Mighty Be Our Powers

Mighty Be Our Powers shares the inspirational story of Leymah Gbowee who helped bring together an influential group of women that were tired of the unrest in their country and whose efforts eventually led to the end of a devastating and long-lasting civil war.

Leymah Gbowee remembers how excited and happy she was with her life when she graduated at 17. She had a good family life in Liberia and was looking forward to going to university to be a doctor. But everything turned upside down when war broke out in her country.

In 1990, a group of armed rebels, came in to overthrow Liberia’s president, Samuel Doe. While Doe was the first president to not be an elite, he still was corrupt and favored certain ethnic groups.

Opposition grew and another rebel group sprung up. The rebel groups fought each other as well as the current government. The country spun into chaos. In just a few weeks, there were daily executions in the streets, electricity stopped, and food was scarce.

Things became very uncertain for Gbowee and her family, who fled to Ghana. Here they became refugees in grim conditions. Her dream of going to university and becoming a doctor was now a distant memory.

It wasn’t safe for Gbowee and her family to return to Liberia until May of 1991 when a new interim government was put in place. But they returned to a destroyed city.

Gbowee began spending time with a young man named Daniel, and soon she became pregnant. Not long after having her son, she had a daughter. Her relationship with Daniel deteriorated. He lost his job and he frequently beat her and forced her into sex.

As struggles for power continued in 1995, Gbowee had to flee a war zone once again. This time she was pregnant and had two small children and Daniel with her. They found a place on an ancient, crammed Nigerian freighter headed to Ghana. It was jam-packed with people and there were no toilets or even room to lie down.

In Ghana, Daniel left her when she gave birth. Eventually, she returned to her parent’s house in Liberia with her three children and pregnant with a fourth. She knew she needed to find a way to support her family on her own.

She began working toward a social work degree. While in school, she volunteered at the Trauma Healing and Reconciliation Program, which helped villagers who’d suffered in the war. She helped former child soldiers deal with trauma and it became a paid job. Though it wasn’t as a doctor like she imagined, she felt happy healing the hearts of those she helped.