Liberia President Knew Hardship Before Power

Published April 8, 2009 at 12:00 PM EDT

When Liberia President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf was an infant, her family was told by an elder that she would grow to become a great woman. But assuring words, unfortunately, were not enough to shield Africa's first woman president from periods of hardship and pain, which included being verbally and physically abused by her ex-husband.

President Sirleaf shares her story of how she managed to persevere, as chronicled in her new memoir This Child Will Be Great.

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SOMOS CONNECTICUT is an initiative from Connecticut Public, the state’s local NPR and PBS station, to elevate Latino stories and expand programming that uplifts and informs our Latino communities. Visit CTPublic.org/latino for more stories and resources. For updates, sign up for the SOMOS CONNECTICUT newsletter at ctpublic.org/newsletters.

SOMOS CONNECTICUT es una iniciativa de Connecticut Public, la emisora local de NPR y PBS del estado, que busca elevar nuestras historias latinas y expandir programación que alza y informa nuestras comunidades latinas locales. Visita CTPublic.org/latino para más reportajes y recursos. Para noticias, suscríbase a nuestro boletín informativo en ctpublic.org/newsletters.

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