Boston, MA: First of all, Merry Christmas to everyone out there. Here in Boston there are plenty of Armenian cultural events to attend during the Holidays. As one of the oldest Armenian communities in the U.S., Boston is a great place to be an Armenian. Plenty of churches, markets, cultural centers, and one great camp that all claim the name of being Armenian. It's one of the reasons I moved from Chicago to Boston about 12 years ago. There is something for everyone here. One of my favorite parts of the Boston area is Watertown, with its multiple Armenian markets and churches to gaze at. You can walk down Mt. Auburn street and visit Massis Bakery, Sevan Bakery, Kay's Market, ACME TV for some great tunes (including "Yeraz") or head over to the Hairenik Building or the Baykar building. It's truly feels like home. I recently had the pleasure of showing around a couple of friends of mine (Raffi Kojian and Zabel Artinian) the 'hood. I grow to appreciate Watertown even more after each visit.
Walking down the streets of Watertown also conjures up other emotions. Well... pride for one. About 85 years ago, Watertown was built from the sweat of Armenian immigrants just having lost their entire families to the Genocide. As they worked hard doing menial jobs at first, they came together as a community having shared a common horror. As the mid century arrived , a wave of American patriotism continued (WW II) here in this area. Armenian families were challenged to name their kids Armenian names and thus assimilation continued. However after all these years, the people of the Boston Armenian community have a strong identity, although many don't speak the language. They go to church functions, Bingo, Armenian schools, Camp Hayastan, etc... All to preserve their identity. Once that Armenian identity is formed, what then? How does one convey it to their community, their odar friends, to Hayastansi's? It's interesting and disturbing all in one.
At this stage of the game, we have an independent Armenia that is evolving. Clearly there are needs that the people and country are desparate for. Before independence, we as a community gave blindly to Armenian causes within our Diaspora in order to mantain our identity. Since the Soviet Union was a closed country, there was little opportunity to help out. Once independence hit in 1991, the floodgates opened and we were free to directly assist Armenia. For a time, Diasporans gave money. Some were burned by scams perpetrated by people in Armenia that took money and supplies and enriched themselves. It was a byproduct of the Soviet era. As time passed, Diasporans learned their lesson and stopped giving money to Armenian organizations blindly without knowing exactly where the money was going. Now, people generally give money to individuals they can trust and make sure things are given directly to the people of Armenia.
There are many good people in Armenia doing great work for the people there and for themselves, frankly. I always question why it is that I choose to lead an Armenian life here in the States. Then I question why I don't do more for Armenia directly. After all, a little goes such a long way. The average monthly salary is about $40 a month in Armenia if they have jobs. People are freezing over there this winter. These are people that once had jobs, professions, dreams, families, and hope. No longer. Armenia is indeed a much better place to live for the average person compared to 5 -8 years ago. There is development that is going on and things are continually improving. Still people need help over there and we as a diaspora are so capable it to them. So, why don't we do more?
The next time we pour millions into renovating churches by putting gold on the dome or raising money for new churches we don't need to be build here in the States, think again and ask yourself, "Can't the money be better spent?" Let's see, freshen up a dome on a church for a couple million or feed families and set up a proper infrastructure in Armenia for people who are struggling for the same money. I pick the latter. I'm sure God would understand...
Walking down the streets of Watertown also conjures up other emotions. Well... pride for one. About 85 years ago, Watertown was built from the sweat of Armenian immigrants just having lost their entire families to the Genocide. As they worked hard doing menial jobs at first, they came together as a community having shared a common horror. As the mid century arrived , a wave of American patriotism continued (WW II) here in this area. Armenian families were challenged to name their kids Armenian names and thus assimilation continued. However after all these years, the people of the Boston Armenian community have a strong identity, although many don't speak the language. They go to church functions, Bingo, Armenian schools, Camp Hayastan, etc... All to preserve their identity. Once that Armenian identity is formed, what then? How does one convey it to their community, their odar friends, to Hayastansi's? It's interesting and disturbing all in one.
At this stage of the game, we have an independent Armenia that is evolving. Clearly there are needs that the people and country are desparate for. Before independence, we as a community gave blindly to Armenian causes within our Diaspora in order to mantain our identity. Since the Soviet Union was a closed country, there was little opportunity to help out. Once independence hit in 1991, the floodgates opened and we were free to directly assist Armenia. For a time, Diasporans gave money. Some were burned by scams perpetrated by people in Armenia that took money and supplies and enriched themselves. It was a byproduct of the Soviet era. As time passed, Diasporans learned their lesson and stopped giving money to Armenian organizations blindly without knowing exactly where the money was going. Now, people generally give money to individuals they can trust and make sure things are given directly to the people of Armenia.
There are many good people in Armenia doing great work for the people there and for themselves, frankly. I always question why it is that I choose to lead an Armenian life here in the States. Then I question why I don't do more for Armenia directly. After all, a little goes such a long way. The average monthly salary is about $40 a month in Armenia if they have jobs. People are freezing over there this winter. These are people that once had jobs, professions, dreams, families, and hope. No longer. Armenia is indeed a much better place to live for the average person compared to 5 -8 years ago. There is development that is going on and things are continually improving. Still people need help over there and we as a diaspora are so capable it to them. So, why don't we do more?
The next time we pour millions into renovating churches by putting gold on the dome or raising money for new churches we don't need to be build here in the States, think again and ask yourself, "Can't the money be better spent?" Let's see, freshen up a dome on a church for a couple million or feed families and set up a proper infrastructure in Armenia for people who are struggling for the same money. I pick the latter. I'm sure God would understand...
posted by Raffi at 10:16 PM
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