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Dalita Khoury

Dalita Khoury

Dalita Khoury holds a bachelor’s degree in philosophy from Boston University. She is aiming to seek out opportunities that enable her to engage with ideas critically and thoughtfully. Dalita resides in Philadelphia but is currently volunteering in Yerevan.

6 Comments

  1. Thank you for your honesty and courage to articulate things many of us struggle with but usually don’t dare to say.
    My brother has all but denounced his Armenian heritage because of the things you describe. I’m sure he’s not the only one who seeks a more tolerant and open community.

  2. Your words Dalita, express my thoughts very closely, statement by statement my experiences are similar to my while growing up. I too have an urge to visit Armenia & if I can help in any way I certainly will try to do so. Thank you,

  3. Dear Dalita…
    You are a great narrator …You can easily write a novel,
    I enjoyed much reading your honest thoughts …
    I read it all without missing any phrase …
    You are a great, typical hones, good Armenian …
    Continue your dreams, singing your best Armenian song …
    Healthy wishes,
    And Happy journey to your father’s land,
    Sylva~MD~Poetry

  4. Dear Ms Khoury – I am Irish with no Armenian connections but with great sympathy for what Armenians suffered. I know at first hand from relatives in the U.K. that the Irish community in the U.K. has many of the same issues. It is probably not as pronounced as with Armenians because we did not suffer a genocide. However a few decades ago it was a real factor, more pronounced than now. It’s part of the immigrant experience.

    The issue of how Armenian is a person of Armenian family that grew up in the US mirrors the issues faced by my first cousin of Irish parentage who grew up in the UK. We also have had a culture gap between some young Irish immigrants and some very prominent in the Irish American community on a range of social issues. In some cases the descendants of Irish immigrants have a perception of Ireland inherited from their parents or grandparents that is either idealised or that has not kept pace with the changes (for better or worse) in contemporary Ireland. This can put both some from both groups at loggerheads on occasion.

    If our diaspora community has these issues despite the common English language it is no surprise that so has the Armenian diaspora. That said I hope you find that most people have enough common sense to accept each other whether Armenians living in Armemia or members of the diaspora and to respect their different but related experiences.Those that do not are foolish because your people have enough real enemies who revel in these divisions.

  5. Both of my parents are Armenian although I did not grow up with a strong Armenian community in my small country home town. So anything I’ve learned about Armenia is through my family or the internet. My parents taught us Armenian before English and I am very thankful for that. Because of my lack of foundational culture from a young age, I am extremely urged to make a trip to Armenia soon with my entire family. We have been in talks for a while. At this point in my life, I have pushed away from the Armenian norms by dating an American and choosing to become a DJ. (I went to a 4 year college and received a bachelors in Biology 3 years ago. I am currently 24.) A lot of my family have made their choices of getting solid jobs and marrying an Armenian but I want to choose somethings differently. I honestly feel it will only enhance our culture further. Do not feel your are an undeserving Armenian. You probably have way more tradition Armenian values to guide you through life than I do. I feel I should say one thing. There is no need to feel your current disconnect makes you undeserving. I believe you may feel the conventional social norms of the Armenians are not best for the longetivity of the culture integrating itself with today’s American culture. That is why you may feel a need to connect with more than just Armenians. I may be wrong on my assumption of you and I apologize if I am but this what goes through my head and I’m only giving your situation context. There are plenty of Armenians who choose the traditional path. Maybe it’s time some make their own choices and allow diversification to occur. I hope you enjoy your trip to Armenian! Thank you for your piece.

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