In an effort to develop ties with political currents outside the mainstream United States and broaden the range of participation among an increasingly diverse Armenian community, the Armenian Revolutionary Federation (ARF) in the Eastern United States has teamed up with The Nation Institute to host a conference titled "Armenians and the Left" on the weekend of April 7, 2006.
The conference will examine how activists can build coalitions with other dispossessed groups and progressive movements, explore strategies beyond the dominant, conventional ones currently pursued by Armenian-American organizations, and seek alternative ways of understanding Armenia's predicament besides the usual state-centered approaches.
The conference will examine how activists can build coalitions with other dispossessed groups and progressive movements, explore strategies beyond the dominant, conventional ones currently pursued by Armenian-American organizations, and seek alternative ways of understanding Armenia's predicament besides the usual state-centered approaches.
On the eve of the conference, Robert Fisk of the British based newspaper The Independent will deliver a plenary lecture at the New York Society for Ethical Culture. As the author of two highly acclaimed books on the region, Mr. Fisk will address global issues such as US imperialism in the Middle East and Transcaucasus and the implications for small, struggling nations like Armenia. The lecture will take place at the New York Society for Ethical Culture.
The conference will begin the following day at City University of New York Graduate Center where panels of scholars, activists, and opinion makers will take a critical look at, and offer progressive analyses of, a range of subjects pertinent to Armenia’s political situation within a global context.
Some panels will take a comparative approach, considering reparations as a means of redress for Native Americans, African Americans and Armenians. Others will use a global lens to understand Armenia’s situation, as in the case of a panel on “Globalization” as it relates to the current restructuring of Armenia’s economy and society. Additional highlights of the conference include a panel on Armeno-Turkish Dialogue featuring the beleaguered Turkish publisher Ragip Zarakoglu, and a panel discussion on distortion and the media featuring David Barsamian and Robert Fisk.
Through exposing attendees to a broad range of critical topics, conference organizers hope to inspire new relationships and understandings for shifting power downward in an increasingly stratified world. By examining Armenia’s situation with a broader scope, more powerful strategies should emerge for achieving social justice for the Armenian and the world’s peoples.
Some panels will take a comparative approach, considering reparations as a means of redress for Native Americans, African Americans and Armenians. Others will use a global lens to understand Armenia’s situation, as in the case of a panel on “Globalization” as it relates to the current restructuring of Armenia’s economy and society. Additional highlights of the conference include a panel on Armeno-Turkish Dialogue featuring the beleaguered Turkish publisher Ragip Zarakoglu, and a panel discussion on distortion and the media featuring David Barsamian and Robert Fisk.
Through exposing attendees to a broad range of critical topics, conference organizers hope to inspire new relationships and understandings for shifting power downward in an increasingly stratified world. By examining Armenia’s situation with a broader scope, more powerful strategies should emerge for achieving social justice for the Armenian and the world’s peoples.
The daylong conference concludes with a cultural event featuring a book signing by Robert Fisk and David Barsamian and a musical performance by the New York based Mediterranean folk ensemble: Nour.
"Armenians and the Left" culminates with a public forum featuring Robert Fisk and Noam Chomsky at MIT. Brought together by the ANCA-ER, and cosponsored by progressive student organizations at Harvard and MIT, this rare joint appearance will focus on the recent history of the Middle East.