Die Ähnlichkeiten zwischen dem, was im armenischen Hochland geschah, zu indigenen Gemeinschaften und dem, was in sogenannten Amerika geschehen ist, sind erstaunlich. Während Amerika vorgibt, der Erlöser der Armenier aus dem Völkermord zu sein, trägt dies tatsächlich zur Fortsetzung des türkischen Kolonialismus und zur Besetzung indigener armenischer Länder bei. Der Völkermord an den armenischen Völkermord wurde von allen Imperien legitimiert: Russland, Amerika und europäische Mächte, und jeder von ihnen trug zur Zerstörung der westlichen armenischen Identität bei. Heute verstärken Armenier, die im sogenannten Amerika bleiben, das Machtbilanz, bei dem Armenier nicht in der Lage sind, dem türkischen Kolonialismus zu widerstehen, während Millionen von versteckten Armeniern immer noch gezwungen sind, ihre Identität in Westarmenien zu verbergen. Ohne Armenier, die in ihren indigenen Ländern leben, sei es in Ost- oder Westarmenien, ist die Fortsetzung des Kampfes unmöglich.
Gleiches gilt für die Armenier in Russland. Hunderttausende wurden von ihren indigenen Ländern in russisch-kolonisierte Gebiete im Kaukasus und darüber hinaus deportiert, wie Krasnodar Oblast, in denen andere indigene Völker ethnisch gereinigt wurden und Völkermord gegen sie begangen wurde. Heute sind Armenier dort instrumentalisiert, um die russische Kolonialpolitik in Ostarmenien zu fördern. Russland als Kolonialmacht nutzt weiterhin die armenische Gemeinschaft in Russland und verwendet kontrollierte Diaspora -Organisationen, die vorgeben, Armenier zu vertreten, aber tatsächlich russischen Interessen dienen. Indem die Armenier in Russland bleiben und zum Überleben des russischen Kolonialismus und der Staatlichkeit beitragen, verstärken sie das gleiche Machtbilanz, das es Moskau ermöglicht, die armenische Republik zu kontrollieren und zu erpressen. Wenn wir den armenischen Kampf in den Kämpfen anderer indigener Völker, in sogenanntem Amerika, in Russland oder in der Ukraine gegen kriminelle Invasion nicht in den Kämpfen anderer indigener Völker einrahmen, können wir nicht gerecht werden. Alle Kämpfe sind miteinander verbunden. Durch den Beitrag zum amerikanischen oder russischen Kolonialismus tragen die Armenier auch zur Zerstörung ihrer eigenen indigenen Identität bei.
Die Armenier in den USA geben oft vor, armenische Interessen zu verteidigen, doch ihre größte „Leistung“ war eine symbolische Anerkennung amerikanischer Politiker. Diese Anerkennung, die keinen Einfluss auf die reale Politik hat, gehört in dieselbe Kategorie wie die Völkermordanerkennung durch Kriegsverbrecher Netanjahu: Instrumentierungen des armenischen Leidens, um die Türkei unter Druck zu setzen, um ihre eigenen Interessen zu verfolgen. Solange die Armenier an diese Kolonialmächte gebunden bleiben, ohne sich wirklich als indigene Gemeinschaft zu vertreten, können sie keine Gerechtigkeit aus der Türkei verlangen. Wir werden Teil des Systems, das den Völkermord und seine Fortsetzung ermöglichte. Unter den Verwaltungen wie Trumps, die den Kolonialismus, die Zerstörung und den Klimaverdehnen der Umwelt und das Denialismus des Klimas fördern, die indigene Völker, einschließlich der Armenier sowohl im Osten als auch im Westen, überproportional schädigen, wird die Heuchelei noch deutlicher. Das russische Regime folgt einem parallelen Weg, militarisiert die Region und schafft Bedingungen, unter denen das Völkerrecht bedeutungslos ist. In dieser Realität können die Armenier nicht auf Gerechtigkeit hoffen, wenn sie den Kolonialismus und Völkermord im Prinzip als Verbrechen anerkennen. Wenn wir mit unserem eigenen Gewissen eingehen, können wir nicht erwarten, dass andere konsequent gegen den Kolonialismus handeln.
Es ist daher für die Armenier von entscheidender Bedeutung, in ihre indigenen Länder zurückzukehren oder sich zumindest auf diese Rückkehr vorzubereiten. Wir müssen das Fundament bauen, das es den Armeniern ermöglicht, zurückzukehren, und wir müssen die Gerechtigkeit priorisieren, indem wir Allianzen mit anderen indigenen Gemeinschaften schmieden, die unser Schicksal von Völkermord und Löschung teilen. Diese Vision, weit entfernt von idealistisch, ist realistisch. Der Kolonialismus ist die Grundursache der Klimakrise. Ohne es anzusprechen und ohne die Privilegien aufzugeben, die die Armenier in den USA haben, bleiben wir Teil des Problems. Die armenische Identität und der Kampf sollten niemals von westlichen oder anderen imperialistischen Mächten instrumentalisiert werden. Stattdessen müssen die Armenier ihre eigene Vision für die Region schaffen: eine, die uns zuerst entschlüsselt, damit wir die Türkei und andere entkolonisieren können.
https://i.redd.it/ypryp478rbmf1.jpeg
Von Arshak_Makichian
22 Kommentare
I have been to these areas. They are all Kurdish. No churches, only mosques. If you speak Kurdish like my grandfather, you will gain friends there. When you mention you are Armenian, they all know what happened to the Armenians. They will show you remnants of churches and things like that.
But people already don’t like immigrants. Imagine being an immigrant of the opposite faith, with similar culture but the purpose is clear to try and take the land that they perceive is theirs. You don‘t want to move to somewhere where they all hate you, right? And nevermind the Turks are nationalistic, but the Kurds are too.
And no glendale polished 6th descendant of an immigrant is going to move to a random village in the mountains when they have never been to anywhere more rural than a pumpkin patch. Let them all move to Armenia and see how they like their own village culture before they try to impose it on others.
Meanwhile the Armenians in Russia have it hard. They moved to Russia because of economic possibilities and I’ve heard of some go fight in the Ukraine war for money. They will return to Armenia once they get a stable income mostly.
🥱
If you wanna go there and pay taxes and essentially support that country with you economic behaviour… you can no one’s stopping you
Just dont expect people from developed western nations to move to a rural village.
I’m a childless diasporan, so my opinion means very little, but a return to historical lands is not a pragmatic goal around which you need to centralize everything.
Consider Turkey, which implemented ultra-assimilationist policies after the massacres and genocides (like the 1934 Turkish Resettlement Law and the non-Muslim wealth tax – Varlik Vergisi). It has suceeded really well to homogeneize and turkify the population and toponyms. Ataturk himself stated „Demography is Destiny,“ but look at Turkish fertility rates now. A consistent decline in **Total Fertility Rate (TFR)** from 2.19 TFR in 2014 to 1.48 TFR in 2024. (Source – https://data.tuik.gov.tr/Bulten/Index?p=Birth-Statistics-2024-54196)
Turkey’s TFR for 2025 is projected to decline further till **1.34 TFR**. ([Source](https://xcancel.com/BirthGauge/status/1955569703746998475#m))
And Armenia is following this trend as most nations are declining ([Global Comparison Chart for TFR](https://xcancel.com/BirthGauge/status/1951748625983484066#m)). TFR for 2025 is projected to be 1.65.
Talking about „return to our lands“ while a massive demographic issue stares straight at you in the coming decades, let alone the massive disparity in arms, is not realistic.
And while conservatives (especially in the US) talk often about fertility decline, they ignore the cost of living crisis. Meanwhile cash incentives throughout Europe temporarily raised TFR in the 2000s but by now, bear little fruit. Leftists often tout immigration as the solution, but what happens when all your sources of immigration are sub-fertility too?
It’s almost the opposite of European vs. Native Americans.
We should worry foremost about the qualitative issues in Armenian society and try to improve the average Armenian. Armenia hasn’t been able to shake the indirect, oligarchic Russian control or resolve domestic issues like domestic violence, widespread pollution, rural poverty, indolent and corrupt police, Yerevan rentier culture, energy dependence, trade diversification, food and drink standards and the list goes on.
How do you expect a society that has been unable to resolve its own elementary problems to achieve what you have outlined?
Whatever else we might do, we should start with a good close look at ourselves.
What has Armenia to offer for young people that where broad up in a western country (America, Europe or others).
Most off them are established in there country and there is no upside for moving.
And I know a lott of Armenians that would love the opportunity to try to work in Europe/America and want to live there.
In Armenian there are no
No jobs with equal pay and opportunity. (Not all want to work in IT or live in Yerevan)
No social securities like the have in Europe
Not the sam educational facilities as in Europe
For me and my wife we will go back, but after my pension for the climate, cost of living, and the food. My kids will visit but wil not come to live in Armenia as there is no to little opportunity for them.
The harsh reality of repatriation is that, until the republic establishes a solid foundation—sustained economic growth, security, independent branches of government, and a stable democracy—most diaspora Armenians will be reluctant to leave more prosperous countries. Western Armenians may also want Western Armenian to have equal legal status.
As a small nation, Armenia cannot afford a strategy that simultaneously confronts Turkey, the United States, and Russia; I do not want Armenia drawn into a Gaza-like situation.
What Armenians need is a stable, unified diaspora worldwide; strong relationships with host governments on domestic matters; and a rational, humanitarian-minded international strategy. Coupled with a state that meets the conditions above, this would encourage return and help populate the country we already have.
I understand you’re a smart political activist with leftist ideology you learned from your leftist humanities program but please take the reality check. Your propositions even sound ridiculous. Stop pushing this agenda. Playing all the time the victim card won’t help anyone
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Most moved to America and Russia due to economics and war, I doubt many, especially from America will return to Armenia any day
Lmao just move to Yerevan or other city in Armenia wtf
Turk here. The lands you mention are the most deprived areas in Turkiye. Although it is around 30% of the land area in only has 8% of Türkiye’s population. It has harsh winters, very mountainous etc. Why would people migrate there?
On the other hand although as a Turk it is my fear because the region is sparsely populated. If Armenia had a population of 10 million I would have worried that half of the region to be annexed by Armenia if they can agree with the local Kurdish population.
By that logic everyone came from africa so does everyone have the right to go back to ethiopia?
We live all over the world. Not just the USA and Russia. The USA and Russia are not the only colonial powers by far, so I am not sure why only they are being called out.
If I could live where we are supposed to live, then I would. But you seem to think we all have an endless supply of money and resources to „just“ do that. For my family, return would be in a country we are exiled from returning to.
With that said, I 100% agree with you about how we should be framing our struggle. We should be working alongside other indigenous people, especially from home and especially those displaced and abused on the lands we once shared.
But the first thing is that you have to recognize the different diasporas and how they ended up diaspora in the first place. My family and many others were forcefully parted from their home. That story is different for Armenians who chose to leave Armenia. By recognizing that, convincing people to return can be approached more wholeistically.
Please consider posting this in ArmeniansGlobal as well.
This is especially a conversation for Armenians whose families were forcefully displaced by genocide and ethnic cleansing.
https://www.reddit.com/r/ArmeniansGlobal/s/m2X1iG2Hel
Is this a joke? Imagine trying to convince Armenians in the US who live arguably as very wealthy to transfer living in the most economically disadvantaged part of Turkey. It’s on par with many Armenian villages. You can’t even get Armenians to move to Yerevan but it’s a conversation to get them to go back to let’s say Erzurum? Lmao this is just grasping at straws it’s funny. What we should be doing is making connections with the local population and investing in our history there. Keeping churches there open or create museums to showcase our history.
No thanks! Even if you paid me $1M per year, I wouldn’t move back. When it comes to uprooting themselves what most people care about is not nationalism or plots of ancestral land but career opportunities and a better quality of life for their kids and grandkids. As a 2-time immigrant to Russia and the US, I can tell you that the EU and Canada are the top choices, not back to our ancestral lands.
Ok! Best of luck.
You do realize the modern state of Armenia politically and socially generally does not give a shit about Western Armenians.
Why do you keep saying “so called America”
America or rather the United States never was nor ever will be a savior of Armenia
Armenians here in the USA fall under some categories. Descendants Genocide survivors who came directly during and after the Genocide, immigrants and their descendants from the Middle East, partial Armenians, and Armenians from Armenia and Russia.
The first category is assimilated. Modern Armenia culturally and politically is alien to them.
ME Armenians who are here or their descendants such as myself are half way between the two.
Partial Armenians are 99% of the time Americans who have been wholly and or mostly been alien to what it means to be Armenian. Often not even speaking the language and being mostly alien to the history and culture of the people. Those who are involved generally are in heavy Armenian centers or from really old communities like Fresno Armenians
Armenians from Armenia/Russia abandoned Armenia by choice. Arguably 80% of them are pursuing self interest and honestly wont go back besides owning a vacation home.
So unless something changes in Armenia to be more catering to Western and Iranian Armenians and becomes more economically developed to incentivize repatriation of Eastern Armenians we are not going to go back.
You can wholly forget the majority of partial Armenians. Most of them dont even speak the language as i mentioned
no one’s moving to turkey, people can however move to the republic of Armenia and live there
Move to lebanon first, the last place where we still speak western armenian
lAnD blEedS tHe tRuTh
I’m not Armenian but this came up in my feed and my ancestors also fled from eastern Anatolia. I’m all for a right of return but your framing of the genocide as essentially colonial seems to imply that neither Turks nor Kurds are indigenous to the land alongside Armenians and other peoples. As such this seems pretty close to laying an intellectual groundwork for a pseudo-Zionist settler colonial project of its own. I’m hoping that’s not your intent, but you’re really brushing up on some of the basic tenets of such an ideology. I’d be mindful of how exactly you frame and discuss this.