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Guest Contributor

Guest Contributor

Guest contributions to the Armenian Weekly are informative articles or press releases written and submitted by members of the community.

17 Comments

  1. Being a non-Christian Armenian is almost as bad, but not quite. Even for neopagans such as myself, whose religion is more Armenian than Christianity is, in certain situations its best to hide it. I wonder what attitude Armenians had toward gays before Christianity? No doubt a more open one.

    • “[Pagan] religion is more Armenian than Christianity is…”

      Another magnum opus from our non-Armenian “friend”. It turns out that he miraculously can measure a religion to be ‘more Armenian’ and ‘less Armenian’. All stages that the ancient Armenian nation has gone through—being at one time Pagan or Zoroastrian and at another time Christian—are closely interconnected and intertwined within our Armenian Identity. Cheap tricks aimed at driving a wedge into it by making foolish statements that Paganism was more Armenian than Christianity are just that: cheap tricks. Armenians have ONE indivisible history, just like several other ancient peoples do. Persians, too, were Pagan before they adopted Islam. Hardly would an Iranian intellectual say that Paganism was ‘more Persian’ than Islam. What kind of an idiotic statement is this, anyway?

    • “john,” relax, that was not me. My icon is not purple. It’s majestic brown, just like our khachkars (as is deserving for an Armenian god). Plus, I am Christian (gods are allowed to do such things).

      [What kind of an idiotic statement is this, anyway?]

      You realize that by calling others “idiotic,” you are only showing your own desperation, right?

  2. Do those ignorant people who call on ISIS to come to Armenia to kill gays realize that ISIS would happily turn their guns and knives on them and chop their heads off just for being Christians? I am saddened at how ignorant and closed-minded Armenia has become. This stems from this unachievable pidgeon-holing of what it means to be an Armenian. It has always been a source of division at all times of our history. Russia’s ignorance doesn’t help either, but it also gives me an idea of the extent to which social trends in Russia echo in Armenia. I recall a time when Armenians’ attitudes towards LGBTs was changing from 2006-2008, but that adruptly stopped.

    The ignorance, hatred and villification of ordinary Armenians who happen to be gay or a part of another social caste in Armenia is sickening. I hope the next generation addresses this issue civilly. Those who want to live in an environment in which people are persecuted for being a certain way are welcome to leave Armenia and join the Taliban or ISIS.

  3. I feel very sad that you have signed your article ” A citizen of Armenia who has to Hide”.
    The published picture shows a group of men and women, who are all beautiful, and should be treated with dignity and love.
    As I said in another comment, ingrained cultures and attitudes that are ill-conceived take time to change.
    Be patient, and do not give up.
    Vart Adjemian

  4. Terrific– As a gay Armenian who’s spent a great deal of my own personal income and time supporting various Armenian causes, it makes me proud to finally see Armenian culture starting to remove the yolk of regressive and backward cultural norms picked up from the region’s other intolerant ossified peoples.

    Better to stand proud and embrace European and Western moral norms that have created open and vibrant societies. Keep up the good work! Proud of you and don’t let the moral and religious zealots and trolls bully you.

  5. Wow!… It’s as if Armenia is finally joining the 20th Century, even though it is the 21st… Reminds me of the Gay and Lesbian rights seminars and LGBT Pride gatherings we had on the west coast of the USA in the 1970’s, 40-45 years ago… Congrats for bravely trying to catch up in your weirdly homophobic society!

    • Mr. Wells,

      You are the bigot. You prejudge the people of Armenia based on your vision of a place you never visited, a people you don’t know, a history of which you are ignorant, and you compare us to what – Berkeley? Condemn Armenia for her faults – that is easy enough.

      Please point out to me any post Soviet country that is doing better. For that matter, please take a look at any Moslem society, and let us know if it measures up to Santa Monica. Iran? You would be executed. She is our neighbor and historic cousin.

      Western Europe and North America have the advantage of Enlghtenment values and…wealth. Armenia also endured two events that you have no knowledge or experience of: Genocide 1894-1923, AND losses of 30-40 per cent of her population in the great Patriotic War. Tiny Armenia lost almost as many men and women as the United States in WWII. Yet, she recovered.

      She lacks the ability to launch social upgrades as might work in California.
      She is too busy defending herself from enemies on three sides. Not that long ago, far less than 40-50 years ago, leading US politicians like the Clintons backed what I am sure you think are bad policies, so don’t get too high and mighty.

    • Because homophobia does not exist in the United States? Recall Matthew Shepard, Brandon Teena, and of course these are only the cases prominent enough to have movies made about them.

      Let us not forget that it was in 2008 that Prop 8 passed in ostensibly liberal California.

      What was that about homophobic societies again?

  6. Obviously, standing up for LGBT rights in Armenia is much alike doing that in a conservative Islamic country like Iran. Even in western parts of Turkey, I think, it’s not so much of an issue.

    Nevertheless, traditional values and sacred spaces is what kept Armenian nation, Armenian self-consciousness together for thousands of years, and this is no joke to be taken in brackets, dear ”Citizen of Armenia”.

    While simply discussing issues and troubles that LGBT members face in Armenia, in private environment is just fine, the thing I am highly concerned about is just how ferociously the U.S. tries to force upon us tolerance towards elements which are contradictive to Christian and Armenian values, labeling a normal reaction towards them as „backwards” and a sign of ”underdevelopment”. That’s not just an issue in Armenia. The United States forces all kinds of feminist propaganda even through it’s president speech in the UN.

    It would all be okay, if you my dear friends wouldn’t be heavily subsidized from across the ocean. If you were just Armenian gays trying to gather and discuss their problems (I’m sure there is a gay club in Yerevan though) I’d shake your hand myself first. But your point is to provoke, to sow dissent and to show yourself off as valorous fighters against backwards and agressive masses of your countrymen.

    I’m glad we Armenians are smart enough to see through that.

    Sincerely,
    An Armenian-Russian

  7. Dear Eduard/Armenian-Russian,

    There was a gay friendly club in Yerevan. It was fire bombed by some Armenian neo-Nazis. Those neo-Nazis were taken into custody by the police, but then they were bailed out two members of Parliament. You can read about it here: http://armenianweekly.com/2012/05/15/hate-crime-targets-gay-friendly-bar-in-yerevan-mps-bail-out-assailants/. It seems to me that the people who sow dissent are the Armenian neo-Nazis and those like you who believe that feminism is not a Christian value out that tolerance towards those who are different will somehow bring down our nation. This is a very dangerous attitude.

    Our nation has been Christian for 1700 years but it was pagan for 2000 years before that. Were we not Armenian then? A nation that does not evolve is not alive, it is fossilized. And so is a nation that looks only inward for its ideals. The West is not the enemy; only those who would rather live in a fictitious past than embrace a bright new future.

    This is not a new phenomenon in our nation’s life. In the 19th century, Armenian intellectuals that are revered today were complaining about the inflexibility and backwardness of the “leaders”of our community. People like Komitas, who was not permitted to perform his beautiful mass in a secular venue. People like Karekin Servantsetiants, who experienced ignorance and intolerance at first hand in Vaspurakan. People like Khachatur Abovian, who was opposed by the clergy for wanting to have open schools that were open to knowledge. If these courageous Armenians had not stood up and “sowed dissent”, where would we be today?

    Open your mind, dear Eduard, to the light of knowledge. You may find that it is not Western after all. Maybe it even comes from the teachings of the Bible: “Judge not lest you be judged”.

  8. These “human rights” movements pretty much all come from the same “source” and all with a political, nefarious agenda. Sadly, the emotionally distraught subjects which they employ, I would even say victimize, and get to implement their task, probably are all unaware how they are being used and for what real purpose. And that purpose, contrary to what they believe, is not about them, but a much more profound and far-reaching objective.

    And contrary to what anyone believes, the recent Supreme Court ruling in the US was NOT about “progress” or “rights” or “the will of the people” in any way, in fact it was a regression in democratic principles and was simply a usurpation by one minority deciding the future morality of the majority according to their own vision, and yes, agenda.

  9. Kudos for those that participated on the meeting, hope you guys find great support within that new community you guys formed. :)

    Is sad to see how narrow minded we (armenians) have become and a big part of it is the miss interpretation of the bible. Or, as someone said christian “traditions.” There is nowhere in the bible that says being homosexual is a sin. And for those that might reply to my comment with verses of the bible, let me tell you, Don’t be hypnotic. If you are going to interpret those passages as anti-gay, then you should also be as passionate for Deuteronomy 22:13-21, 22:22, 25:11-12. Mark 10:1-12, 12:18-27. Leviticus 18:19, 19:19, 19:27, 19:28.

  10. Beautifully written. Thank you Armenianweekly for publishing this. It does not matter weather you do or don’t agree with the views expressed by the author who sadly has to hide his/her identity. The fact that you allowed this voice to be heard calls for some respect. You certainly have mine.
    Glad to see so many positive comments. I don’t know what is ‘more Armenian ‘, I hate such terms but I am certain that Christianity is not Armenian. And whoever thinks Iranians don’t look back at their Pre-Islamic history with nostalgia have obviously never interacted with Iranians since the Iranian Revolution. I hope we allies can do more for the LGBTIAQ community in Armenia. #LoveConquersHate

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