Was the second week of the adult literacy facilitators workshop. We talked about female circumcision and I learned more about the Poro and the Sande (they aren’t as secretive as other anthropologists suggest, outsiders just aren’t welcome to the ceremonies or compound, and even then, I think I could attend the graduation ceremonies if I worked at it and was here longer).

I also went to a tailor to get my first African suit so I can wear it on Liberia’s independence day, dropped a cool $10US to get a tailored dress made from one lappa and an extra cloth for the top.

One of my female supervisors is having some problems at home, her sister was battered by her husband and now she’s taking him to court. He’s suing his son for breaking a door to stop him from beating his wife. Yeah, that’s right. I can’t help but admire these women, they do so much, they take so much abuse, and those who stand up for their rights risk estrangement from their family and community. Mostly though, they risk losing. If my supervisor and her sister do not succeed, the sister will remain in this marriage, she’ll likely be beat more severely at some later date, and it will be one more sign that the blocks to justice are just too high for one person to overcome. This supervisor has already lost a sister to domestic violence, by the way.