Introduction Over the course of the 19th and 20th centuries, West Africa experienced nearly fifty conflicts, ranging from acts of extreme civil disobedience to full-scale civil wars . The levels of atrocity are some of the most depraved acts committed against one human being against another in modern history. Often the outside world watches as these countries destroy each other, and considering the fact that many of these countries possess valuable natural resources, the ability to continually perpetuate conflict remains present. The main purpose of this article will be to discuss many of the consequences associated with the integration of democracy in emerging West African countries at the end of the transatlantic slave trade and colonialism. Could the integration of democracy within inherently tribal cultures be a causal effect for civil war in West Africa? The main premise will focus on the case of Sierra Leone and the outbreak of a series of civil wars that turned the country into a failed state for over a decade in modern history. Methodology The hypothesis of this article will present the idea that civil war in West Africa is often a by-product of weak central governments that use the guise of democracy as a vehicle to create nepotistic pseudo-tribal government institutions. Ultimately, large portions of the population are marginalized by a small group of elites who control most of the country's wealth. De Hoyos 3 Longstanding disputes over ethnic/tribal power, corruption, and other forms of inequality create large gaps in income distribution among populations population under the emergence of democratic government. The democratic entity ultimately becomes the tool to perpetuate nepotism, corruption, and other flagrant… middle of paper……d Visions of Race, Science, and Religion (Carbondale: Southern Illinois University Press, 2010) .LeVert Suzanne, Sierra Leone (New York: Benchmark Books (NY), 2007).Miller Joseph Calder, Way of Death: Merchant Capitalism and the Angolan Slave Trade, 1730-1830 (place of publication: University of Wisconsin Press, 1996), 1.Mulaj Kledja, ed., Violent Non-State Actors in World Politics (Columbia/Hurst) (New York: Columbia University Press, 2010), page 280.Pham, J. Peter. Child soldiers, adult interests: the global dimensions of the Sierra Leone tragedy. New York: Nova Science Pub Inc., 2005. “HISTORY OF ANGOLA.” HISTORY OF ANGOLA. World History and the Web. April 14, 2014. Wright, Gavin Slavery and American Economic Development (Walter Lynwood Fleming Lectures in Southern History), reprint ed. (place of publication: Louisiana State University Press, 2013).