The Dark Side of Your Sweet Treat

We have all seen innocent looking chocolate commercials with adorable kids laughing and having a good time while enjoying their chocolate bars. Some brands are represented by bunnies, some with oversized M&Ms, and some are so famous that they are known worldwide brands such as Hershey, Mars and Nestle. Although they are competing brands they have a couple of things in common: they’re most definitely delicious, and they have one dark secret: CHILD LABOR.

Vahe Berberian: The Art and the Artist

It was my usual Thursday afternoon. I was at work about to go home when I received a text message from my sister inviting me to attend Vahe Berberian’s one-man show titled ‘Sաgաyn’. At this point I knew very little about Berberian; just the occasional YouTube clip promoting one of his plays or a friend mentioning his name in passing. In spite of this, I decided to attend the show and see what all the excitement was about. At the show, I was blown away with his hilarious monologue. His fresh and unique perspective on society, life, and the Armenian community captivated the sold-out audience and filled the venue with laughter.

Another World is Possible: An Interview with Khatchik DerGhougassian

Another world is possible–One where economics are based on justice, democracy is founded in principle, human rights are cherished and protected, and diversity is shared and celebrated. In an exclusive interview with Haytoug, Khatchik DerGhougassian, a professor of International Relations at the Universidad de San Andrés in Argentina, discusses the social, economic and political challenges plaguing the 21st century and, with a focus on Armenia, outlines the potential for progressive movements to radically and change the status quo for the better, both locally and globally.

ANCA Opens its Doors to Kurdish American Youth Activists

In the Fall of 2008, a special all-day workshop for young Kurdish American activists was held at the headquarters of the Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA) in Washington, DC. Young advocates for the Kurdish Cause from such organizations as the Kurdish American Youth Organization (KAYO), Kurdish Human Rights Watch, and the Kurdish Youth Club came from various cities across the United States for the day long advocacy training.

In Memory of the Armenian Genocide of 1915: A Kurdish Perspective

Ottoman Turks led the way into the twentieth century by committing the first act of genocide. Their example was followed by many more, such as the Holocaust in Germany, Pol Pot in Cambodia, Rwanda, Kosovo and the notorious Anfal campaign by Saddam Hussein in Iraqi-Kurdistan.

Kurdish Accounts of the Armenian Genocide

The following interviews with Kurds in Anatolia were conducted for the documentary film “The Armenian Genocide,” directed and produced by Emmy Award-winning, producer Andrew Goldberg of Two Cats Productions (www.twocatstv.com).

The documentary featured short segments of some of these interviews and excerpts later appeared for the first time in their entirety in the Armenian Weekly (www.armenianweekly.com).

Given the rare insight these interviews offer into the perspective of present day Kurds living on the lands Armenians were murdered and forced from during the Genocide, the Haytoug editorial team felt it was important to reprint for our readers segments of the feature as originally published in the Armenian Weekly.

The Kurdish Struggle Against Genocide

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.

What’s Going On?

Glendale High School Teacher Dan Kimber . . . the Burbank Police Department . . . Radio Host Bill Handel . . . What’s going on in Los Angeles?

Kurds and Armenians: Finding Common Cause

On September 2, 1938 an editorial appeared in the Hairenik Weekly condemning the Turkish government’s brutal crackdown of its Kurdish population in Dersim. The editorial drew the following link between the common struggle for freedom waged by both Armenians and Kurds:

Solidarity and Possibility: Defeating the Big Fish

Human nature is often described as self-interested, egotistical and insular, where individuals do not have concern for anything outside of the realm which directly affects them. While it may seem logical and prudent for everyone to put their heads down and focus solely on their immediate desires, this is not the way to achieving positive and tangible change on any level. The attitude described above leads to the creation and intensification of dividing lines among people that should otherwise be unified.