Author: Ophelia Vardapetian

Remembering the Armenian genocide and the lives built in Fitchburg

Ophelia Vardapetian
By SALLY CRAGIN | Correspondent
at 4:30 a.m.

Monday April 24 is the 108th commemoration of the 1915 Armenian Genocide: “Armenian Genocide Remembrance Day.”

As the granddaughter, and great-granddaughter of survivors, my family and I are grateful that Fitchburg opened its arms to victims who fled Western Armenia (now Eastern Turkey) in 1915; as well as in the mid-1890s (“the Armenian Massacre”).

My grandfather, Krikor Mirijanian  was a child when he survived horrific violence and the deaths of many family members including his mother in his home village of Arapkir, near Harpoot. My maternal grandparents, Martin Manooshian and Rose Boyajian Markarian Manooshian (she married twice after being widowed) escaped the massacres two decades earlier. The family settled in Cleghorn, overwhelmingly French-Canadian at that time, in a tenement at 178 Daniels St. (since burned in the 1990s, and rebuilt).

The majority of Armenians coming to New England settled in Watertown, Worcester, Lowell or Lawrence, drawn by the textile and shoe mills. However, enough Armenians came to our city to merit a chapter in Doris Kirkpatrick’s splendid and detailed “Around the World in Fitchburg” published in 1975 by the Fitchburg Historical Society.

What opportunities did the newly-arrived Armenians have here? Many Armenian arrivals immediately joined a church (St. Joseph for those in Cleghorn) and got a job. The 1924 poll tax documents at the Fitchburg Historical Society revealed that within a decade of the 1915 genocide, some 33 Armenian families comprising 77 individuals were paying taxes in Fitchburg. The majority of these (presumably) recent arrivals lived in Ward 2. More than a third (25, including my great-grandfather Martin Manooshian; and great-great Uncle Philip) worked nearby at Parkhill Mill.

My family, the Manooshians and Mirijanians went into dry-cleaning (Star Cleaners) as did the Chicknavorians (City Cleaners). Miran Miranshian was a tailor, and George Booradian, Nishan Vizigian, and Kerop Chakemanian went into shoe repair. Just one woman was listed as a business owner: Alice Varjabedian had a grocery store at 9 Chestnut St. from 1918 through 1924 (in 1925, she and “John H.” — possibly a son — were “removed to Chelsea”).

Recently Fitchburg Historical Society’s Facebook page posted an image scanned from a glass negative. Sharp-eyed readers immediately identified the writing on the window as Armenian, and award-winning local historian George Mirijanian (who is also my uncle) did some research and translated the sign to: “Haygagan Jasharan.”

George explains: “Haygagan” means Armenian, “Jasharan” means restaurant. Colloquial Armenian “Jash” means “to eat” and “aran” means “a place.” This gives us words like “Hokejash” – the meal after a funeral.”

And so, it turns out that Haygagan Jasahran may have been the heart of what was never known as “Little Armenia” but which had numerous Armenian businesses nearby, including tailor Krikor Havanian (78 River St.), barber Mugurdich Yarumian (82 River St.), and grocer Melkiset Melkisethian (84 River St.; he also worked at the Iver Johnson Arms & Cycle Works).

After the genocide of 1915, more Armenians arrived and opened businesses. Over time, many Armenian first names give way to English names. When my grandmother entered first grade in 1920, her teacher told her she had to change her name. So Shakie (pronounced SHAH-kay), became Charlotte. Her older sister Satenig had received a similar renaming by the same teacher and was subsequently known as Irene (perhaps after nationally-known dancer Irene Castle, who’d starred with her dance partner Vernon Castle in silent movie hit Patria, 1917). And my grandfather Krikor was given the name “George” when he arrived at Block Island.

In a generation — sometimes two — the Armenians left Cleghorn for other parts of Fitchburg or the region. However, we must doff our cap to fellow Armenians who have kept their business in Fitchburg for many years. Oriental Ispahan, owned and operated by Robert and Paula DerMarderosian, is an excellent place to purchase a quality rug (85 Lunenburg St., Fitchburg), and our cousin Stephen Keosian, who runs Keosa Brothers Shoe Repair is the best shoe repairman I know (201 Lunenburg St., Fitchburg).

Finally, we invite anyone interested in Armenian culture to join us at Armenian Genocide Remembrance Day at Leominster Public Library, 30 West St., Leominster this Sunday, April 23, starting at 2 p.m. We’ll talk about the history, poetry, language and culture, and “famous Armenians.” The remembrance is free to all and light refreshments will be served.

And remember, you can research your own family’s Fitchburg history at Fitchburg Historical Society, open to the public on Monday, Tuesday (10 a.m. to 4 p.m.), Wednesday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.), 781 Main St, Fitchburg. Call 978-345-1157.

Sally Cragin is an award-winning journalist and the director of Be PAWSitive Therapy Pets and Community Education. 

Israeli Press: Opinion: Tehran set to exploit Armenia-Azerbaijan escalation

Ophelia Vardapetian
i24, Israel

Ariel Kogan, Political analyst

Iran has the capabilities and motive to turn any conflict with Azerbaijan into a proving ground of military developments which would be used against Israel

Russian aggression in Ukraine has been a proving ground for Iranian weapons manufacturers, but it is not enough for Tehran, which needs to test its drones against Israeli military technologies.

Last week, a routine patrol on the border of Azerbaijan and Armenia led to a firefight between Armenian and Azerbaijani military personnel, which quickly devolved into a battle, with both sides rushing in heavier ordnance. Curiously enough, on the same day, just a few minutes before news of the border conflict had spread, the Iranian Revolutionary Guards-affiliated Telegram channel Sepah Pasdaran published death threats against Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev. 

Moreover, at the same time, Iranian drones took off in the northwestern part of the Islamic Republic to allegedly conduct “reconnaissance missions near the border with Azerbaijan and Armenia,” as if expecting some incident to occur.

Yet, the Iranian military was not the only one to utilize Iranian-made drones. With the incident escalating rapidly, the Armenian side was quick to deploy its own arsenal of Iranian-made UAVs against their opponents, who, in part, operate Israeli-made weapons. 

Was this incident truly a simple escalation of border tensions, or was there another entity pulling the strings, with a lot to gain from a potential rematch between Armenia and Azerbaijan?

According to The Wall Street Journal, Revolutionary Guard (IRGC) commander General Esmail Qaani met with the leaders of Lebanon’s Hezbollah and Gaza’s Hamas in recent weeks to coordinate strikes against Israel. The two terror organizations are known recipients of Iranian arms. However, with the latest flare-up between Armenia and Azerbaijan, there seemed to be another step in the preparations of Tehran to annihilate the Jewish state. 

Days after the border flare-up, the Iranian army released an official statement claiming that the countdown to Israel’s destruction has begun. Following up on the IRGC’s modus operandi, to destroy Israel, two things must be ensured: a readily available army of proxies to do the deed, using a steady supply of advanced and updated military equipment.

So far, the meetings between Qaani and the leaders of Hamas and Hezbollah secured the proxy condition. However, Tehran is well aware that Israeli weapons and military technologies are highly advanced, and therefore, has been looking for a way to test and evaluate their capabilities without risking open conflict against Jerusalem.

Luckily for Iran, one of its neighbors has in its arsenal plenty of Israeli arms but does not pose the military threat that Israel does. The Mullah regime certainly has the motive and will to instigate conflict between their ally, Armenia, and their Israeli-aligned neighbor, Azerbaijan.

Reported Armenian usage of Iranian drones may prove valuable to Iran by allowing someone else to test its technology against the Israeli counterpart without the risk of Iranian casualties. It is certainly not far from the realm of possibility considering several reports throughout the previous months indicating that the IRGC has been transporting and smuggling militants and weaponry into the separatist enclave of Karabakh, populated by Armenians in the recognized territory of Azerbaijan.

Additionally, as part of the ceasefire agreement to end the 2020 Karabakh war, Armenia was to allow the construction of a corridor on its southern border with Iran, allowing Azerbaijan to bridge its exclave of Nakhchivan with the mainland. Naturally, Iran opposed the project vehemently and has been outspoken about the issue with a multitude of threats of military intervention on the side of Armenia if any progress toward such a corridor would be made.

Let it also be remembered that last month, two official IRGC Telegram channels posted direct threats of a military attack, indicating that the intentions of Baku – puppeteered by the “Zionist regime” – were “for a hostile action against Armenia.”  

Once again, this proves Iran has the capabilities and motive to instigate a conflict with Azerbaijan and to turn it into a proving ground for any new Iranian military developments which would be used to target Israel.

According to Israel’s Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, Iran is actively waging a war of attrition against Israel on all fronts. However, the Israeli military stands ready to act in all arenas to ensure the security of the Jewish state. In this tumultuous time, it is imperative to stand united against any foreign security threats and essential to stand by the countries we can call allies and friends, such as Azerbaijan, in its own struggle with Iran.

Armenpress: World-renowned pianist Alexei Lubimov arrives in Armenia

Ophelia Vardapetian

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 09:33,

YEREVAN, APRIL 18, ARMENPRESS. World-renowned pianist Alexei Lubimov is visiting Armenia at the invitation of the State Philharmonia of Armenia.

Lubimov will perform during the Listen regional concert in Gyumri on April 25. The performance will take place at 17:00 in the Chamber Music Hall and will feature pieces by Mozart, Chopin, Brahms, Silvestrov and Komitas. The Listen tour is organized by the State Philharmonia of Armenia with support from the Ministry of Education, Science, Culture and Sport. 

Then, on April 26, Lubimov will deliver a master-class for the young musicians in Gyumri.

On April 27 the renowned pianist will travel to Yerevan to deliver a concert in the Arno Babajanyan Music Hall at 19:00. In addition to classical and contemporary music, Lubimov will also perform pieces by Armenian composers, such as Komitas and Mansuryan.

NJ’s governor needs to support Armenian-Americans – opinion

Ophelia Vardapetian
By STEPHAN PECHDIMALDJI

 

Published: APRIL 15, 2023 19:46
     
NEW JERSEY GOV. Phil Murphy addresses supporters at an election night event in Asbury Park, in November 2021, when he was voted in for a second term.
(photo credit: RACHEL WISNIEWSKI/REUTERS)

In late February, New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy posted a tweet that sent shock waves throughout the Armenian-American community in New Jersey. He issued a false statement that extolled the corrupt government of Azerbaijan by recognizing the “Khojaly Genocide” that was both historically inaccurate and ill-timed.

By doing so, the governor essentially inserted himself into the ongoing conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan over the disputed territory of Nagorno-Karabakh, which is part of historical Armenia. 

Since the fall of 2020, Azerbaijan, a country led by the petro-dictator Ilham Aliyev, has escalated tensions with Armenia by launching an illegal war and attacking the territorial integrity of Armenia. 


For the more than 100,000 Armenians living in New Jersey, they see these latest acts of aggression by Azerbaijan, one of the most repressive and autocratic countries in the world, as a continuation of the 1915 Armenian Genocide, when more than 1.5 million Armenians were systemically exterminated by the Ottoman Turks.

It is an event that both the Turkish and Azerbaijani governments deny to this day. They see it as an existential threat to their very existence.

MEMBERS OF the Armenian diaspora rally in front of the Turkish Embassy in Washington after US President Joe Biden recognized last year that the 1915 massacres of Armenians in the Ottoman Empire constituted genocide. (credit: JOSHUA ROBERTS/REUTERS)

It is also why Armenian-Americans in New Jersey found the governor’s use of the word “genocide” to describe what took place at Khojaly as offensive and inaccurate. For starters, the governor is wrong. 

What happened in Khojaly 31 years ago has been twisted and distorted by the Azerbaijani propaganda machine over time. For most of 1991 and 1992, Azerbaijan was using Khojaly as a staging ground to launch rocket attacks against Armenian civilian targets. The continuous shelling almost led to the near-total destruction of Stepanankert, the capital of Nagorno-Karabakh.


As part of an attempt to neutralize enemy fire, Armenian self-defense forces attacked Khojaly on February 25, 1992, at 11:30 p.m. But before doing so, Armenian forces warned the civilian inhabitants of Khojaly of an imminent attack and even provided a safe corridor for them to leave. The Azeri authorities did nothing to protect their own people.

What followed has been a relentless anti-Armenian campaign that lacks any evidence of “genocide” and blatant subterfuge by the Azerbaijan government. It’s straight out of the Azeri playbook of using the pretext of historical revisionism to rewrite and reimagine the past. Khojaly is just another example of that strategy.

To support this false narrative, Azerbaijan used images of mutilated and dead bodies as proof for “genocide,” which subsequently turned out to be fake and doctored photos. There is even evidence that Azerbaijan moved and transported dead bodies to the region in an attempt to inflate the number of casualties.  

There is no denying that deaths happened on both sides, but to suggest that a genocide occurred is an insult to Armenians who have fought for decades to have their own genocide recognized by the United States. Genocide is a term that should not be used loosely. It is one of the many reasons why the governor needs to set the record straight and remove his tweet and apologize for his misleading statement.

Not only is Gov. Murphy on the wrong side of history but his statement was issued at a time when the government of Azerbaijan continues to persecute Armenians. Since early December, Azerbaijan has implemented a blockade to the only road connecting Nagorno-Karabakh with Armenia, which has rapidly become a humanitarian crisis.

By cutting off the only link to the outside world, Armenians living in Nagorno-Karabakh have been denied much needed supplies like food, medicine, and heating gas, as temperatures drop to freezing levels.

This burgeoning humanitarian situation has led Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International and Pope Francis to voice their concern for the 120,000 Armenians living in Nagorno-Karabakh, including 30,000 children who are being deprived of basic human rights. And last month, the UN’s International Court of Justice ordered Azerbaijan to end its blockade.

This blockade follows a troubling pattern of Azeri aggression towards Armenians and is part of their ongoing campaign to ethnically cleanse Armenians from the region.


Gov. Murphy should also be concerned about recent statements from President Aliyev that reflect his true intentions. In recent speeches and statements, Aliyev has unequivocally claimed that Armenia is their historical land while calling Armenia “Western Azerbaijan” and even saying that Yerevan, the capital of Armenia, belongs to Azerbaijan.

Azerbaijan is promoting a culture of hate and fear and is breeding a whole new generation of anti-Armenian sentiment. It’s dangerous. It’s irresponsible. It needs to stop.

But in many ways, the governor’s tweet in praising Azerbaijan over a fabricated history, is only perpetuating this type of hate and validating their actions. Whether Murphy issued the statement directly or was made by a member of his staff, the governor needs to take responsibility and ownership of what was said and know that it can be misinterpreted and used for nefarious purposes.

Armenian-Americans have played a large role in New Jersey’s history and have contributed significantly to the cultural and business fabric of the state. That is why many of them were surprised and taken aback by the governor’s statement.

Armenian-Americans in New Jersey are still grappling with the effects of the 1915 Armenian Genocide. And for many of them, New Jersey became a place where they found refuge and were welcomed with open arms. They need to know if New Jersey is still that place.

They need to know if their governor still has their back. They need him to retract his statement and issue an apology. They need him to hold Azerbaijan accountable – not praise them. Only then, will he be able to regain trust with one of the state’s most vibrant and prosperous communities.

The writer is a communications strategist who grew up in Bergen County, NJ and now lives in the San Francisco Bay Area. He’s a first-generation Armenian-American and grandson to survivors of the Armenian genocide.



Schiff, Pallone Call for Inclusion of Armenian Checkbox on 2030 Census Questionnaire: An ANCA-Western Region Initiative

Ophelia Vardapetian
by Contributor

 

 

 

in Featured Main, Latest, National, Top Stories

Representatives Adam Schiff (left) and Frank Pallone


Representatives Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) and Frank Pallone (D-NJ), co-chairs of the Congressional Armenian Caucus, on Monday sent a letter to Office of Management and Budget Director Shalanda Young urging the inclusion of a Middle Eastern and North African checkbox, with an Armenian subcategory checkbox, on the 2030 United States Census questionnaire.

Armenian-Americans lack accurate representation through the U.S. Census, despite representing a sizable population within many communities throughout the country, and accurate representation on the U.S. Census will help right historical wrongs Armenian-Americans face. “Armenian-Americans currently do not see themselves accurately reflected in the U.S. Census, which shapes both federal and local categories, funding decisions, opportunity, and anti-discrimination efforts. Armenian-Americans have long histories of immigration, refugeehood, and racialization, as well as legal, educational, economic, workplace, and linguistic marginalization,” Schiff and Pallone wrote.

“The ANCA Western Region formed a HyeCount Census Task Force leading up to the 2020 Census in order to encourage Armenians to write in their ethnicity on the census forms. Now we have a unique opportunity to have an Armenian checkbox added to the 2030 Census to bring much-needed public resources to our community, which have been denied since we are not a designated minority,” said Armenian National Committee of America-Western Region board chair Nora Hovsepian, Esq.

“The ANCA-WR is leading this effort. To that end, we and partnered with the Armenian American Action Network and Pan Armenian Council of Western USA to secure and submit support letters from elected officials including U.S. Senator Alex Padilla, Los Angeles City Council President Paul Krekorian, the Congressional Armenian Legislative Caucus, the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors and several local city councils and school boards, with many more still pending,” added Hovsepian.

“If we are successful in securing an Armenian checkbox on the 2030 Census, our communities nationwide will have access to millions of dollars in public grants to help us meet our collective needs. We must take advantage of this opportunity before April 27 to secure a successful outcome,” explained Hovsepian.

Schiff and Pallone have worked closely with the Armenian-American community for the recognition of their history, their contributions to our country, and for the protection of their future. Currently, the Armenian-American community lacks meaningful federal data as a group, despite being one of the largest and most impacted groups that would fall under the proposed MENA category, according to OMB data.

Schiff and Pallone encouraged OMB to solicit Armenian-American community input on classification within the MENA category, as Armenian-Americans are a transnational group in the MENA region whose ancestry spans and crosses current-day nation-states.

“We urge the Administration to include the Armenian checkbox on the next Census and stand ready to connect officials with members of the Armenian-American community in our districts,” wrote Schiff and Pallone. “We thank the Biden administration for working to address the needs of MENA communities and appreciate the Administration’s – and your – consideration of this important request.

AW: Inaugural Kerr Family Lecture to take place at UCLA

Ophelia Vardapetian
April 5, 2023 Guest Contributor Announcements 0

LOS ANGELES, Calif. — The UCLA Promise Armenian Institute is pleased to announce the inaugural presentation of its annual Kerr Family Endowed Lecture. The presentation titled “The Extraordinary Humanitarian Legacy of the Near East Relief and Three Generations of Kerrs, Warriors of Peace” will be delivered by Ani Hovannisian, with introductory reflections by Dr. Richard Hovannisian, on Wednesday, April 12, 2023, at 7 p.m. PST at UCLA’s Mong Learning Center, with simultaneous remote access on Zoom.

Pre-registration is required for this hybrid event.

This audio-visual presentation, featuring rare archival material, photographs and video clips, will shed light on the massive life-saving impact of the Near East Relief (NER) and more specifically, the Kerr family, on a generation of survivors of the Armenian Genocide. Responding to horrific eyewitness accounts and urgent pleas for help, the US mobilized an unprecedented campaign of humanitarian assistance, led by the NER and given legs by a small army of relief workers, among whom were Stanley Kerr and Elsa Reckman. They met in Marash and married in Beirut in 1922. At NER’s Nahr Ibrahim orphanage, they became instant parents to hundreds of Armenian boys. After the orphanage closed, Stanley and Elsa continued their lifetime of service at American University of Beirut (AUB).

The Kerr legacy was thus born and continued with their own children. At AUB, their son Malcolm met his match in fellow student Ann Zwicker. Malcolm, who became a leading Middle East expert as a UCLA professor and later as president of AUB, spent his life with Ann building bridges of international understanding and educating future leaders. Though Malcolm was assassinated at AUB in 1984, Ann continued working for their joint life mission and raising their four children. While NBA coach Steve Kerr is the most well-known, Susan, John and Andrew also carry on the Kerr family legacy, with Ann, their matriarch, leading the way, still deeply involved with AUB while heading UCLA’s Fulbright Scholars program for more than 30 years, growing a kind army of warriors of peace across the globe.

This event is co-sponsored by the Ararat-Eskijian Museum (AEM) and the National Association for Armenian Studies and Research (NAASR).

This lectureship was created by the UCLA Promise Armenian Institute (PAI) and the Kerr Family with the aim of amplifying the stories of heroes and heroines who dedicated themselves to providing humanitarian support for victims and survivors of violence and mass atrocities in times of crisis.

Nagorno Karabakh President chairs emergency Security Council meeting

Ophelia Vardapetian

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 16:52, 31 March 2023

YEREVAN, MARCH 31, ARMENPRESS. President of Nagorno Karabakh (Artsakh) Arayik Harutyunyan chaired an emergency meeting of the Security Council in an enlarged format on Friday. 

In a readout, Harutyunyan’s office said “issues related to the defense of the Artsakh Republic, ensuring the security and the life-activity of the population of the Artsakh Republic under the conditions of the tightening of the blockade and unceasing provocations by Azerbaijan were on the discussion agenda.”

State Minister Gurgen Nersisyan and Defense Minister, Lieutenant-General Kamo Vardanyan delivered reports.

“President Harutyunyan underscored the close and coordinated cooperation between the law enforcement agencies and civilian structures, public administration and local self-government bodies in the solution of urgent and long-term problems. The President gave a number of instructions to the authorized bodies in the context of the discussed issues,” Harutyunyan’s office added.

Three nations dissociate from Ukraine-related part of Summit for Democracy Declaration

Ophelia Vardapetian
 TASS 
Russia –
The second “Summit for Democracy,” co-chaired by Costa Rica, the Netherlands, South Korea, the United States and Zambia, is being held online on March 29-30

WASHINGTON, March 30. /TASS/. Armenia, India and Mexico chose to dissociate from the Ukraine-related paragraph of the Summit for Democracy Declaration, according to the US Department of State.

“We underscore the need to reach, as soon as possible, a comprehensive, just and lasting peace in Ukraine in line with the principles of the UN Charter,” the document reads.

Its authors also deplored the “humanitarian consequences” of Russia’s special operation in Ukraine. “We demand that Russia immediately, completely, and unconditionally withdraw all of its military forces from the territory of Ukraine within its internationally recognized borders and call for a cessation of hostilities,” the declaration said. The document also supported “accountability for the most serious crimes under international law committed on the territory of Ukraine.”

Meanwhile, footnotes indicate that Armenia, India and Mexico denoted endorsement with reservations or disassociation from that particular paragraph of the declaration.

The second “Summit for Democracy,” co-chaired by Costa Rica, the Netherlands, South Korea, the United States and Zambia, is being held online on March 29-30.

The United States hosted the first virtual Summit for Democracy in December 2021, when 110 countries and territories were invited to attend. The list of guests particularly included the Chinese island of Taiwan, while China, Russia, Egypt, Turkey and a number of other countries were not invited. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said that the event was primarily attended by those who took their lead from Washington as well as some who, while having their own vision of the international situation, sought to maintain good relations with the United States.

Armenian opposition MP warns of outbreak of border clashes ‘at any moment’

Ophelia Vardapetian
Panorama
Armenia –

Armenia has found itself in a rather complicated military and political situation, Seyran Ohanyan, the leader of the main opposition Hayastan faction in the Armenian parliament, told a briefing on Thursday, referring to the possibility of renewed hostilities on the border with Azerbaijan.

According to him, the geopolitical and regional developments, joint strategic actions of the Turkish-Azerbaijani tandem, Azerbaijan’s preparatory actions and the overall situation in the South Caucasus testify to it.

“And there could be a possibility of war at any moment. I am not saying this to intimidate the people, but for them to stand together and defend their land,” Ohanyan noted, adding only intelligence data would allow to make a full assessment of Azerbaijan’s actions, military buildups and goals.

“The current geopolitical developments, relations between Armenia and Azerbaijan, as well as the fact that Azerbaijan is taking relevant actions in the region indicate that clashes may erupt at any moment,” the MP stressed.