By John Semerdjian - Copyright © 2003. All rights reserved.

J- Armenian Genocide Memorial Events.

On the 24th of April each year, Armenians all over the world commemorate the ‘Armenian Genocide’. This is one of the most important cultural events held every year in memory of the 1.5 million Armenians who were brutally massacred by the Turks in 1915.

In many countries around the world, Church sermons are held on the day in memory of the dead and the community is invited to join a procession to lay wreaths on a memorial tomb or a monument. In the evening a special ‘Genocide Memorial Event’ is held organised by the community or by Armenian political parties.

The following are comments made by some of the respondents regarding this subject: 

• “Armenian Genocide commemorations should be more informative with different features every year so people don't say, "It’s the same every year, we know everything anyway.”
  
  
• “For me the extermination of the western Armenians is still operating. How? Are we now like we were when we used to live on our ancestral land? Never! We have lost a lot of our characteristics since we moved here and there. And after another 88 years I am afraid to see our nation vanishing under foreign environments.”
  
  
• “This issue seems to go by unnoticed by the Western Culture. Someone has to educate them.”

But how successful have we been in our quest for justice? What have we achieved in the past eight or nine decades in terms of securing our rights and the return of our ancestral lands and assets? How successful have we been in educating our youth and the world about the real cultural loses we have incurred? What are our leaders doing to achieve all of the above?

The truth is we are in no better situation (in some cases we are worse off) than we were all those decades ago in regards to the above mentioned questions. Yes, some of you may argue that our self appointed politicians in the diaspora managed to get some governments to acknowledge the Armenian Genocide; have had few memorial monuments erected in cities around the world; organised Genocide memorial events and lectures to educate the young generation and keep the memory of the victims alive. But none of these have made any significant impact on the overall picture.

To this day Turkey blatantly denies such massacres ever taking place. In fact, the Turkish government spends millions of dollars each year to suppress such accusations and tries to convince the world that they are the victims and not us Armenians. Their propaganda machine is constantly on the lookout to crush any damning allegations or evidence that might expose their guilt. They teach their children their version of history and are always ready to educate others who challenge them with the truth (to convince them otherwise).

On a closer examination of this subject, we can find two main reasons for our poor achievements. First, many Western governments (especially the super powers) find Turkey to be a strategic ally in the region and in order not to upset their mutual relationship they simply turn a blind eye to the ‘Armenian Question’. Second, and more importantly is the failure of our leaders to unite as one against such a ruthless enemy.

Everyone knows that public opinion and critical journalism and media are two important things that Western politicians take notice of (especially during election time). In order for us to successfully secure the support of these Western governments (super powers) and get them to condemn Turkey for the atrocities against the Armenian nation, we need to first educate the Western public and gain their support.

But without a united front we cannot do this. The results in the past eight decades are testament to our politicians’ failure in resolving the Armenian Question. Unity and mutual cooperation equals power. The power to concentrate on the main objectives (instead of in-fighting). The power to focus and pool all our resources to successfully fund such projects. The power to educate Western public opinion through mass media and at the same time educate the Armenian young generation about our true cultural losses, so that they themselves can confidently educate their fellow western friends and colleagues.

All of us know that the Turks massacred 1.5 million Armenians and confiscated a big share of our ancestral homeland by expelling Armenian communities to the desserts of Der-El-Zor, but the majority don’t know much about these seized Armenian cities and towns. What makes them so important to us? What were they famous for? How were they destroyed? What were the customs and traditions practiced by their inhabitants? Their songs, dialects, costumes, arts, every day lifestyle etc.

Yes, we have lost a lot, not just human lives and real estate. For many decades now many of the above-mentioned questions have been forgotten. It’s time to go back to our roots and rediscover our true identity. Educate others and most important of all, our young generation about our true cultural losses. That’s what Armenian Genocide events should include and promote!

The following are some points, which our leaders can benefit from:

• Employ and support qualified (Armenian and foreign) experts to help us achieve our objectives.
  
  
• Distribute professionally prepared educational material (about the Armenian Genocide and our cultural losses) both to the public and Western media on regular bases. These can be booklets, documentaries and testimonials. Educational material on videotape, DVD and computer disks. Comprehensive Armenian Genocide web sites on the Internet etc.
  
  
• Organise well prepared interactive lectures, mobile presentations, exhibitions and entertaining educational programs at Armenian and foreign schools and universities on a regular bases.
  
  
• Involve Western public and media in our Genocide and cultural events.
  
  
• Establish a network of Armenian museums and research centres in major cities around the world to educate and inform local communities.
  
  
• Make Armenian Genocide Memorial event nights educational as well as commemorative.
  
  
• Promote Armenian unity worldwide by closing Armenian businesses, social and educational centres etc. on April 24 (even for half a day).

K- Sports and The Arts in the Armenian Community.

In general, there were very few comments made by the respondents about this subject. The majority seem to agree that ‘sports’ and ‘the arts’ are important, but none seem to have any real feedback or experience with this subject.

This typifies what most respondents said about this subject, “Sports and the arts are a great way to involve Armenian youth in a more positive manner”.

The reality is that Armenians consider sports and the arts to be more an entertainment rather than essential to one’s lifestyle or career. Yes, our young people are encouraged to partake in sporting activities at Armenian schools, clubs etc. even participating as athletes in Pan-Armenian games, but the majority are what I call “casual” athletes. They do not have the proper training or the discipline to be considered as real athletes.

Armenians who are interested in achieving professional level results in sports and the arts have no other choice but to attend and join foreign institutions in pursuit of excellence and recognition. I dare say that there are no professional level Armenian sporting institutions in the diaspora for our youth to join and fulfil their dreams.

The same can be said about ‘the arts’ in the Armenian community. Some may argue that children in Armenian schools and clubs are taught to paint famous Armenian landmarks, perform Armenian songs and dances, even present Armenian plays. But none of these activities are meant to or are capable of training these youngsters for a career in the arts.

For a nation rich in literature and arts, we seem to disregard our cultural riches and treat them as casual entertainment instead of adopting them as valuable assets to promote our nation to the world and claim our place of pride within the multicultural societies we live in.

Without professional Armenian sports and arts institutions, there can be no world class achievements and recognition. We all feel proud when we hear an Armenian name mentioned during a world class sporting event (eg. Tennis), in a movie or in a famous musical. We immediately lay claim to their achievements and tell everyone that they are Armenian. They become roll models for our youth and invoke true Armenianism amongst Armenians everywhere.

If we want more world class successes and recognition in the future, we need to encourage and support our talented youth. Let’s teach them our cultural riches and help them use their talents to fulfil their dreams and aspirations as Armenians. It is only then that we have the right to lay claim to their achievements and feel proud as a nation.

L- Armenian vs. Foreign Influences/Environments (TV, Media, Clubs Etc.).

The majority of us living in the diaspora are vulnerable to the constant influences of the Western culture and media. We are constantly bombarded with western lifestyle advertisements, violent and sexually explicate movies, carefree attitudes, use of recreational drugs, etc.… All these make it very hard for Armenian parents to control their children’s cultural education and steer them in the right direction.

This problem is not confined to Armenian parents only; Western societies themselves are being effected and are finding it hard to maintain their traditional cultural values. As mentioned before, these cultural shifts are contributing towards the overall decline of moral values in all societies. 

Here are couple of comments made by our respondents in regards to this subject.

• “We live in the Diaspora, we choose to live in these countries for many reasons. I am an American of Armenian decent who tries to pass to her children the riches of the Armenian culture and heritage. As parents we are up against media influences just as all American families are. It is up to us to convey to our children a balance. We are Armenian. It is a fact. There is no choice. We choose if we'd like to participate or not. We provide information and try to convey Armenian culture and language in a positive light, and we hope that our children will have a better understanding of themselves and their world around them.”
  
  
• “Can this [Western influences] really be controlled? I was shocked to see how young Armenian girls/women were dressed in Hayastan [Armenia] when I visited in 1997. Very provocatively. You can definitely see how Western fashions and ideals are accepted. I am saddened by this. Our traditional dresses, songs, dances, etc. are more beautiful than the Western influenced ones.”

But what about our Armenian social environments and media? Are they helping our parents and the youth to maintain our cultural values? To a certain degree you may say that they are trying to contribute towards this objective, but how successful they have been is another story.

For example, in Sydney (Australia) there are a hand full of Armenian radio programs each broadcasting several hours a week. These are run by certain Armenian organisations, prepared and hosted by amateur volunteers. The majority of the programs are aimed at the senior members of the community with very little consideration for the young generation. Similarly, there are several Armenian print publications published by the same organisations for the same target market. The majority of the material (mostly political news) are plagiarised from other sources and republished, often with poor quality and low standards of design and print. Last but not least, there is the one and only Armenian TV, which broadcasts three hours a week with a limited cover in the Sydney area. Most of the programs are sporadic re-runs from channel C1 in Armenia (including news) and some advertisements, with occasional local interviews and events.

Most of the media sources mentioned above have several things in common. They are run by amateur volunteers on a shoestring budget (poor quality and little appeal), with very little planning or thought put towards the cultural and daily needs of the young generation (especially children). Most of them are used to glorify and spread their own ideologies in the name of Armenianism. In spite of their desperate need of financial and professional human resources, and to the detriment of our national identity, none of them seem to want to unite and establish a formidable (open-minded) alliance to compete against Western media influences.

The reality is that our community leaders in the diaspora who have a great deal of influence and power over the Armenian media are insecure and do not wish to forgo their control. Making changes and modernising our way of thinking is seen as direct threat to their power structure. They believe their outdated and narrow-minded ways will preserve our identity, but they do not realise that by doing so they are distancing and alienating our educated young generation and losing the battle against assimilation.

M- Circle of Friends (Armenian and Foreign)

“Each friend represents a world in us, a world possibly not born until they arrive, and it is only by this meeting that a new world is born” – Anais Nin.

How true these words of wisdom are… for every friend that we make; we increase our personal wealth in folds. Not in the sense of material wealth, but more importantly as individuals (intellectually and socially) exploring and understanding ourselves and what makes us unique. 

Our friends are our sounding boards. They help us share our thoughts, exchange our ideas, enjoy each other’s company, be there in good times and bad times, learn from one another’s experiences and simply make our lives rich and meaningful.

The following are some comments made by our respondents about this subject.

• “I have so many friends from all ethnicities and I have found that embracing my own diverse background helps me accept them much more easily than I might otherwise.”
  
  
• “Of course we should have and maintain close friendships with other Armenians, but it doesn't hurt to have friends from other ethnic backgrounds. In fact, the more friends we have from different backgrounds the more people we could educate about Armenians.”
  
  
• “We should have friends from other races to change our point of views and discover what might be found beyond our thoughts.”
  
  
• “Three circles - Armenian friends, odar [foreign] friends, and family. That should keep most people pretty occupied. All three are essential for a balanced well rounded life. Isolating yourself to just Armenian means you will not be able to deal with non-Armenians as well. More often than not, our non-Armenian friends are interested in what being an Armenian is like. They are amused at your commitment to your culture. Especially when they realise that your race goes back thousands of years, that you call yourself an Armenian but have never lived in Armenia, its all pretty impressive to them.”

As Armenians living in the diaspora, we have the opportunity to meet and befriend many people from different cultural backgrounds. Some make a conscious effort to expand their circle of friends to include foreigners, but others are simply satisfied with their Armenian family and friends.

Armenians, who follow the old school of thought, believe that befriending and mixing with people other than of Armenian descent, will result in the loss of our traditional cultural values and eventually to assimilation. In extreme cases that can be true, but that will depend on the way an individual is brought up and the amount of Armenian education they have received and the circle of friends and relatives who offer them the support and love they need.

On the other hand, having only Armenian friends and not exploring other environments can lead to narrow mindedness. A common side effect, which many of our Armenian leaders and institutions fall victim to.

As always, a healthy balance of the two is important to maintain one’s interest in one’s own culture and heritage, and at the same time make them feel part of the native society. We need to utilise these friendships in a positive manner by learning from others (foreigners) to enhance our way of life and in return teach them about our own culture. We need to attract and educate those who have taken the wrong path instead of ostracising or distancing them from our circles.

Our youth are our future and we can not force them to walk the narrow uni-cultural path. Making foreign friends is important to their survival and daily lives. An opportunity for them to make contacts and develop business opportunities to grow and prosper. However, having said that, it is equally important that we teach them our cultural ways and encourage them to socialise within Armenian circles to help maintain and keep our true Armenian identity.

N- Cross Cultural Marriages (Armenians With Non-Armenians)

This is a hot issue that most Armenians try to avoid. In general, Armenians who marry foreigners are frowned upon. I believe this practice is common amongst other nations as well, like the Italians, Greeks, Jews, etc.

In principle, it makes sense that people should marry others from the same culture, religion and background. Some may even suggest from similar social stature and level of education. In most cases they are right. People who have common cultural values and traits can coexist more easily than those who don’t.

Let’s be honest! Being married to someone who speaks the same language, follows the same religion, eats the same food, has similar ancestral history, traditions, culture etc. is no where near the same as someone who doesn’t. These days, even Armenian parents with similar cultural backgrounds are having a hard enough time trying to raise their children as Armenians. Imagine how hard it would be to raise a child with two cultural backgrounds… Eventually, one has to be sacrificed in order for the other to survive, and in some cases both cultures are lost and overpowered by a third native culture (eg. Armenian + Greek = Australian).

Before we examine the other side of the argument, let’s have a look at some of the comments made by our respondents regarding this subject.

• “I think that it should be up to the individual to decide whom they should marry, but I also understand the idea of why people shouldn't marry outside of their ethnicity.”
  
  
• “I don't know if I can describe it as a dangerous step toward the Armenian continuity... It is hard for a child to say that he is half/half and does not know to which half he will turn to. The Armenian community is not tolerant and sometimes accuses the person as being non-Armenian.”
  
  
• “Armenian and Armenian only. Nothing else, anything else = traitor to us ALL”
  
  
• “It is a personal choice... We need to embrace our odar hars and pesa [foreign bride and groom] to enrich our communities. Armenia has always been a crossroad with many "foreign" influences. Our communities should have the strength to accept the positive influences and deflect the negative.”

After the Armenian Genocide and the massive human losses, those who survived the massacres settled in the Middle East and some in the West. It was during this time that a strong survival instinct was awaken amongst the Armenian population, the instinct of procreation and repopulation. Marrying a foreigner was not an option; it was considered a betrayal to one’s nation and severely criticised by the community.

For the first six or seven decades, Armenians living in the Middle East gradually increased their numbers and managed to keep their bloodline untainted (with few exceptions). The fact that we were a Christian minority in a pool of Islamic nations, has helped us to achieve the above. It is worth mentioning that without the kind hospitality of these moderate Islamic Arab nations, Armenians would not have survived.

In the 1960s, 70s, 80s… because of political unrest in the region, many Armenians living in the Middle East started migrating to the West. The majority settled in large countries like the US, Canada, Brazil, France, Australia etc. They formed small communities and worked very hard to adapt to these new environments. By now the threat of a complete destruction and annihilation of the Armenian nation had subsided. People were more relaxed, they lived amongst others who followed the same religion. The young generation started attending Western educational institutions and gradually intermingling with the native population. Most were attracted to the modern, freer Western ideologies and lifestyle. They started to protest against our constraining traditional ways and challenge our family values.

With every new generation, our traditional family values have lost strength. Today, most young people no longer consider cross-cultural marriages a betrayal to one’s nation. The circumstances they live in have changed. Armenian arranged marriages are no longer “cool”. Religion is no longer an issue. Language barriers have come down, their family’s social stature have improved and their level of education is on par with the native young population.

All of these changes and the ever-decreasing possibility of finding the suitable Armenian partner in such large countries have given the young generation the opportunity and the excuse to marry into foreign cultures.

During my research about this subject, I approached the Armenian Church in Sydney to find out the number of Armenian marriages that took place in a set period of time and to see how many of them were to foreigners as opposed to Armenians. After going through unnecessary Church red tape, three weeks later I was given the following interesting and somewhat disturbing data.

During a three-year period in 1980, 81 and 82 there were one hundred Armenian marriages at the Church; 20% of them to foreigners. Twenty years later in 2000, 01 and 02, there were one hundred and thirty five Armenian marriages; 45% of them to foreigners. This is more than double the percentage figure recorded during the 1980s, which clearly indicates the change of attitude amongst today’s Armenian young generation.

Basically, five out of ten Armenian marriages these days are to foreigners. Since this figure dose not take into account non-religious, civil or foreign Church marriages, there is a very strong possibility that this figure is much higher. A disturbing fact indeed.

All said and done, we have to accept the fact that we do live in a freer society. We have a greater number of options in our lives, and as the figures above indict, our educated young generation are exercising this freedom when making personal choices. Most are no longer compelled by social norms or the expectations of their parents. However, with such freedom comes the added pressure of taking responsibility for one’s own choices and actions.

Regardless, parents should still educate their children about our cultural family values and teach them the difference between right and wrong. They should be supportive and guide them in the right direction. We need to change our narrow-minded attitudes towards those who choose to marry into other cultures. Instead of neglecting them and casting them into a “foreign wilderness” to be devoured by other cultures, we need to invite them into our midst and help them raise their children as true Armenians.

We can no longer afford to lose our “foreign married” sons and daughters, as we have done in the past. We need to look at the positives of foreign marriages instead of concentrating on the negatives. We need to actively encourage others to assimilate into our Armenian communities rather than carelessly allow the opposite to happen. When we display warmth, understanding and a willingness to nurture, we become the “stronger” culture. However, this is not merely the responsibility of Armenian institutions, but that of individuals as well. Our realm of influence is just as powerful as an “individual” as it is within a group. It is only when we collectively and individually recognise the importance and the necessity of such changes of attitude that we can take the necessary steps towards implementing better and more supportive environments for those who choose to marry foreigners.

In Conclusion

According to the latest population figures, there are approximately six to seven million Armenians in the world. Two to three million live in the current Republic of Armenia and the remaining four million in the diaspora. Basically there are more of us living outside our homeland than ever before and this figure seems to increase with every passing year, especially after the independence of Armenia in 1991.

So, it makes sense for our leaders and institutions to take a closer look at the needs of these expanding communities and do what is necessary to create culturally rich environments for our youth and their families, to help them preserve and maintain our true Armenian identity. Yet none of this seems to be happening. On the contrary the opposite is taking place, whether through ignorance or carelessness.

Today’s educated young generation expect and require that Armenian institutions be run transparently and professionally in order for them to support and partake in their activities. They are unimpressed and “turned off” by inefficient bureaucratic behaviour paralleled by amateur and mediocre results. Moreover, Armenian institutions should concentrate on satisfying the cultural, religious and social needs of their members rather than be too demanding of one’s time, energy and in particular, of one’s financial resources.

The respondents to this survey and a large number of Armenians strongly believe that our political organisations in the diaspora are no longer relevant. For decades all they have done is to create in-fighting and divisions amongst the Armenian communities and to this day they still continue their campaign of discrimination and self glorification in the name of Armenianism.

Today we have a free and an independent Republic of Armenia, which is in need of our support and help. But unless we can help ourselves first, we will not be able to continue supporting our homeland for too much longer. The only possible and most logical way to do this is to unite as one and join all our existing duplicate organisations, institutions, etc. under a single “National” banner. In this way we can focus all our material and human resources towards the task at hand and achieve what current organisations have failed to achieve (on their own) for the past nine decades.

Let us look at this from a business perspective. I would like to use “McDonald’s” the fast food burger giant as an example to illustrate my point. McDonald’s franchises are one of the most successful businesses in the world. Each franchise operates independently, yet they all rely on and follow their parent company’s guidelines and benefit from its global power of resources and advertising, which is the direct result of their collective cooperation and unity under a single banner – McDonald’s. In other words, “All for one and one for all”.

Now, imagine applying the above example to our Armenian education system (schools, universities etc.). Let us get rid of all those social, religious and political barriers that hinder our unity and cooperation. Let us create a truly non-partisan environment with a universal high standard of Armenian education guidelines and establish a parent organisation under the banner of “Armenian National Education Institute” with branches all over the world.

Just like McDonald’s franchises, these branches can operate independently, but will follow and rely on the guidelines put forth by the parent organisation, which are run by well trained, paid professionals and experts. Their collective power will help focus our financial and human resources towards a single unit that will benefit all. No more financial hardships, lack of Armenian education resources and well trained teachers. Parents will have the confidence and the knowledge that their children will receive the best possible Armenian and foreign education they disserve.

The above-mentioned principle can easily be applied to all our other duplicate Armenian organisations. For example, we can establish an “Armenian National Cultural Institute”, an “Armenian National Sport Institute”, an “Armenian National Arts Institute”, an “Armenian National Scout Institute”… and the list goes on. The good news is, most of the physical infrastructure needed to establish such “National” institutions exist (like schools, clubs, etc.). All we need is for our leaders to set aside their petty differences and unite for the benefit of the nation.

As I always say, “Fifty percent of accomplishing a project is convincing yourself and others that it can be done, the remaining fifty percent is the actual physical work”. But how easy is it to convince our Armenian leaders and representatives that such changes are essential to the future of our nation and in particular to the young generation? Well… unfortunately it isn’t that easy. 

Basically, the consensus is from the Armenian “silent majority” that most of our Armenian leaders and community representatives who head our institutions are weak, insecure, unqualified, narrow-minded and power hungry individuals whose only interest is securing personal financial gain and political/social prestige. They surround themselves with like-minded volunteers that pose no threat to their power structure and treat them like puppets to achieve their objectives. They constantly exaggerate their achievements and never acknowledge or give credit to those who deserve it. In times of wrongdoing they do not take responsibility for their actions and blame others for their mistakes. They partake in Armenia-diaspora meetings with the promise of a better future for all. Yet the only time the Armenian public is consulted or informed is when they need to raise founds or collect donations. In some cases these donations are kept in foreign bank accounts for months or years on end with no reason or explanation.  

Having said all that, I would like to put the record straight and give credit to those true Armenian leaders and representatives (including those hard working dedicated volunteers) who work tirelessly for the benefit of our nation. They are the silent few who achiever more than ten individuals put together. Unfortunately, they are few and far between, and in most cases their efforts are overshadowed by the over-inflated egos of their selfish counterparts.

The bottom line is… it’s true that today’s youth are a bit spoiled and somewhat distant from our Armenian institutions, but by no means are they lazy, irresponsible or lacking interest in our cultural heritage. The failure of our leaders to unite as one and address the needs of the community is one of the many reasons (mentioned above) for the distant behaviour of the young generation. 

Last but not least, I would like to echo the words of one respondent who said, “You can't just profess Armenianism without having a certain structure and environment that will encourage people of all walks of the community to participate”. This is very true! We as a nation need to join hand in hand and remove those who abuse their powers to divide our communities with their narrow-minded ideologies. As individuals and members of our community, we need to respect one another and accept each other for who we are regardless of our persuasion. We need to join forces and unite all our duplicate institutions under one “National” banner for the benefit of our youth and future generations.

The time is ripe for a change. It’s time to think outside the square we live in!

Your say 

I welcome your thoughts on this topic. If anyone wishes to comment or add to the above article, you may do so by writing to ‘Hye Etch’. Please use the “Contact us” form to get in touch with us. All correspondence to be in language that is civilised and mature.