US GOVERNMENT'S "SENSITIVE" STUDY OF ARMENIAN-AMERICANS
MADE PUBLIC
01-12-2006 15:10:00 | USA | Articles and Analyses
By Harut Sassounian
Publisher, The California Courier
The U.S. government recently made public a fascinating
internal study on the Armenian-American community. The study,
prepared in June of 2004 by the American Embassy in Yerevan,
carries the following classification: "Sensitive - Please Treat
Accordingly." It is titled, "Deciphering the Armenian-American
Diaspora," and was recently released by the Department of State
at the request of the Armenian National Committee of America,
under the Freedom of Information Act.
While the study relates commonly known facts about the
Armenian-American community, it reveals for the first time the
views of the U.S. government on the Armenian community, its
assessment of major Armenian-American organizations and their
impact on U.S. - Armenia relations. As the study contains some
inaccurate facts and misjudgments about some segments of the
Armenian American community, I would urge the groups concerned
to send a letter to the editor and set the record straight.
According to this study, around 1.5-2 million Armenians,
out of an estimated 8-10 million Diaspora Armenians, live in the
United States. This is the second largest Diaspora Armenian
community after Russia which reportedly has 2-2.5 million
Armenians. The study lists "some of the largest Armenian
Diaspora populations" as living in France, Lebanon, Syria,
Argentina and Turkey. The large Armenian community of Iran is
not mentioned at all.
The study contends: "The Armenian-American Diaspora
continues to wield considerable influence upon the foreign and
domestic policies of the Government of Armenia [GOAM]. The
influence ranges from the obvious connection of U.S.-born and/or
trained GOAM officials, the influence of private and public U.S.
assistance funding and the more nuanced impact of
person-to-person relations between the GOAM and the Diaspora."
The study specifically mentions "a number of current and
former high-level GOAM policymakers [who] were born, raised or
trained in the United States with long-term connections to the
Diaspora community in the U.S. Current examples of this
connection include Armenia's Foreign Minister, both Deputy
Foreign Ministers, various Presidential Advisors, including the
Chief Advisor on Economic Issues, the Minister of Trade and
Economic Development and a number of deputy ministers in other
ministries."
According to the study, while it is not certain whether
Russian-Armenians or American-Armenians wield greater influence
in Armenia, "it is impossible to underestimate the impact of the
Armenian-American community on the GOAM." Its influence is
measured in terms of being the wealthiest community of the
Armenian Diaspora, the most diverse, providing the largest
amount of assistance to Armenia, and the most organized. The
study asserts incorrectly: "Roughly fifty Armenian-American
organizations claim nationwide membership somewhere in the
thousands."
The unknown authors of the study have grouped the
Armenian-American community into the following seven "clusters"
or "broad categories that involve intersecting political and
religious affiliations and historical considerations":
1) "The AGBU, Ramkavars, Diocese"
2) "Dashnaks (ARF), ANCA, Prelacy"
3) "Organizations close to the 'Hnchaks' "
4) "The Armenian Protestant Community"
5) "Armenian-American Catholic Organizations"
6) "Professional and Cultural Organizations on the Rise"
7) "Humanitarian Groups and Private Foundations"
1) "The AGBU, Ramkavars, Diocese"
The study states: "This grouping captures roughly 30% of
those active in the Armenian-American community. While often
less politically active than the two largest advocacy
organizations in the Diaspora (the AAA and the ANCA), the AGBU
and its affiliated organizations exercise considerable influence
upon grassroots thinking about Armenia-related issues."
The study describes the AGBU as "the largest worldwide
charitable organization in the Armenian Diaspora and constitutes
one of the three largest groups of Armenians in the United
States today. While the AGBU claims a non-political agenda and
concentrates its programming on educational or humanitarian
pursuits worldwide, it also touts itself as the 'mainstay of
Armenian liberalism' among Armenian-Americans."
It describes the ADL or the Ramkavar Party as "the second
largest political party" in the Armenian-American community with
"considerable connections with the AGBU. Historically, the
majority of AGBU donors and board members were members of or
sympathized with the Ramkavar Party to some degree. The
Ramkavars represent one of the most politically conservative
elements of the Armenian-American community.... While generally
less nationalistic than some of their ANCA counterparts in the
U.S., the ADL's political agenda includes a major push for
worldwide recognition of the events of 1915 as a 'genocide.' "
The Knights and Daughters of Vartan, which the study
describes as "a service organization whose recent activities are
based loosely upon models such as the rotary and Kiwanis Clubs,
is one of the most active Armenian-American fraternal
associations based in the U.S. This organization claims
membership in the tens of thousands and sponsors humanitarian
activities in the Republic of Armenia including the renovation
of schools and health facilities in rural communities."
Stating that the AGBU and affiliated organizations such as
the ADL and Knights/Daughters of Vartan are generally linked
with the Diocese of the Armenian Church, the study describes the
Diocese as "the largest branch of the Armenian Church....
Diocese congregations make up the majority of Armenian religious
groups in the United States. While it would be inappropriate to
state that all AGBU or ADL members worship as part of a Diocese
congregation, there is a tendency for these groups to align with
one another on political issues. The humanitarian arm of the
Diocese, the Fund for Armenian Relief (FAR), raises and
distributes millions of dollars in humanitarian relief aid to
the Republic of Armenia each year." FAR also carries out
humanitarian projects in Artsakh, the study states.
(Next week: The Armenian Assembly and the six other
organizational clusters)