Transitioning to life in a different country with a diverse culture was initially challenging for Edwin Brewer, the brother of Liberian Sen. Jonathan Kaipay. But, he says, it has given him a unique perspective on American life.
Brewer moved to the United States in 2011 for several reasons - one of which was to improve his education, which he's currently pursuing through Iowa State University.
In his time as a U.S. resident, Brewer, now in his 50s and living in Jefferson City, has held several jobs in Fulton that have helped him become more familiar with American culture.
He worked for the Fulton Parks and Recreation Department as a soccer referee for three seasons and currently works at Fulton State Hospital as a forensic rehabilitation specialist.
"My different accent has been my issue here," Brewer said. "When I talk to people, I have to talk very slowly to get them to understand what I'm trying to communicate." Brewer began studying English in elementary school and into college.
"(With) Liberia being formed by ex-slaves returning from the southern part of the United States, they taught our people how to speak English," Brewer said. "So English has been the means of education in school, but the pronunciation has been a big challenge because we pronounce things far different from how you pronounce things in the community. That is huge for me. It is embarrassing if you're trying to get your information across, but it can take a long time before you can get that information across."
Brewer's second job as a Fulton bus driver assistant has frustrated him at times, as he tries to be more articulate when communicating with children. "You have to ask them to stop if they're on the seats, if they're distracting you," he said. "Little kids don't understand you, so I have to take my own time to talk to them, to get them to understand to follow my instruction, to be more friendly with me."
Brewer said his job experiences have shown him Americans lack cultural awareness to an extent. When people learn he is from Africa, Brewer said they usually ask about the wild animals and express concerns about traveling safety, but "most of them are more concerned when they see you and get to know that you're from somewhere other than America."
"They want to learn where you're from; they want to ask you questions about what is happening at where you're from," he said. "Most Americans are not aware of many cultures other than American culture, but when they come in contact with me, they want to know what is our culture, what is happening there, what is our way of living."
Brewer said he's also noticed a vast difference in the quality of life in America. He cites three factors:
• The U.S. has a very strong economy; Liberia doesn't.
"The economy rate in Liberia is like 20 percent, and the economy rate in America is like 96 percent. You can see the difference coming from a country where we have unemployment rates so high and the economy rate very low," Brewer said. But it wasn't always so low - in the 1980s, Liberia's economy was comparable to Japan's, but civil war undermined the economic stability and hindered prosperity, he said.
"The whole idea was to create a country in Africa where there could be peace, prosperity and the pursuit of happiness, where a black male could have his own dignity by himself, and that's why (ex-slaves) went back there to establish it," Brewer said. "But that prosperity was interrupted in 1980, when there was a crisis between the indigenous people that met on the land when the ex-slaves went there, and the crisis broke up in 1990. That devastated the country."
• Living in the United States presents a greater opportunity to become literate.
"Here (the literacy rate) is something in the 90s, but in my country the literacy rate is like 25 percent," Brewer said. "For every 100 persons in Liberia, 25 of them will be functionally literate, meaning know how to read and write and do basic math. The rest of the 75 just don't know how to read and write, even in the adult village."
• Life expectancy is much greater in the United States, compared to Liberia where it is 54-60 years.
According to the World Health Organization's most recent data on life expectancy from 2013, most Liberian men live to be about 61 and women 63. "Liberia is a small country, but the number of hospitals and health facilities there is very small for the population," he said. "I think we have almost one doctor to like 2,000 patients."
But the Liberian brothers are working together to improve their home country. They want to attract Americans interested in investing in the country's flourishing agriculture sector at a grassroots, commercial or a multicorporation level.
Brewer, who is pursuing his master's degree in agricultural economy, wants Americans to invest in his business idea of developing a corn farm in Liberia.
"Liberia is a country that has the richest of minerals in the world," he said. "It has a very good climate that's rich in minerals and agriculture. ... Anything grows in Liberia."
Although some sectors may be prospering in Liberia, the country faces several human rights issues.
"Every human being should be guaranteed the right to education," Brewer said. "An educated mind is an independent mind; an educated mind is an empowered mind. That is very crucial. We don't have many educational facilities back home to be able to educate the mind. There are also lots of kids who are not going to school."
As a part-time school bus driver, Brewer notices the disparity in education standards between the two nations. He mentioned he was surprised to learn that in America he drives to individual homes to pick students up for school.
"We don't understand or have that luxury," Brewer said of the school transportation system. "In America, every child that's of school age must be in school. We don't have those kinds of enforced policy because of economic issues and other reasons."