weeks after I received them, I was lucky to find a publisher here in Houston. This lady is beginning a publishing venture; I am her first author. She is very excited by Sundown at Dawn. I decided to work with her because she has only one book to focus her attention on, and she will do everything possible to promote it. She has decided to make it a textbook for African studies programs in this country. She has scheduled the book to be on the market by December, round Christmas time. When it is published, I will send a copy to Heinemann for possible inclusion on the African Writers Series-and of course I will send you a copy.

Thank you for the encouragement and support you are giving me. When we started writing, little did we know that life in our country would be in total disarray today, and that our own government would not show much interest in what we are doing. Fortunately, the world will appreciate our effort once we get into contact with the right people. It is difficult but it is possible. I hope and pray that we will succeed in the near future. I will keep you informed of my progress.

May God be with you till we meet in the near future. With kind regards and best wishes,

Sincerely yours,

Wilton Sankawulo Sr.
Houston, Texas
2004