On Thursday, April 27, at 5:30pm, Jillian LaBranche, Brooke Chambers, Miray Philips, and Nika Sremac will present their dissertation research at the 2023 annual Ohanessian event (hybrid in 710 Social Sciences Building and online). As part of the next generation of mass violence scholars, they will follow in the footsteps of past Ohanessian speakers such as Fatma Müge Göçek from Michigan, Timothy Snyder from Yale, Bedross Der Matossian from Nebraska, or Claire Mouradian from the CNRS in Paris. The panel and Q&A will be followed by a reception.

Please find attached a flyer with more detailed information and a link for registration.
As you see, this year we do justice to the educational mission of the Ohanessian Chair. Four of my doctoral students will speak about their work on mass violence and ways in which groups and nations process such experiences.

The event will take place in hybrid form. You are most welcome to attend either in person or online.

• In case you plan to attend online, please register through the link here or on the attached form.
• In case you plan to attend in person, I would appreciate a short RSVP to: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. in response to this announcement. We also look forward to visiting with you during a small reception following the talks.

The ACOM Book Club held a Zoom meeting on Thursday, February 16, 2023. Attendees were Tashina, Francis, Jim, Margaret, Tom, Peter, Azad, Cynthia and me. For this month's book we revisited "An Armenian Sketchbook" by Vasily Grossman. It was also our book of the month for September in 2017.
Religion in Armenia was being discussed by the group. Tashina said that when she was in Armenia several years ago the people did not seem to be very religious. Azad said that western Armenians were more religious. Soviet communism discouraged religion in the Armenian SSR.
Jim pointed out that the top prelates in the Armenian church objected to communist policies and were removed by the state. They were replaced by more pro-Russian people.

The ACOM Book Club met (really, truly met!) at Mim's on Thursday, March 16, 2023. Attendees were Jim, Margaret, Tom, Francis, Tashina and me. We all took the opportunity to enjoy various menu items, either to eat there or to take home. The book under discussion this month was "All the Light There Was" by Nancy Kricorian.

This book is about Armenians who survived the genocide and ended up in Paris. Twenty years later, they were subjected to the occupation of Paris by the German army and the subsequent 'disappearance' of Jewish families.

Thursday Jan 19, 2023
The ACOM Book Club held a Zoom meeting on Thursday, January 19, 2023. Attendees were Al, Francis, Jim, Margaret, Tashina, Andrea and me. This month's book was "Ataturk In the Nazi Imagination" by Stefan Ihrig.

Gaghant/Valentine’s Day Party – 2023

After a great start to ACOM’s 40th year, our midwinter party took a 2 year “Pandemic” break and a year with a cancelled in-person party. This year the party was on again in-person but with a later start date that was closer to Valentine’s day.

The new Winter 2022/2023 Newsletter

is now available Here.

The Armenian Dance Ensemble performed at the Minnesota State Fair on two days during the fair. We danced on the Cosgrove Stage and had very enthusiastic audiences for both of our performance days.

GAGHANT - CELEBRATING 43 YEARS

ARMENIAN CULTURAL ORGANIZATION

OF MINNESOTA (ACOM)

SAVE the DATE

CHRISTMAS CAMPAIGN
Gifts for our children in great need on the dangerous borders of Armenia.

AYO! a division of Fund for Armenian Relief (FAR)
has a Make-a-Wish crowd funding starting Dec. 1.
They will be focusing on border villages which suffered during the recent attacks of Azerbaijan and other places in great need. AYO! will be reaching out especially to kids with disabilities.

Please plan on being generous as if they were YOUR children.....which they are.

Additional details coming soon.

The ACOM Book Club met at Mim's on Thursday, October 20, 2022. Attendees were Francis, Barb, Andrea, Cynthia, Al and Leroy. This month's book was "The House By the Lake" by Thomas Harding.
Once more, everybody enjoyed reading the book. Barb was the first of our group to read it. She had seen recommendations in two different places and decided to try it. She liked it so much that Francis then recommended it to the club to read.