ANCA-ER Shares Community Concerns During Capitol Hill Advocacy Day

WASHINGTON—As Armenian-Americans commemorated the genocide in communities throughout the nation, ANCA Eastern Region board members and top regional activists brought the message of genocide affirmation and justice to the nation’s capital and to legislators representing the 31 states that make up the eastern region of the U.S., the ANCA-ER reported.

Rep. Chuck Fleischmann (R-Tenn.-3) with (L-R) Chattanooga resident Elaine Mckeehan, Michelle Hagopian, and Bearj Barsoumian.

“Our day on the Hill was especially fruitful because meeting with our respective Senators and Representatives was a precursor to our interaction with them at the genocide commemoration later that night. One-on-one meetings with constituents really hammer home what the ANCA does, and we strive to foster both new and old relationships with our friends in Congress through these visits,” said Michelle Hagopian, the executive director of the ANCA Eastern Region.

On April 24, Hagopian, along with ANCA-ER board chairwoman Nora Kzirian and board member Tamar Kanarian, scheduled back-to-back meetings on Capitol Hill before attending the annual Capitol Hill observance of the Armenian Genocide with Members of Congress and the Greater Washington Armenian community in the Hart Senate Office Building that evening.

They were accompanied by ANCA Government Affairs Director Kate Nahapetian, as well as constituents from throughout the East Coast, including ANCA Tennessee’s Bearj Barsoumian and Jocelyn Micolucci of Pennsylvania.

The group also attended the opening prayer of the April 24^th session of the U.S. House, led by Archbishop Oshagan Choloyan.