The event, hosted by the Armenian Youth Federation, will feature new songs from Hakhverdyan’s upcoming double disk album, performed alongside a new band.

The event is set to begin at 7:00pm, with doors opening at 6:00pm. The Orpheum is located at at 842 S Broadway Los Angeles, CA 90014. Tickets are on sale for: $40, $65, $100.

For additional information, call:  (818) 507-1933, email: info@rubenlive.com or visit: http://rubenlive.com

Tickets can be purchased from Ticketmaster.com by clicking here.

TORONTO, On.–Kobe Bryant faced demonstrations on Sunday as members of the Canadian-Armenian community took to the streets of Toronto ahead of a Lakers-Raptors game to protest the NBA star’s recent deal with Turkey’s national airline carrier, the Armenian Youth Federation of Toronto reported.

The protest began at 11 a.m. at the York Street entrance of The Air Canada Centre, with participants holding large banners reading the words “Kobe: Do the Right Thing,” as well as several other signs pointing to Turkey’s gross record on human rights.

“Kobe’s recent agreement with Turkish Airlines, 49% of which is owned by the Republic of Turkey, has tremendously upset Armenians and stands in stark contrast to public statements he has made calling for an end to the Genocide in Darfur,” said Rupen Janbazian of the Toronto AYF. “Turkey’s long list of human rights violations, including the ongoing denial of the Armenian Genocide, restrictions of free speech and expression, and its continued support of the genocidal government of Sudan, prove that this deal seriously damages Kobe’s reputation.”

If Bryant follows through on his deal to serve as the “Global Brand Ambassador” for Turkish Airlines, he will always come to be associated with the violence, oppression, occupation and genocide denial of the Turkish government.

The deal with Turkish Airlines has caused an uproar in the Armenian community in North America, especially within Southern California, which boasts the largest population of Armenians outside of Armenia with 600,000 Armenians.

“Toronto’s large Armenian community is likewise upset and we kept the pressure on Bryant during his visit to Canada, asking him to rescind his contract and make a statement separating himself from the actions of the government of Turkey, especially when the Armenian Genocide Resolution (H.Res.252) is being put to vote by the United States Congress,” Janbazian said.

The demonstration comes after a week of growing grass-roots and media pressure on Bryant to reverse his deal and acknowledge the Armenian Genocide. ESPN.com, NBA.com, LATimes.com, Bloomberg.com, and CBS 2 News and ABC 7 News, are among the dozens of news outlets, blogs, television stations and websites reporting on the developing issue.

As the controversy continues to spread throughout, other Armenian communities across the continent are sure to become more vocal in demanding a public statement from Bryant, who told a reporter after a Lakers game against the Philadelphia 76ers that he was unaware of the issue altogether.

As victims of genocide at the hands of the Ottoman Turkish government from 1915-1923, Armenians are angered that Bryant would sign a contract with a country that denies justice to the victims.

“For Armenians in Canada and the United States, Kobe’s contract with Turkish Airlines is like jet fuel on the fire of Turkey’s genocide denial,” said Aram Hamparian, the Executive Director of the Armenian National Committee of America in a statement published on the ANCA website Friday.

“We are hopeful that Kobe, in selling his brand, hasn’t also sold his soul by agreeing to remain silent about Turkey’s human rights abuses,” Hamparian said.  “He should reconsider his ill-advised endorsement of Turkish Airlines, and, at the very least, go on record condemning Turkey’s denial of the Armenian Genocide and calling upon our Congress to pass of the Armenian Genocide Resolution (H.Res.252).”

The Kobe controversy also comes as American and anti-genocide activists across the United States continue to mobilize in support of a possible vote on the Armenian Genocide Resolution, H.Res.252, in the final days of the Congressional session, the ANCA reported on its website.

Armenian Americans hope that Kobe would balance what clearly looks to be a profitable business deal with a strong moral statement against Turkey’s violations of human rights, including, of course, its ongoing denial of the Armenian Genocide.

The Armenian Youth Federation urges Bryant “to stay true to his loyal fan base and rescind his contract with Turkish Airlines.” The AYF further asked Bryant “to put out an official statement affirming his commitment to ending human rights abuses and voicing his support for House Resolution 252, calling on the United States Congress to properly recognize the Armenian Genocide.”

Founded in 1933, the Armenian Youth Federation is the largest and most influential Armenian American youth organization in the United States. With chapters throughout the country and affiliates around the world, the AYF actively strives to advance the social, political, educational and cultural awareness of Armenian-American youth.

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For more information on the developing story,  follow the AYF on Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube.

BY ALLEN YEKIKAN

If Kobe Bryant follows through on his deal with Turkish Airlines he will be associated with violence, oppression, occupation and genocide, not once, not twice, but all the time.

He will be the face of a country that occupies Northern Cyprus, brutally represses its Kurdish minority, imprisons its citizens, suppresses free speech, violently stifles dissent, and imprisons children.

Because, at the end of the day, Kobe will be promoting travel to Turkey not travel to Turkish Airlines. And Turkey is not as beautiful a place as its contracted public relations agents claim it to be.

One need not even look as far back as the 1915 genocide of Armenians to appreciate the grim fate Kobe faces once he becomes the global ambassador of this highly controversial brand.

On Wednesday, Turkish riot police sprayed students with tear gas to violently break up demonstrations against Turkey’s Prime Minister at the Middle East Technical University campus in Ankara. The growing intensity and frequency of police brutality against demonstrators  are fueling domestic and international charges that the ruling Islamist-rooted Justice and Development Party (AKP) is growing authoritarian and seeking to silence opposition.

Kobe will not redefine this brand, it will redefine him.

When truncheon-wielding police hit and kick students gathering to call for university reform, like they did on December 4 in Istanbul, American fingers will point to Kobe not Prime Minister Erdogan.

When thousands of Kurds take to the streets to protest the imprisonment of their elected leaders and the ban on their political parties, Kobe will be where the fingers point. He will be the immediate link to the country, its government, and its repressive system.

Whether he likes it or not, the American public, and his fans in particular, will associate Kobe Bryant’s character with the brutal government of the country he encourages them to visit.

This will forever taint Kobe’s image, relegating him to the history books as the international superstar whose credibility was corrupted by his complicity in the Turkish government’s war on freedom.

This is hardly the outcome he probably sought when exploring opportunities to become a global persona.

To be unique, and on the right side of morality, Kobe should consider dropping this ill-advised endorsement contract with Turkish Airlines and instead look for a more noble cause to represent.

He did after all once spoke out for an end to the Genocide in Darfur; maybe the right brand to represent is that of human rights, democracy and genocide prevention.

As the controversy surrounding Kobe Bryant’s endorsement deal with Turkey’s national airline carrier deepens, the NBA superstar faces a unique opportunity to stand by his loyal fans and become a global champion for human rights and genocide prevention.

Earlier this week Kobe signed a 2 year agreement to serve as the “global ambassador” of Turkish Airlines, effectively becoming the face and image of the company and its manager, the Turkish Republic.

“At this point, we are seeking to educate Kobe Bryant about the Armenian Genocide, Turkey’s denial and Turkey’s ongoing human rights abuses,” said Caspar Jivalegian of the Armenian Youth Federation. “Turkish Airlines is not like United or American–it was founded by the Turkish government, which still owns some 49% of the company.  They are supporters of groups like the American Turkish Council who lobby against U.S. Affirmation of the Armenian Genocide.”

Kobe’s decision has caused uproar in the Armenian-American community in the United States and especially within Southern California, which boasts the largest population of Armenians outside of Armenia, ranging between 400,000-600,000. As victims of genocide at the hands of the Ottoman Turkish government from 1915-1923, Armenians are angered that Bryant would sign a contract with a country that denies justice to the victims and actively works to defend modern day perpetrators of the crime.

“Kobe is a champion on the basketball court, and we look to him to be a champion of human rights by speaking truthfully about the Armenian Genocide, supporting U.S. Congressional passage of the Armenian Genocide Resolution (H.Res.252), and ultimately dropping this ill-advised endorsement deal,” Jivalegian added.

It wouldn’t be the first time Bryant stood in support of human rights and against genocide. In 2008 he issued a public service announcement through Los Angeles-based non-profit Aid Still Required calling for an end to the genocide in Darfur and urging his fans to unite in bringing aid to the troubled region.

“As 2010 comes to an end, Bryant is again in the headlines over the issue of Genocide. This time, however, not as the anti-genocide activist he was in 2008, but as an unknowing accomplice to the denial of the first genocide in the 21st century,” said Jivalegian. “Today, however, he has a unique opportunity to take a stand against genocide and speak out about Turkey’s support for the Sudanese government.”

Turkey denies the Darfur Genocide and provides arms to the Sudanese government, led by Omar al-Bashir, who has been indicted for war crimes by the International Criminal Court.

In November 2009, Turkey, came under intense international criticism for agreeing to host al-Bashir.  While Turkey’s Prime Minister, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, defended his ally, refusing to arrest the Sudaenese leader and denying the genocide in Darfur. According to Erdogan, there was no genocide raging, the international warrant for his arrest is a “mistake,” and Bashir may simply have only “mismanaged the situation.”

Since 2003, the Sudanese government has slaughtered half a million people in Darfur, while forcibly uprooting nearly 3 million more from their homes in February 2003. The Sudanese government, like Turkey, denies it is committing genocide.

Armenian Americans hope that Kobe would balance what clearly looks to be a profitable business deal with a strong moral statement against Turkey’s violations of human rights, including, of course, its support to Sudan and its ongoing denial of the Armenian Genocide.

BY ALLEN YEKIKAN

In 2008, Kobe Bryant was a strong voice calling for an end to the genocide in Darfur, but today, he has signed a deal to represent the Republic of Turkey, which denies any genocide in Darfur and is the infamous perpetrator of the first Genocide of the 20th century.

In May 27, 2008 Bryant made a public service announcement through the Los Angeles-based non-profit Aid Still Required, urging action to unite to end the Genocide in Darfur.

“In Darfur hundreds of thousands have been murdered, mutilated, families torn apart. Please take a stand with us. We have the power to save lives, to restore lives,” Bryant said in the PSA, published on Youtube. “If we can unite people, who are willing to take a stand, miracles can happen.”

Since 2003, the Sudanese government in Khartoum has slaughtered half a million people in Darfur, while forcibly uprooting nearly 3 million more from their homes in February 2003. The Sudanese government, like the Republic of Turkey, denies it is committing genocide.

Turkey is among Sudan’s greatest allies, covering up its genocide and providing arms to the Sudanese government, led by Omar al-Bashir, who has been indicted for war crimes by the International Criminal Court.

In November 2009, Turkey came under intense international criticism for agreeing to host al-Bashir. Turkey’s Prime Minister, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, even defended his ally, refusing to arrest al-Bashir and denying the genocide in Darfur. According to Erdogan, there was no genocide raging in Darfur, the international warrant for his arrest was a “mistake,” and Bashir may simply have only “mismanaged the situation.”

As 2010 comes to an end, Bryant finds himself again in the headlines over the issue of Genocide. This time, however, not as the anti-genocide activist he seemed to be in 2008, but as what appears to be an accomplice to the denial of at least two genocides.

Earlier this week Kobe signed a two-year agreement with Turkey’s national airline carrier to serve as its “global ambassador,” effectively becoming the face and image of the company and its manager, the Turkish Republic.

Kobe’s decision has caused uproar within the Armenian-American community in the United States and especially within Southern California, which boasts the largest population of Armenians outside of Armenia, ranging between 600,000 to 750,000.

Armenians are angered that Bryant would sign a contract with a country that not only denies that the Ottoman Turkish government committed genocide against 1.5 million Armenians in 1915 , but also actively works to defend modern day perpetrators of the crime.

“We don’t understand how Kobe could forget about Darfur and overlook Turkey’s gross record on human rights and its complicity and support for the genocide there,” said Caspar Jivalegian of the Armenian Youth Federation. “It is troubling that the very country that perpetrated the first genocide of the 20th century and actively supports the first genocide of the 21st century, is now contracting a strong opponent of the Darfur genocide to represent its global brand.”

For Jivalegian, Bryant’s decision and his complete silence on the matter sets a very bad example for young fans who “look up to Kobe both on and off the court.”

“Kobe is not just a basketball player, he is local, national, and global a role model with a responsibility to set a positive example to the millions of people who look up to him and support him,” Jivalegian said, adding that Bryant made a poor play by signing a deal with a Genocide perpetrator after making a video calling for an end to genocide in Darfur. “This shows a disconnect between Kobe and the many communities that make up Los Angeles and the Lakers fan base.”

Armenian Americans hope that Kobe would balance what clearly looks to be a profitable business deal with a strong moral statement against Turkey’s violations of human rights, including its ongoing denial of the Armenian Genocide.

“Turkish Airlines is not like United or American–it was founded by the Turkish government, which still owns some 49 percent of the company. They are supporters of groups like the American Turkish Council who lobby against U.S. Affirmation of the Armenian Genocide,” said Jivalegian.

“Kobe is a champion on the basketball court, and we look to him to be a champion of human rights by speaking truthfully about the Armenian Genocide, supporting U.S. Congressional passage of the Armenian Genocide Resolution (H.Res.252) – and ultimately dropping this ill-advised endorsement deal,” Jivalegian added.

More information about the issue can be found here.

By Allen Yekikian

On Sunday, May 23, I had the privilege of speaking about journalism and Armenian media at a panel discussion hosted at the AGBU Manoogian-Demirjian school in Canoga Park. The panel also included longtime journalist and Horizon TV anchor Paul Chaderjian and freelance writer and ianyanmag.com editor Liana Aghajanian.

Organized by English Department Chair, Paul Martin, the conference focused on topics such as new media, the transformation of journalism and the advent of social media. The three of us shared our experiences in the industry with students, faculty and parents and spoke about the various opportunities that exist today because of the dramatic transformation and democratization of media.

Much to my enjoyment, the audience had many questions for us and everyone was eager to explore the topic in detail. The panel moderator, a bright up-and-coming writer, named Vatche Yousefian, did a great job bridging the topics and  guiding the discussion.

Paul Martin covered the entire panel in great detail here on his blog, The Teacher’s View.

Prior to today’s conference, my students gathered together to draft topics and questions for the panelists. They boiled down their inquiries to several key areas: One, the students wanted to know the journalists’ opinions about devices such as iPads, Kindles, Nooks, and other electronic reading gadgets, and how they might benefit the writing and journalism industries. Since several students have blogs and also read them, they were looking for tips and techniques for creating content and reaching a wider audience. Third, the concept of citizen journalism was a prominent interest, since so many news organizations now have links for submitting stories from the average person-on-the-street. Finally, the subject of newspapers and magazines, particularly what form these traditional publications might take in the future, concerned many students, as they are interested in majoring in journalism or working in media in the future.

A few day’s before the panel, I forwarded to Paul Martin an article Paul Chaderjian and I co-authored exploring the prospects of a new Armenian revival in the age of digital media and hyper-connectivity. The article, titled, A 21st Century Zartonk: An iRevival in the Modern Age of iFedayees, was given to the students to read ahead of the discussion and, I believe, served as a solid bridge connecting the greater media world to their personal Armenian world.

The day after the panel, Liana and I appeared on Paul Chaderjian’s show on Horizon to share some after thoughts about the experience. Liana spoke about her experiences as a freelance writer and independent editor, while I shared some of the discussion points raised during the panel. We collectively probed, for the viewers, many of the questions posed to us during the panel by our younger peers. the video is worth a click and is posted below:

95 years of questioning the reality of planned, brutal mass executions, the ethnic cleansing of a people from their place is far too long. Up against a looming deadline, a threat of losing their history and identity, a new generation of Armenians is waking up to an economic collapse, disappearing Diasporas, and questionable leadership. The time has come for modern-day Fedayees to take action, to use modern technologies and create global media messages about their legacy, history, and their future. This is our prophecy.

By Paul Chaderjian and Allen Yekikan

At twenty-four minutes past four o’clock on the afternoon of April 24, a war for cultural survival wages on the streets of this metropolis. In the fight of their lifetime are young Armenians on the sidewalks of Wilshire, changing the rules, questioning Baby Boomer values, inventing a new movement, and sending a message to the world that justice will be served and their ancient culture will survive and thrive.

On the front lines of this epic war are the Digital Natives, Generation Z, armed with nothing more than their cell phones, cameras, and their laptop computers. This war is a battle for cultural revival, a battle to re-energize the Armenian spirit in the far corners of the Diaspora and in suffocated and abused community like Javakhk. This fight is for the universal acknowledgment of the Armenian Genocide and global recognition of the independent Republic of Karabagh. This battle for national survival is not only being waged on these streets of La La Land but in the abstract place called the Internet.

Why is this generation – born into the most pampered of lives – out on the sidewalks instead of sipping beers at a beach-side cantina off the Pacific, on rides in Disneyland, or in the great malls of commerce, shopping, eating, or enjoying a Saturday afternoon matinee?

Where is this sense of injustice and this passion for change coming from? How is their passion being fueled? Why does the world outside their suburban lives matter more now than ever before? And why does a 95-year-old crime against their ancestors warrant the display of such passion – nearly a century later and a world away – on the streets of California?

A Generation in Question

Perhaps these question’s are because the progeny of the Genocide has awakened to an uncertain, apocalyptic future. A new generation of young men and women are coming of age to the threat that their lifestyles may be a memory of the good old days.

Young people are opening their eyes to headlines that those in their 20s and 30s are facing 50% unemployment. Their jobs have been shipped off to China and India. Their universities are broke and have no room for new students. Their forests are cut down and natural resources fast depleting.Their bankrupt government is waging unnecessary wars overseas, throwing billions of dollars in smart bombs on foreign lands, and their corrupt leaders throwing billions of bonuses to those sociopath capitalists who bankrupted a bogus financial industry.

Perhaps their stark realities are now coming into focus because they wake up to accusations that their very existence as Armenians is based on a lie. This rabid movement is being ignited because they turn on CNN to hear the Turkish Prime Minister say that there had been no such thing as Genocide and that Armenians had been the criminals that victimized the Turks.

Baby Boomers’ democratic leaders have not only failed at setting the record straight on the Genocide, but they have also failed at guaranteeing that our way of life can be sustainable for the next generation and for generations to come.

Youth today are threatened with the possibility of never owning their own homes, not affording to go on vacations to their ancestral Homeland, and no longer being able to afford to provide an Armenian education to their children or keeping the doors of their ancient churches open that is fueling the crisis.

How does their government and their President get away with destroying their future and making empty promises like ‘change.’ Hadn’t Mr. Obama promised Genocide recognition? Wasn’t he now turning his back on his promises and bowing down to the lying Ottoman politicians of the 21st century?

21st Century Re-awakening

The activists in the 6300 block of Wilshire are following a noble path, a path taversed by their forefathers. One which they were destined to retrace.

When they realized the older generations, in their affluent self-assurance, wasn’t going to listen to their ideas about cultural preservation and nationhood, this generation looked back to their people’s history. They found inspiration in stories about fools and revolutionaries who dared to question authority. They found hope in the actions of those in the late 19th century who ventured into the villages and founded schools, and who brought the European enlightenment to the Armenian countryside.

From Madras/Chanai to Venice/San Lazzaro, in the seminaries, merchant communities, and universities of the Armenian Diaspora, Armenians of the day began to look toward their Homeland with despair. They sought solutions to the nation’s problems. Having grown tired of being told what they couldn’t do by their parents, these individuals began to imagine a better future. They envisioned it and then worked to create it.

What began as a spark became a movement of awakening, a Zartonk, and it spread like a modern-day viral video across the Armenian world. The medium of that era was not the Internet but the printing press. Newspapers, pamphlets, and books created a Diaspora-wide dialogue about cultural, linguistic and social demands. The printing press created a consciousness and awareness that resulted in change.

In the 1700s when Armenians were living under foreign rule, Armenians in the Diaspora experienced the Age of Enlightenment and closely followed the French and American independence movements and the births of democracies.

As the framers of the US constitution were dreaming up their new nation, free from British rule, Armenians like Shahamir Shahamirian were thinking up a bill of rights for Armenians and a means for liberation from Turkish oppression. Their weapon was a printing press, which spread new ideas to the masses.

Through the printed word, ancient tales of heroic exploits and battles were brought to life, dialogue about democratic governance and social justice were popularized, and Armenian students studying in the universities of Europe were given a struggle in which to believe.

Armenians in the Age of Enlightenment gave birth to young enlightened thinkers, selfless teachers, and the fearless Fedayees.

The iPeople

One of the historic acts of the enlightened Armenians was the development a modern language that could be understood by the masses. This Askharabahr became the language of their revolution. It defied the Church and authority to become the medium through which dreams and means for emancipation and liberation were conveyed.

Today, 21st century Fedayees also have a new way to speak the language of the new masses. Their Ashkharabahr–the language of their world–is the Internet and social media. This new media in the age of hyper-connectivity is the foundation of this reawakening. That any two or ten million Armenians anywhere can come together at anytime through the unfathomable global access of the Internet is what makes the iZaronk a reality.

Armed with their laptops, cell and smart phones, this new breed of freedom fighter is waging a struggle for freedom from their people’s established norms, norms which are staid and are slowly suffocating if not killing a new generation of young Armenians.

Clear, concise messages, video images in abundance, passionate Armenians speaking up, jumping in front of their cameras, getting behind their iPhones, punching their keyboards with words small and big — these are what can and will turn around a people in a deep sleep in the early years of the 21st Century. The time has come, and the alarm is sounding; the war of yesterday is now the war in Cyberspace. The weapon is new media.

Armen loads his video camera with a fresh tape. His batteries are charged. His tripod is set-up. He has his MacBook, and he’s on the front lines of the Armenian Cause in the 21st Century. He knows that supremacy in the information age is getting his messages heard, using the information superhighways prolifically, and producing sexy, viral messages that are watched by millions of people, scoring thousands of hits on the net.

Varant is clicking photos of police officers guarding the Consulate doors. He’s uploading them with captions via his BlackBerry to thousands who are checking his real-time Facebook updates.

These youth are on the front lines of the Internet, where video, audio, and viral messaging can help Armenians reach the tipping point into nationhood, where democracy and social justice prevail; ensure cultural survival; secure the international recognition of the Armenian Genocide; achieve autonomy and self-rule in Javakhk, and protect the inalienable right of self-determination of the people of the Republic of Nagorno Karabakh.

Alina clicks away all day, texting friends, posting messages, videotaping images. She is not wasting her time communicating about which movie she saw or who is dating whom. Instead, she is living and breathing the Armenian Cause, by making the issues on the table more intriguing than what and who is walking on the red carpet or getting drunk in Vegas.

Like Armen, Varant and Alina, thousands of Armenian youth today have greater power than any government, than any conglomerate, than any old-world call-to-arms. Their war of a lifetime is waged through thoughts, through outspokenness, and through clicks on their communications technologies.

The time has come for a 21st century Zartonk, a national revival using the new weapons of modern civilization –the communications tools that every citizen of the world either has access to or knows someone with access. These tools, cameras, keyboards, editing software, iPad and iPods, FlipCams and iPhones, are all what can create the iZartonk.

iMedia

From the dance halls of the Ani barakhoomp, to the Armenian language classes at Mesrobian, from the film sets of the aspiring filmmakers, to the performances of young playwrights, iZartonk is Armenians breaking free of their pedagogical restrains, free of the capitalist poison of accruing more wealth, free of the game of politics.

Along the way, young Armenians are using their Internet connections and their keyboards to not only report about what their generation is doing toward their community’s collective goal of cultural preservation, but they are also using all these platforms of media and communication to ask the questions that needs to be asked. They are asking each other, expressing their opinions, spreading unique stories about the Armenian-American experience and challenging each other for new dreams, new ideas, and calls to action.

What should we believe in? What should we stand for? What should be our plans? How do we protect our community and our rights? These are the messages that are floating back-and-forth on the Information Superhighway. Instead of banal messages on Facebook about what people are having for dessert, how about asking what is a good insurance carrier or where there are new job openings? Instead of feeding the livestock on Farmville or repeating a joke from a morally bankrupt cartoon on cable, why not promote a group fighting to stop capitalist endeavors destroying the Earth?

iFedayees

The iFedayees want a say in what their community stands for, what the collective should focus on, not merely accept the ways of their parents’ world. They want to decide whether this community needs multi-million dollar cathedrals, lavish banquet halls, and obscene weddings and parties – all which are depleting resources that could otherwise go towards timeless endeavors.

iFedayees must roll up their sleeves and know more than just their people’s history. They must also learn about the climate of the world, the Chinese economy, the worlds of the Islam and the South Americas, and how all these factors shape their modern Armenian-American experience.

iFedayees must learn, they must take a stand, and they must be involved in every aspect of their lives and hence their future. This is what revolutionaries do; and this is what young Armenians must do to ensure the survival of their six-thousand year-old-culture and nation – be it in the Homeland or in its vast and ever-relocating Diaspora.

iDo and iWill

In today’s Armenian media, instead of stories about the legendary heroes of the people who took up arms to protect their fellow Armenians, there are stories of the mafiosos stealing from the government, the masses, and each other. Instead of notions of equal rights and freedoms, instead of stories of revolutionaries in the turn-of-the-century Anatolia who inspired a nation and defied the odds to found an independent republic amid the ashes of Genocide, community broadcasters are promoting Armenian criminals as the heroes of the day.

Instead of preaching and promoting service to community and to others, Armenian media is selling laser hair removal, lap bands, and glamorizing those who take from the innocent, those who kill for financial gain, and those who have no morality and humanity. These are not the role models today’s young people are seeking., and these broadcasters needed to know that the viewer always has the last word.

The solution is for every Armenian to become a media practitioner, participate in creating and using alternative media and ignore the obnoxious mainstream media outlets. Ignore the info-tainment on your cells, computers, and television channels and hear what alternative media sources are saying. What do Link TV reports say about the European headlines? What are the Arabic channels reporting about the Middle East? What are blogs saying about the Homeland? And what is the individual Armenian saying?

After you learn and listen, become a media content creator by picking up your audio recorder, your notepad, your video camera, and record your voice, broadcast it to your friends. Even if you don’t have the answers, ask the questions, put your concerns on paper or on videotape and send them off into Cyberspace.

Every single Armenian should take it upon him or herself to write a few paragraphs or videotape 30 to 60 second news reports to let others in our community know what everyone else is doing as members of the “Armenians.”

We saw a glimpse of how powerful and active our community became when hundreds of thousands of you followed the Asbarez and Horizon TV during the committee vote on the Genocide Resolution, the Protocol protests, the hunger strike, and the Armenian President’s visit around the Diaspora. Thousands watched ANC YouTube videos; Asbarez and Horizon pages had thousands of hits; and AYF members reported the news by videotaping interviews from the front lines and posting it for Armenians and non-Armenians around the world to watch.

The momentum that we glimpsed and that we collectively created around the Stop the Protocols campaign was unprecedented. Our story and our collective engagement with the creation of media was viral. Not only did we engage the story, but we engaged our peers and made them active. On top of that success, our viral messages reached mainstream media, the LA Times, and all the television networks. Our Tweets and iPhone videos reached the “Tipping Point” and put our people at the forefront, at least for two weeks, during the Information Age.

But why stop now? Why not continue this grassroots Armenian revolution of the 21st century and continue and build upon the creation of media messages as we did during the Protocols Campaign. And why stop at Facebook and Twitter? Why not report about all of our individual and community successes to our own media network. And why stop with our media? Why not write letters to editors, engage your lawmakers, create YouTube videos, submit stories to Current TV, Reddit, CNN iReports, and other media outlets?

This reawakening, this iZartonk, is based on your participation, you sharing your small and big steps, ideas, concerns, and news items in this whirlpool of information. The revolution, the change, can continue if you and your friends, colleagues, the Armenian community-at-large, and the world knows what we are all talking about.

Share your news, share what’s new and different, promote your successes, highlight and advertise whatever makes you proud by writing, videotaping, blogging, Tweet-ing and Facebook-ing. If you have a keyboard, you’re a journalist. If you have a video camera, you’re a reporter.

Take creating media one step further and find the candidates who are concerned about your concerns and vote them into office. If those candidates aren’t there, then you run for office, be it for your university board of regents, your town parish, church council, city council, or state or federal offices. A democracy serves the masses only when the masses serve the democracy, when they vote, when they express their concerns, and when they go door-to-door talking to people.

Why should your government, your democracy, your representatives on Capitol Hill NOT vote for Genocide recognition. That question should be enough to make you ponder whether they really care about justice and have your best interest in their hearts. Or are they merely banking on empty promises so that they can sustain their cushy jobs and their affluent lifestyles and donors?

If your representatives in government aren’t providing what you need them to provide, if they aren’t worried about your future, your career, your education, if they are able to convince you that your government needs to wage war overseas instead of fixing roads, developing new industries and renewable energy sources, then their tenure as public servants is over.

Now it’s your turn. Participate in the reawakening of the Armenian spirit, create media, voice your concerns, vote, and talk to people.

Remember, in the Information Age, we are on an equal playing field with anything that mainstream news organizations are producing. Your thoughts, your concerns, your opinions are as valid as those of the pundits who are using the mainstream channels that are in the business of making money by gathering the most eyeballs at any given time.

Don’t patronize mass media to appease their shareholders with bigger profits. Instead, create your own media and change the game. Whether you attended a protest rally on April 24, attended a book signing, wrote a play, or heard a new artist, everything is relevant to your community.

So speak up, speak loud and participate in the reawakening of the Armenian Soul through iZartonk.

Those murders and a series of brutally repressive policies spurred Armenia’s population to rise up against the Bolshevik regime that had overthrown its democratically elected government.

Having coordinating its invasion of Armenia with the Turkish assault on Kars, Russia had forced the republic’s government to dissolve and accept Soviet Rule or face certain annihilation by the Turkish army.

The republic’s last Prime Minister, Simon Vratzian, wrote about the revolt in his seminal work on the Republic of Armenia. A shorter essay on how Armenia was Sovietized was translated and published in the Armenian Review in 1948, Vratzian’s essay provided a first hand account of those turbulent days. Appointed to lead the uprising, he detailed the occupying regime’s brutal rule and how it led a deprived, destitute and demoralized population to rise up against their occupiers.

Immediately after coming to power, he wrote, the Bolshevik authority (the Revcom), under the chairmanship of Sarkis Gazian, organized a secrete police force (Cheka) and arrested or exiled Armenia’s top political, cultural, and military leadership. They launched endless searches and arrests throughout the country, confiscating property and wealth and jailing distinguished political and cultural leaders such as Levon Shant, Hovhaness Katchaznouni, Nigol Aghbalian and hundreds of others.

“All the prisoners were kept under insufferable conditions and they lived under the perpetual dread of pending execution,” wrote Vratzian, describing how Armenia’s leaders were rounded up, while the country was raped and pillaged by “an orgy of raids and seizures.”

“The population’s last morsel of bread was being plucked and sent to Russia,” he wrote, noting how the Bolsheviks seized everything the small republic had, from homes, furniture, and clothing to basic foodstuffs, horses, cattle, chicken and eggs. Aside from jailing the country’s leadership and stealing its national wealth, the Revcom also set out on a systematic campaign to eradicate Armenian national identity, banning the Armenian Tricolor and the national anthem (Mer Hairenik), and going so far as to destroy historic documents and archives of the country’s first Republic.

Vratzian described the February Revolt as an outburst of popular sentiment against the Soviet occupation. The movement, he explained, saved countless lives that would have otherwise ended in the damp prisons of the Bolshevik Cheka or frozen abyss of Siberia. After the popular uprising, the ARF established a Committee for the Salvation of the Fatherland to regain control of the republic’s lost territories.

One such territory was the mountainous region of Zangezur in Southern Armenia, where General Garegin Njdeh had been fighting a guerilla war against the Red Army with his fedayee forces. At the time of Sovietization, the Armenian government had negotiated a deal to secure Zangezur’s inclusion in a future Soviet Armenian Republic. But Moscow and Turkey had colluded to award it to Soviet Azerbaijan in a bid to create a land corridor with Turkey through Karabakh and Nakhichevan.

The February Revolt changed all that. When the Soviet Army eventually reentered Armenia, Vratzian’s Salvation Committee made its last stand in the mountains of Zangezur with Njdeh’s volunteers. The Mountainous Republic of Armenia in Zangezur became a fortress on the flank, allowing the leaders of the February Revolt enough time and leverage to negotiate with Moscow for the inclusion of the region within the territory of the Sovietized Armenian republic.

The toppling of the Bolshevik regime in Armenia, although short-lived, sent shockwaves to Moscow and forced the Soviet central authorities to rethink their policies in Armenia. From that point forward, up to the 1960s, Moscow only appointed moderate Armenian communist leaders sympathetic to national interests. The new generation of Soviet Armenian leaders, men like Aleksandr Miasnikyan and Andon Kochinian, worked to preserve national heritage, as much as possible. Miasnikyan saved the remnants of independent Armenia’s archives, while Kochinian provided instrumental support for the building of the Sardarabad and Dzidzernagapert monuments in the 1960s.

The February Revolt also forced Moscow to make good on its initial promise to preserve the 1920 borders of the republic by including in them the region of Zangezur– without which Armenia would not have been large enough to qualify as a Soviet Republic. With no control over its territory, its population, like that of Nakhichevan, would have slowly been replaced by Azeri Turks.

If it was not for the February Revolt, the independence of Armenia and the liberation of Nagorno-Karabakh 70 years after Soviet occupation would surely never have come to fruition. And Armenia as a country would have disappeared in the annals of history forever.

BY ALLEN YEKIKAN

HOLLYWOOD–With its majestic architecture and storied past, the city of Gyumri is a living museum to Armenia’s greatest catastrophe following the Genocide. The devastating earthquake in 1988 killed some 20 thousand and nearly leveled Armenia’s second largest city. Yet, the people of Gyumri are an inspiring example of how Armenians have the unique ability to look beyond disaster and despair, to come together, regroup, and work toward a better and brighter future.

Although Gyumri’s pre-Soviet structures still stand, many parts of the city still remain in ruin. It’s hard not to feel the pain this city has endured when walking through its dilapidated streets. Little economic development has occurred here since the earthquake, and Gyumri’s people continue to struggle to survive. They live much more modest lives than their counterparts in Yerevan and lack many of the amenities capital city residents have enjoyed during the last few years. Employment opportunities in Gyumri are limited and sometimes the prospects for change seem bleak. Only recently has the Armenian government become serious about rebuilding what was once the industrial center of the Caucasus.

Despite the adversities they face, the people of this storied town posses an uncanny sense of humor. They turn despair into laughter and sorrow into cheer. This becomes all the more apparent when looking at its energetic youth. Their future may seem gloomy and their material possessions may be as meager as the third-hand clothes they wear, but these children and teens find joy and excitement in the most modest of things.

This summer nine young diasporans from California traveled to Gyumri to set up a day-camp for the city’s youth—to live among them, share in their experiences, and make a small but positive impact on their lives. They were not surprised that dozens of boys and girls flocked to the camp, excited that Armenians from abroad had come to their hometown to spend the summer with them.

A mission for the youth

Youth Corps began in 1994 as AYF’s response to the desperate needs to rebuild war-torn villages in Artsakh. The program sent groups of young Armenians from the Diaspora to the Homeland every summer to help in reconstruction efforts throughout the region. In 2008, the program changed its focus from rebuilding shattered buildings to reviving broken spirits.

Gyumri was therefore chosen as the pilot location for what is becoming an entirely new archetype for Diaspora-Homeland relations.

“It’s easy to blindly send money, but the impact and real value in rebuilding our people’s confidence in the Armenian nation is priceless,” explains Sose Thomassian, the Director of the Youth Corps program. “The Youth Corps camp has given us an opportunity to interact with the children and youth of Gyumri, to build bonds with them, to teach them and learn from them, and show them that people outside Armenia have a vested interest in their future.”

Youth Corps Volunteer Serop Chalian with campers

Fifteen-year-old Arax Manoukian was among the 150 children who attended the camp this summer. Seeing first-hand how much her Diasporan brothers and sisters really care about her existence and future was inspiring, she says, describing her feeling about the group in her winning entry in the camp’s essay competition.

“The Youth Corps group is really inspiring the kids here,” says Arax. “Their love of nation is motivating because they show us how supreme the fatherland is for them, even from thousands of miles away.”

That love of nation, and the invisible bond connecting young Armenians in the United States with their peers in the Homeland is evident in the effort Youth Corps volunteers make year-round to make their projects in Armenia a reality.

AYF members worked tirelessly, year-round, to raise the money needed to execute their visions for the Youth Corps program. Their work enabled them to connect Armenians regardless of distance, borders, and financial obstacles.

“Fundraising for the program began early in the year,” explains Sose. “AYF chapters worked with the Youth Corps committee to organize events in their communities, and they raised money for the program. Chapters worked with the Youth Corps committee to sell merchandise. They organized car washes, breakfasts, dinners, and bowling nights.”

Alongside the fundraising was a thorough effort to plan the camp’s day-to-day activities. Camp Gyumri’s curriculum, schedule, and mode of operation were adapted from the program used by AYF Camp Big Pines for the past 32 years. The schedule consisted of morning exercises, breakfast, English lessons, song and dance practice, Karate lessons, lunch, art & crafts, and group activities.

Touching down in Armenia

After months of hard work and preparation Serop Chalian, Levon Abrahamian, Berj Parseghian, Kevork Babayan, Kevork Kebabjian, Sanan Haroun, Arianna Deleon, and Nora Injeyan arrived at Yerevan’s Zvartnotz airport on July 11 to begin their mission in the Homeland. They were joined in Yerevan by Manuk Gerbinyan, a local AYF member who volunteered to work with the group during their stay in Gyumri. A few weeks later, an anxious and jet-lagged Alex DerAlexanian landed in Yerevan, hopped on the first bus to Gyumri and also joined the group.

In the days leading up to the flight, Asbarez Newspaper established a blog page for Youth Corps to let the participants chronicle their adventure and share it with the community back home. It was through this blog that Youth Corps volunteers shared their experience of being in Armenia, many for the first time.

“As we arrived to Zvartnots it hit me like a bag of bricks,” says Levon Abrahamian. “I was in my Motherland for the first time. The only thing I wanted to do at this point was step out of the plane and say ‘Parev’ to everyone that I saw. I didn’t know what to expect of Armenia once I got there, but I had a feeling this would all be worth it.”

The group spent its first week in Armenia touring the sites they had read about growing up.

“We wanted to experience it all,” says Levon. “From the hectic trek across Yerevan’s streets to find a 24 hour grocery store, to the exalting feeling of standing at the foot of the Sardarabad monument.”

Along the tour through Armenia, the group made stops at the National History Museum, where the 4000-year history of the Armenian people resides. A visit to the Holy Sea of Echmiadzin left the group breathless. The volunteer were in awe at the vast sea of Armenians gathered from across the world at the soul of Armenian Christianity.

“The designs and details and size of each of the buildings are truly unbelievable, especially after you find out that the churches were built around 600 AD,” says Serop Chalian, vividly recalling the red and blue colors and unique imagery of the religious icons. “I know I might sound generic when I use words like ‘amazing’ and ‘unbelievable’ but it’s impossible to find words in any language that can describe the places we’ve seen. They really are places that you need to see for yourself.”

At Yerablur – the final resting place of Armenia’s heroes – Serop laid flowers for fallen soldiers who had died for home and country. The cemetery is nestled a top one of three hills located immediately outside Yerevan. With its name meaning three mountains, Yerablur is a shrine for family, friends and strangers, who make regular pilgrimages to remember and pay their respects for men and women who put their lives on the line to fight for freedom and justice.

“You walk around and you read each tombstone,” Serop says. “Some names you recognize from songs and stories, and some you don’t recognize. Some died when they were only 19-years-old. But, you realize that each made the ultimate sacrifice for our people.”

The weight of that sacrifice was all the more amplified for the group as they trekked across the mountains of Artsakh and visited the proud city of Shushi. The fog shrouding the fortress city – once the cradle of Armenian culture in this isolated region – was a breathtaking sight for most who had only seen this ancient place through photographs.”Be it a statue, a symbol, or a grave, nearly every corner of this mountainous republic serves as a testament to the soldiers who fell while fighting for freedom,” says Berj Parseghian. He is at an internet cafe in Karabakh’s capital, Stepanakert, ready to update his blog and write about his many encounters during the trip.

Here, amid the lush forests of Artsakh, Youth Corps volunteers spoke with locals and witnessed first-hand the limitless strength of the Armenian people, their determination to struggle against the odds, and their embrace of life and freedom.

After the volunteers’ visit to Stepanakert, the group began its journey to Gyumri to start a project that many in group say has changed their lives forever.

Camp Gyumri

The Youth Corps 2009 Camp t-shirt, designed by campers last summer, was given to every one attending camp.

“Imagine your summer filled with breath-taking landscape, food that entices your senses, monumental structures, endless laughter, meeting locals that will offer everything in their household to you, and taking on the responsibility of being a mentor to a group of children thousands of miles away,” says Sanan Haroun, describing her first few days in Gyumri. “Reality transcends imagination when you find yourself in Gyumri.”

Camp Gyumri opened its doors on July 22 at 10:30 AM. By 11:00 AM, the the run-down Armenian Relief Society (ARS) center used for the camp site had been flooded with more than 80 kids. “They were overwhelmed with excitement,” says Sanan, recalling how the campers couldn’t sit still in their seats. “The smiles on their faces and eagerness to start the camp session was absolutely priceless.”

The first few days of camp were difficult for the group. Though most had served as counselors at AYF Camp, nothing could have prepared them for the kids of Gyumri. The campers were unrestrained and full of limitless energy.

“The kids in Gyumri are like AYF Camp kids, but on steroids,” says Alex DerAlexanian. “They are constantly moving at 100-miles-an-hour, and they have no brakes or any intention of slowing down. However, they are the most humble and the sweetest kids I have ever worked with. They joke with us, they pick us flowers, and they never complain.”

Camp counselor Kevork Babayan teaching English

Alex, who participated in Youth Corps through the Birthright Armenia Program, landed in Armenia a few days after the camp began its operations. He says recuperation from jet lag would’ve been a waste of time, so he set out to immediately experience Armenia.

“It took us all a few days to get the hang of the whole thing,” recalls Kevork Babayan. It’s past midnight, and he hovers over an authentic wooden backgammon board at the Youth Corps house. In this moment of meditation and reflection, he says, “the hardest part of it all was coming up with daily agendas and work for the kids. But we eventually grew into our jobs, and it became sort of natural.”

The next morning Kevork holds up flash cards of images for the children to identify during English class, while Sanan Haroun and Nora Injeyan write down the words on a giant piece of paper for the kids to copy down in their notebooks.

“We check their notebooks at the end of every class, and whoever has it all right gets a sticker. They really loved this,” says Sanan. “We have review sessions at the beginning of every day and have a quiz mid week on the words they have learned.”

In a white-walled classroom furnished with school desks, the campers looked toward the future, working on essays about the Homeland. The essays will be entered in a composition competition at the end of the session.

The campers also help design the logo for next year’s camp t-shirt during arts and crafts. Between these activities, campers spend half-an-hour every day learning Karate with Berj, who holds a third degree black-belt. Berj says his goal for the trip was to instill discipline into the kids.

Youth Corps Volunteer Berg Parseghian teaches karatee to his eager students.

Donning their white AYF camp t-shirts, the eager students form lines in the center’s courtyard. Behind them is the picturesque ravine with an ancient church on the other side. In the patio, the campers stand firm in a defensive position taught to by their sensei. They wait for Berj to shout commands, orders, and names of moves they should perform during their martial arts lessons.

“Everyone needs to know how to defend themselves, so they don’t get taken advantage of or hurt,” explains Hovo, a 10-year-old camper. Hovo says Karate lessons were his favorite activity and that “those people who know how to defend themselves need to take care of the weak, who don’t.”

“You could really see how much they loved the Karate lessons,” says Berj. “It’s as if they have a natural inclination for learning how to defend. Maybe this comes natural to Armenians.”

Campers jump with joy after winning the quizbowl.

To keep the campers organized and involved, they were divided into tri-color groups–red, blue, and orange–with each group working together to prepare for a final song competition at the close of each of the two sessions.

The blue team twice took first place in the song competition with enthusiastic performances that incorporated music and fast-paced dance compilations, explains Kevork Kebabjian. The groups also squared-off every day competing in short quizbowls on Armenian history and trivia.

After jumping up with joy for answering the winning question for the blue team in a quizbowl competition, 14-year-old Rouben Abrahamian darts toward Kevork, his group leader, and thanks him. “I would be sitting at home, bored, and doing nothing if it weren’t for you,” Rouben says. But because of camp, Rouben was able to learn new things, meet new friends, and spend his time “in a much more enjoyable way than at home.”

“Our schools don’t teach us the things they teach us here,” Rouben explains. “They don’t go deep into Armenian history, about the Fedayees or their victories and struggles. But here, we have fun learning about our heroes and their stories inspire us and make us proud.”

Early on, it was apparent to the entire group that these kids never experienced a summer like this before.

“Every game, every song, every activity we do, the kids genuinely enjoy,” says Serop. “Seeing their looks of amazement when they watch Sensei Berj do some karate moves and the giant smiles on their faces when they do the chicken dance during morning exercises are all we need to let us know that the kids are loving the camp.”

The beneficiaries of this summer of fun, however, weren’t just the kids of Gyumri. On any given evening, one would find the Youth Corps crew reminiscing about memorable moments throughout the day as they walked down Gyumri’s brick-laden streets to their home-away-from-home in the Turki Mayla neighborhood.

“I have been a counselor at AYF Camp for quite some time now, but it is different here,” says Sanan. “It is very hard to explain with words, but there is this self-satisfaction you feel here. Because you realize that you are truly making a difference in these kids’ lives.”

Late one night, Sanan jots down notes into her journal, so that she will know what to post in her next blog entry. “Needless to say, this is worth more than anything in the world, because you know that it will shape your own life, and you will carry it on with you for the rest of your life.”

A group becomes a family

Strangers and acquaintances who participated in Camp Gyumri this summer quickly became a family. Two weeks into the trip, they had come to see this city – with its genuine people and picturesque surroundings – as their newfound home and the campers as a regular part of their lives.

“The nine of us have gotten very close,” Serop says. He’s sitting at the patio table of the Youth Corps house, slowly sipping a muddy brown mug with dark Armenian coffee. “We spend a lot of time in our living room just hanging out. We do a lot of talking. We play backgammon, chess, and different card games. And we joke around a lot.”

The home they stayed in was atypical of Gyumri–a pre-Soviet two-story structure of mismatched rooms, with old rusty pipes and walls lined with pealing wallpaper and chipped paint. The house belongs to a family of five, who survived the earthquake of 1988 thanks to its 19th century Armenian-built home. The Youth Corps group rented out the top level of the house, sharing the kitchen and only bathroom with the family below.

“Deegeen Lillig, our host, was incredible,” says Serop. “Everytime we saw her, she greeted us with a huge smile and always asked if we needed anything. He remembers ventured into Deegen Lillig’s garage to discover a mini bread factory, complete with an Armenian tonir and a crew of bakers. “She cared for us like we were her own, working nonstop in the kitchen, taking care of the house, her husband, her three kids, and our group, all while smiling and giggling at every little funny or interesting occurrence.”

Deegen Lillig would make regular phone calls to Youth Corps volunteers’ parents, ranting and raving about how sweet they were and listing, in colorful detail, every single positive quality she noticed in each member.

Having become a family over the course of the 6-week program, the participants often spoke regretfully of the day they would have to part from Gyumri to return to their lives in the States.

The group skaling the mountains of Ijevan

During late night conversations, Arianna Deleon recounts the “awesome times” she’s had with her co-counselors, about the jokes, the laughter and the adventures she shared with her new family.

The defining moment for the group, however, came on a rainy day deep in the mountains of Ijevan, at a mysterious site by the river known by the locals as Lastiver.

“On that day we all began what would become a treacherous hour and a half hike in the mountains, through extremely muddy terrain, over slippery rocks, and underneath the constant downpour of a heavy rain,” Nora recalls.

The group was guided on the high-altitude trail by a man Nora describes as a “lumberjack-esque man,” dressed head-to-toe in camouflage. “He was carrying a multitude of seemingly unnecessary weaponry, and would effortlessly sprint through the narrow passes on the cliff-side”

“The hike really took a lot of teamwork, with each of us rotating turns carrying boxes of food and supplies down the slippery slopes of the mountains,” she says. “The experience did wonders for our bonding as a group, especially at night when we had to huddle together under a tarp to keep warm under the rain.”

Laying the foundations

For these young Diasporans, Youth Corps was more than just summer fun; they were in Armenia for a specific purpose, and each of them knew exactly what that was.

“The AYF sent us to Armenia to set the foundation for a new generation that will take ownership of its homeland and look forward to a future living on the land of their forefathers,” explains Berj.

The Youth Corps program, from its inception, has sought to close the artificial gap created by the Genocide and widened by decades of isolation during the Cold War. The program exists to encourage Diasporans to take on a more direct role in the nation building process in Armenia.

“The homeland is very distant, and you can’t fully comprehend what the situation is like here from watching it on television,” says Artak Avedisian, the Chairman of the Armenian Revolutionary Federation’s Central Committee in Shirak. He is also a volunteer counselor at the camp, and he says it’s hard for Diasporans to understand how people live in Armenia, what their needs are, and what are things that are to be cherished and preserved without Diasporans seeing them and experiencing them first-hand.

Sitting at a table at Camp Gyumri, Artak talks about his experience with the campers. He talks about working as a teacher and principal at a local school, and he sifts through a bucket of colorful beads, assembling tri-color bracelets for his campers.

Youth Corps counselors and campers take a picture at Gyumri's ARF center

“Through Youth Corps, the AYF volunteers experienced first hand what it is that Armenians here struggle with,” says Artak. The volunteers also saw the country and met the people they work to promote, protect and empower through their unique position in the United States. Armenia became real for them here. It became more than something they read about or talk about or a dream they work toward. I believe this experience will inspire them to work much harder for their ideals.”

Artak is 35-years-old, and he is a veteran of the Karabakh liberation struggle. He has been working for years with his fellow ARF members in Gyumri to establish regular Sunday schools and day camps for youth in the area. There’s a desperate need for it, he says, referring back to his own experience in the school system.

“Quite frankly, the schools here don’t instill love of country in the kids early on,” he says with an air of concern while preparing supplies for his Arts & Crafts class at the camp. “There is no school here that starts off the day with the singing of the Armenian national anthem, and no book that animates for them the achievements of our people throughout history.”

Camp Gyumri is a welcomed change for Artak and may parents who sent their children and teenagers to the Youth Corps program. It gave dozens of kids in Gyumri a completely different experience.

“Here the children sing the national anthem with pride every morning,” says Artak. “They learn national and patriotic songs, and about our greatest moments like the establishment of the first Republic of Armenia, the Battle of Sardarapat, and the liberation of Arstakh. These are historic moments they can be proud of.”

He flips through the pages of an elementary school history book that only allocated two paragraphs to the liberation war in Artsakh. “These are things they learn very little about in their schoolbooks.”

For Artak, and the families touched by the camp, these nine Diasporans who came to Gyumri from California had more of an impact than they may ever truly realize.

“Youth corps has laid the foundation for the ARF in Armenia to set up Sunday schools and regular day camps not just in Gyumri, but throughout the entire country,” Artak proudly states. “At the end of the camp we had over 30 children sign up for the local ARF youth club. This would have taken us years of difficult work to do that without Camp Gyumri and the Youth Corps project.”

AYF Youth Corps volunteers promise that extending this impact will be the mission of the program in the coming years. Upon their return home, volunteers quickly began planning for a second camp in another one of Armenia’s less developed regions.

Interested? Apply to Youth Corps today!

The Youth Corps team on a stroll through the magestic streets of Gyumri

Editor’s Note: This article is featured in the Winter 2010 issue of Haytoug, a quarterly publication by the Armenian Youth Federation. The upcoming issue is set for release in late January. It will be available, free, at community centers, schools and local Armenian book stores. You can also download it in PDF or sign up to receive a free copy in the mail at http://www.haytoug.org/subscribe/

In 1999, the death toll of Kurds killed in Turkish military operations increased to over 40,000. According to the figures published by Turkey’s own Parliament, 6,000 Kurdish villages were systematically evacuated of all inhabitants and 3,000,000 Kurds have been displaced.

The systematic military campaign against them was nothing short of the elimination of a people, a culture and a homeland.  The oppression of Kurdish people within Turkey can be defined as genocide in various ways; cultural, linguistic and physical all play a part in the cleansing of Kurdish ethnicity from Turkey itself, and are still embraced by the Turkish constitution.

To date, however, Turkey denies these genocidal campaigns. Below are some of the voices of Kurds themselves, as they struggle to bring the world’s attention to their plight and draw parallels between their suffering and that of the Armenians.

Ocalan Says Kurdish Struggle is Against Genocide

Kurdish leader Abdullah Ocalan, under detention in Italy in December of 1998, defended his cause as a struggle against genocide. The Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), which he founded in 1978, has fought for nearly three decades for self-rule in southeast Turkey, where they make up the majority. “Despite the history of the Kurdish people which goes back more than 2,500 years–the Republic of Turkey continues to deny the existence of this people or its identity–language and culture,” Ocalan said.

In a 1998 letter directed to the President of Armenia, Ocalan welcomed the Belgian Senate’s passage of a resolution recognizing “the reality of the Armenian holocaust” and stated, “Let us recall Hitler’s response to a critic of the ‘final solution’ of the Jewish problem: ‘Who complained about the Armenians?’”

Kurdish Parliament in Exile Recognizes Genocide

On the 82nd anniversary of the Armenian Genocide, in 1997, the Brussels-based Kurdish Parliament in Exile passed a resolution recognizing and marking the Armenian Genocide. The resolution, signed by the parliament’s chairman, Zubeyir Aydar, condemned the Genocide and acknowledged the Ottoman government and their Hamidiye collaborators–formed by some Kurdish tribes–for the crime against humanity.

“The Turkish State regime–from history to our days–has worked against the peoples–as if a guilty party–and with her committed genocides has changed the demographics of Anatolia causing the demise of many cultures and civilizations,” the resolution said. “The same policies are being applied in Kurdistan today. I call upon the world public opinion to become aware of this Turkish State policies and vehemently oppose it.”

Turkish Policies Genocidal, Says DTP

Ahmet Turk, the leader of the pro-Kurdish Democratic Society Party (DTP) in Turkey was prosecuted in October of 2008 for denouncing the government’s policy regarding the Kurds as “cultural and societal genocide.” Speaking to supporters in the south-eastern city of Diyarbakir, Turk said the Kurds had suffered under “cultural and societal genocide” since the military coup of 1980.

The speech came after days of protests in south-eastern cities where hundreds of Kurds were arrested after clashes in various towns in the pre-dominantly Kurdish-populated south-east.

Saddam’s Destruction of the Kurds

Between 1987-1988, Iraq’s deposed dictator Saddam Hussein slaughtered some 182,000 Kurdish civilians in Northern Iraq, using artillery, air strikes, death camps and poison gas attacks. During his trial in late 2006, Hussein legitimized the massacres in Anfal “as a legitimate counter-insurgency operation against Kurdish separatists at a time when Iraq was at war with Iran,” much like the manner in which Turkey seeks to justify its Genocide of Armenians.

Panel Discusses Relations Between Turks, Kurds, and Armenians

On April 20, 2009 a panel comprised of Armenian, Turkish, and Kurdish scholars came together in Massachusetts to discuss the uneven relations between Turks, Kurds, and Armenians under Ottoman Rule. The panel dove deep into the nuances of the Armenian Genocide, presenting the gamut of issues connected to it, from the role of Kurdish chieftains in the execution of the crime, to the open possibilities for reconciliation between Kurds and Armenians based on a shared experience of oppression under Turkish rule. “Kurdish-Armenian dialogue carries a very promising potential for reconciliation that is very much open to the issues of truth-seeking and justice, which are often absent in Turkish-Armenian dialogue,” said one panelist, Dr. Bilgin Ayata from Johns Hopkins University.

Turkish Assault on the PKK

Turkish warplanes have been bombing PKK installations in Northern Iraq since early 2008, when Turkey officially launched a ground incursion into northern Iraq, sending 10,000 troops across the border supported by air assets to neutralize PKK bases from which attacks against the Turkish military were being mounted. Since they first began as small-scale cross border incursions in late 2007, these attacks have led to the deaths of thousands of Kurds, civilian and PKK alike.  The first modern incursion into Northern Iraq, however, was launched in 1983 and has continued sporadically since.

Armenian Apology Causes Brawl in Turkish Parliament

On December 30, 2008, Turkey’s only pro-Kurdish political party, the Democratic Society Party (DTP) apologized to the Armenians and Assyrians for the 1915 Genocide. “Sensing the pain of the events in our hearts, we feel that we need to apologize,” it’s leader, Ahmet Turk said. “We are ashamed when we look at our Armenian or Assyrian brothers.”

That same day, a member of the DTP requested in parliament that the Turkish legislature apologize to Armenians for the “events of 1915,” which he described using the Kurdish word for Genocide. His remarks caused an uproar, with members from the Republican People’s Party and Justice and Development Party hurling personal insults at Kurdish deputy for “insulting the society in which you live.”

“We remember, We Share Your Grief”

On April 24, 2009, “Gunluk,” the Kurds’ only Kurdish-language newspaper in Turkey, featured a large headline above its logo that read: “We remember, we share your grief,” in Armenian with Armenian lettering.

Gunluk was the only paper in Turkey to commemorate the genocide victims—not with a few words, but by dedicating the entire issue to the genocide. On that same day, the Human Rights Association of Turkey organized a commemoration calling for the truth to be revealed that a genocide was committed here in this country in 1915. Although a number of Turkish media outlets were present, none bud Gunluk covered the event.