PRESS RELEASE
The Armenian Students Club at Columbia University &
National Association for Armenian Studies and Research

395 Concord Avenue
Belmont, MA 02478
Tel.: 617-489-1610
Email: hq@naasr.org
Contact: Marc A. Mamigonian
Contact: Shaunte Baboumian
e-mail: sb2508@columbia.edu

`THE ARMENIAN LOBBY: THEN AND NOW’
TO BE EXAMINED AT COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY

Gregory Aftandilian, currently a Research Fellow at the Belfer
Center at the John F. Ken-nedy School of Government, Harvard
University, will present a lecture entitled `The Armenian Lobby
Then and Now: The 1918-27 Period and the Present Day,’ on
Wednesday, December 6, at 7:30 p.m., at the Kellog Center, at the
Columbia University School of International and Public Affairs, 420
W. 118th Street, New York, NY. The lecture is co-sponsored by the
Columbia Armenian Students Club and the National Association for
Armenian Studies and Research (NAASR).

Aftandilian, a member of the NAASR Board of Directors since 2004,
has previously worked at the National Democratic Institute for
International Affairs, the Senate Foreign Rela-tions Committee, and
the U.S. Department of State. A recognized expert on Middle East
affairs, he is the author of two books: Egypt’s Bid for Arab
Leadership: Implications for U.S. Policy and Ar-menia: Vision of a
Republic: The Independence Lobby in America, 1918-1927. He holds
degrees from Dartmouth College, the University of Chicago, and the
London School of Economics.

Shedding Light on Two Eras

This lecture will examine the activities of the American Committee
for the Independence of Armenia in the period of 1918 to 1927 and
compare it to today’s Armenian Lobby in terms of effectiveness,
shortcomings, access to leading policy-makers, and sustainability.
Key issues that will be addressed are the makeup of the lobby
groups, the socio-economic conditions of the Armenian-American
community, the impact of opposing lobbies and countervailing
pressures, the attitudes of Congress and the White House, and the
salience of the `Armenian issue’ in the American political context.

Aftandilian will highlight some important similarities and
differences between the two eras. In both periods, the
pro-Armenian Lobby had the difficult task of supporting a small
country that lacked natural resources. Whereas in the earlier
period the lobby relied primarily on American public sympathy as
well as important political figures for support, the current period
has wit-nessed a reliance on the rising stature of the
Armenian-American community and its increasing involvement in the
American political system. Countervailing pressures in both
periods have included the impact of oil and other economic
interests

More information about the lecture is available by e-mailing Shaunte
Baboumian at sb2508@columbia.edu, or by calling 617-489-1610, faxing
617-484-1759, e-mailing hq@naasr.org, or writing to NAASR, 395
Concord Ave., Belmont, MA 02478.
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Belmont, MA
November 13, 2006