CW: This article includes descriptions of anti-LGBTQ+ violence and hate speech.  This article is part of Azad Sparks: Critical Conversations for the Armenian Community. Azad Sparks is an interview series dedicated to starting transnational conversations on the topics that aren’t often talked about in prevailing Armenian discourse. Here we ask the difficult questions, break the […]

01 February 2023 | Araxie Cass

Consent has been the center of a lot of discussion lately, both within the Armenian community and outside of it. Though legal definitions of sexual consent vary from country to country, the Merriam-Webster dictionary defines it as “giv[ing] assent or approval.”

Simple enough, right? Not exactly.

10 January 2023 | Alexa Gris

Victoria Gevorgyan was the first victim of the 2020 Nagorno-Karabakh War. She was nine years old. Reading her name on the list of civilian casualties was anesthetizing. Victoria should be alive, playing freely in her yard with her mother and younger brother. She should have the right to grow up, as any child should. She […]

27 September 2022 | Ella Chakarian

This article is part of Azad Sparks: Critical Conversations for the Armenian Community. Azad Sparks is an interview series dedicated to starting transnational conversations on the topics that aren’t often talked about in prevailing Armenian discourse. Here we ask the difficult questions, break the silence on marginalized topics, and build alternative communities. Natalie Kamajian is […]

02 August 2022 | Araxie Cass

Our Women on the Ground is divided into five parts: “Remembrances”, “Crossfire”, “Resilience”, “Exile”, and “Transition.”. Some feel like an obituary to a beloved husband and even to war. Some feel like letters to the backbones of Iraq, i.e., women, or to the cynical baba –father– who had a hard time accepting his daughter’s career. And many feel like testimonies, filled with guilt…

16 June 2022 | Paula Kjdrian

I first learned about Liana Makes when a beautifully curated photo of some plated nazouks appeared on my Instagram feed. Truthfully, I hadn’t known about nazouk before seeing this photo. I soon learned, as the picture suggested, that they are a small, flaky dessert pastry nicely paired with soorj. I saw the photo on a […]

11 April 2022 | Marie Papazian

This article is Part 3 in a series on Bride Kidnapping. Read Part 1 here, and Part 2 here. In her work at the Women’s Resource Center, Lara Aharonian has seen multiple cases of bride kidnapping. In this interview, Mariam Avagyan talks to Aharonian about the silence around bride kidnapping, the importance of consent, and […]

25 October 2021 | Mariam Avagyan

This article is Part 2 in a series on Bride Kidnapping. Read the first part here.  CW: Sexual Assault When he volunteered in Armenia with the Peace Corps, Chris Edling was surprised to hear about the practice of bride kidnapping, especially with aspects like “consensual kidnapping.” He dove into extensive research on the topic, working […]

12 September 2021 | Mariam Avagyan

As the Artsakh War of 2020 raged, Busani Sibindi read the updates in his hometown of Bulawayo, in the Matabeleland region of Zimbabwe. Although his own region was suffering intensely under the effects of the COVID-19 crisis and their constant experience of government repression, he immediately felt for the situation of the people in Artsakh.  […]

05 August 2021 | Araxie Cass

When Armenia cries, the Diaspora will always answer. That’s just how it is and will always be. Staff writer Gareen Simone spoke to three business owners used their creativity to support Armenia during the 2020 Artsakh War.

01 June 2021 | Gareen Simone