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By Theodore KalmoukosSpecial to The National Herald

BOSTON, Mass. – A smallbrown stone from his birthplace,the island of Imvros, will be the fi-nal décor of the grave of the lateArchbishop Iakovos, formerly ofNorth and South America since themorning of June 21.

Saint Paul’s verse, “I havefought the good fight, I have keptthe faith, I have finished the race,”from his second epistle to his pupil,Timothy will be the late Archbish-op’s personal testimony to all hisgraveside visitors.

Archbishop Iakovos has beenburied behind the Holy CrossChapel at Hellenic College/HolyCross Greek Orthodox School ofTheology in Brookline.

“Archbishop Iakovos hadbrought this stone himself fromImvros, and it was his wish to placeit on his grave,” Bishop Andoniosof Phasiane, who served as deaconto the late Archbishop, told the Na-tional Herald

Archbishop Demetrios ofAmerica presided over the ceremo-ny of the placement of the marbleplague upon Archbishop Iakovos’grave. The Archbishop offered amemorial Trisagion service, assist-

By Liana Sideri andChristos Malaspinas

Special to the National Herald

NEW YORK - Visitors fromGreece wishing to travel to theUnited States for a short period oftime still need a visa to enter thecountry. The existing U.S. VisaWaiver Program, with 28 partici-pating countries, does not includeGreece, nor does it indicate its in-tention to do so any time soon.

Despite Greece's compliancewith new American laws which in-troduced drastic changes to theprocess of issuing passports sinceJanuary 2006 (according to whicha biometric passport is now theidentifying document that will au-thenticate the citizenship of travel-ers, with critical informationstored on a microchip able to re-tain digital signature and otherbiometric data), Greece is still inthe frustrating position trying toshake off an old stigma of inade-quacy.

The U.S. Embassy does noteasily issue visas to Greek citizens,even though Greece is a memberof the European Union, and assuch, it would be thought, exclud-ed from the visa requirement likemost of its fellow European coun-tries. When a visa is issued, theprocess currently tends to be com-plicated and tedious, while theoutcome is often dubious. No mat-ter what prerequisites the Hellenic

Republic may have already met inorder to qualify for the VWP, itappears that Greece is victimizedby its own past.

In the past, presumably, Greecewas perceived as struggling withsuch issues as border security andprotection, as well as illegal immi-gration. Until the year 2001,Greece had still not fulfilled theessential criteria which wouldqualify it to participate in theVWP.

Those criteria are establishedby the U.S. Senate, which decidesabout the candidacy of each coun-try to this program. According toU.S. laws, simply being and E.U.member is not sufficient for acountry to participate in the VWP.Prospective VWP participantsmust fulfill the criteria, and theU.S. has publicly stated its inten-tion to approve the inclusion ofthese members, together withGreece.

In February 2005, PresidentBush proposed a "roadmap,"guidelines for certain countrieswhich must adhere to certain com-mon rules, in addition to otherconsiderations unique to each in-dividual country. The goal was toprepare these countries for futureinclusion in the VWP which,nonetheless, depends mostly onsubjective evaluation of the crite-ria.

By Theodore KalmoukosSpecial to The National herald

BOSTON, Mass. – Tripletragedy struck a Greek Americanfamily in Peabody, Massachusetts.

George Kalogeropoulos, 25, re-portedly killed his fatherDemetrios, 52, and his sister Joan-na, 23, and then reportedly killedhimself.

Initially, authorities were underthe impression that the killingswere the result of gunshots, butthe autopsy revealed that the vic-tims were stabbed to death.

At press time, Peabody Policesaid they think the triple homicidewas an apparent murder-suicide.

Preliminary findings show thatthere appeared to be a physicalstruggle between brother and sis-ter at the door of the home.

Marina Kalogeropoulos, thewife of the Demetrios and motherof George and Joanna, discoveredtheir bodies last Friday afternoon,June 23, after returning homefrom work at her Beauty Salonnear the town of Danvers.

POOL OF BLOODShe found her husband’s body

in the kitchen in a pool of blood.Mrs. Kalogeropoulos immediatelycalled 911. By the time police ar-rived at the Kalogeropoulos’ homeon Margin Street in Peabody, Mrs.Kalogeropoulos had discoveredher daughter’s Joanne body on thesecond floor bathroom, and a few

By Dimitri SoultogiannisSpecial to The National Herald

WASHINGTON, D.C. – In aletter circulated to his fellow mem-bers nationwide, the AmericanHellenic Educational ProgressiveAssociation’s current SupremePresident, Gus James, has an-nounced his intentions to seek asecond one-year term during theorganization’s upcoming 83rd an-nual national convention in Holly-wood, Florida at the end of thismonth.

“Even though great progresshas been made, our task is notcomplete. At the urging of a largenumber of Ahepans who believewe should continue our movementof change, I have decided to seek asecond term in order to completewhat we started,” Mr. James statesin his letter, dated June 16, clearlyimplying that one year is notenough to accomplish his objec-tives.

With 41 of 58 members havingserved only one-year terms duringAHEPA’s 84-year history, and on-

ly four of the remaining 17 servingmore than one year since 1962,Mr. James decision to seek anoth-er term is noteworthy for its rarityin the history and politics ofAHEPA, the largest Greek Amer-ican grassroots organization.

By most accounts, Mr. James,an attorney by profession has pro-vided a much-needed spark in thelife of AHEPA, and is well liked bythe organization’s membershipacross the country. But he will not

Why do GreeksStill Need VisasTo Enter the U.S.?

TripleTragedyStrikesGreekFamily

By Dimitri SoultogiannisSpecial to The National Herald

WASHINGTON, D.C. – “TheHolocaust of Greek Jewry: Monu-ments and Memories,” publishedby the Central Board of JewishCommunities in Greece with thesupport of the Hellenic Republic’sMinistry of Education & ReligiousAffairs, was presented last week inthe historic Mansfield Room of theUnited States Capitol on June 21.

Moses Constantinis, Presidentof the Central Board of JewishCommunities in Greece, wasamong those who addressed the au-dience was the. “It is with deep-feltemotion that I represent the Jews ofGreece today in this temple of

Democracy, Independence andCivilization at the presentation of‘The Holocaust of Greek Jewry:Monuments and Memories,’ awork by the Central Board of Jew-ish Communities in Greece, andthe fruit of long years of historicaland socio-political research, whosepublication was made possiblethanks to the support of the GreekMinistry of Education and Reli-gious Affairs,” Mr. Constantinissaid.

PORT OF MISFORTUNE“In the introduction to the book,

I describe it as ‘A Port in Misfor-tune,’ for it is a sad record of thehistory of those Jewish monuments

Monuments & Memories:Holocaust of Greek Jewry

James to Seek 2nd AHEPA Term

By Steve FrangosSpecial to The National Herald

Since the American HellenicEducational and Progressive Asso-ciation (Order of AHEPA) is a se-cret fraternal organization, itshould come as no surprise that noauthorized narrative history of theOrder now exists. Much haschanged within AHEPA since itwas founded in the early 1920’s.

Given AHEPA’s dynamic role inthe Greek American community

since its inception, it is extremelycurious that so few historical ac-counts devoted to AHEPA exist.Having said that, it is still possibleto outline the origins of this notableorganization through a synthesis ofolder accounts.

FOUNDING FATHERSIn most accounts, written by

Ahepans, George A. Poulos is al-ways credited with the sole devel-opment of his “brainchild,” the Or-der of AHEPA. This is clearly stat-ed In Peter N. Mantzoras’ “AHEPA

and I Across the Years” (PnyxPress, Glenview, Illinois: 1966),and largely implied in GeorgeLeiber’s “The History of the Orderof AHEPA” (AHEPA: Washington,DC: 1972). In both of these ac-counts, Poulos is portrayed as awell-to-do traveling salesman who,in the course of his daily routines,had many occasions to discuss hisbrainchild or ideas about a Greekorganization with his fellow Greek

The Origins and Myths of AHEPA

Offering his input to the future E.U. presidency

Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis, left, and his Finnish counterpart Matti Vanhanen arrive at their jointpress conference in Helsinki this past Monday June 26. Karamanlis and Vanhanen discussed the themesof Finland's upcoming EU Presidency during the Greek Premier's short visit.

Dozens of people attended a memorial service for the late Archbishop Iakovos outside of Holy CrossChapel in Brookline, Massachusetts last week, marking the occasion of the setting of his gravestone. Inthe grouping to the left are Arthur Anton, Paulette Poulos and Dr. Louis Patsavos, professor of CanonLaw at Holy Cross School of Theology. Tom Lelon, vice chairman of the school’s board of trustees, isshown center. To the right are Deacon Nathaniel Symeonides, Father Nick Triantafilou, ArchbishopDemetrios of America and Bishop Andonios of Phasiane.

“This Grave Too Small for Such a Great Man”

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AP PHOTO/JUSSI NUKARI

By Veronica OleksynAssociated Press

VIENNA, (AP) – Finland'sPresident Tarja Halonen began atwo-day official visit to Austria thispast Monday, as her country pre-pares to take over the rotating pres-idency of the European Union.

Halonen met with AustrianPresident Heinz Fischer, and wasto meet later with Chancellor Wolf-gang Schuessel, as Austria is wrap-ping up its six-month leadership ofthe 25-nation bloc. Finland offi-cially takes over on Saturday, July1.

In a joint news conference withFischer, Halonen urged EU candi-date countries Romania and Bul-garia to step up their implementa-tion of reforms, adding it was im-portant they continue doing soonce they became official mem-bers.

In comments quoted by the Aus-tria Press Agency, Halonen alsosaid it was likely that Turkey's roadto fulfilling the criteria for EUmembership would be "rockier"than that of other candidate coun-tries because of "many problemsand many questions." She also saidit was clear that Turkey must rec-ognize all EU countries, a refer-ence to the Cyprus issue.

In Lisbon last Friday, June 23,Cypriot Foreign Minister YiorgosLillikas said his country supportedTurkey's European Union member-ship aspirations, but only if it ful-fills its EU obligations and recog-nizes Cyprus.

Lillikas was speaking at the end

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Finland SaysTurkey’s RoadTo E.U. is aRocky One

By Nicholas PaphitisAssociated Press Writer

ATHENS (AP) – A rare silvercoin celebrating the most famousmurder of antiquity was handedover this past Tuesday to CultureMinistry officials in Athens, after agroundbreaking deal which al-lowed its repatriation from GreatBritain.

The tiny coin, a denarius issuedin 42 BC by Marcus Brutus, thechief assassin of Julius Caesar, isone of only 58 in the world. Greekauthorities say it was illegally exca-vated in Greece, and sold last yearby two suspected Greek smugglersto London's Classical NumismaticGroup, Inc.

Culture Minister George Voul-garakis hailed the 2,000-year-oldartifact's return as an importantsuccess in Greece's struggle to re-claim smuggled antiquities.

"This has great significance,and is a forbearer of future repa-triations as part of our fightagainst illegal excavations and an-tiquities trafficking," he said.

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Britain CutsDeal, ReturnsAncient CoinBack to Greece

TNH/STAFF PHOTO

ed by his deacon, Nathaniel Syme-onides, and HC/HC President Rev.Nicholas Triantafilou.

Holy Cross Executive Commit-tee Vice Chairman Tomas Lelon,and professors, Rev. Dr. AlkiviadisCalivas, Rev. Dr. TheodoreStylianopoulos and Dr. Elias Pat-savos were also present. PaulettePoulos, Iakovos’ longtime admin-istrative assistant, and Niki Kale,director of archives at the GreekOrthodox Archdiocese of America,along with friends from New Yorkand Boston, Leo and EvantheaCondakes among them, attendedthe ceremony.

Demetrios called the late Arch-bishop Iakovos invited everyonepresent to pray for the repose of hissoul, saying that “the grave is toosmall to contain the body of such agreat man.”

GREAT CHAPTERSpeaking to the National Her-

ald, Archbishop Demetrios said,“Archbishop Iakovos was a greatchapter in the history of the Churchof America. He succeeded twogreat archbishops, Athenagorasand Michael, and during his 37years of Archbishopric ministry, hedid tremendous work.”

Demetrios also noted thatIakovos’ ministry “was not withoutobstacles, known and unknown,expected and unexpected,” addingthat “he contributed so much forour omogeneia to be today such asignificant part of the world of theOrthodox Hellenism.”

Speaking about his personal re-lationship and friendship withArchbishop Iakovos, ArchbishopDemetrios said, “We had a verylong relationship since the time hewas Bishop of Meliti representingthe Ecumenical Patriarchate at the

World Council of Churches inGeneva. We met over the time hecame to Athens, and of course weknew each other for many yearshere. He had asked me many timesto represent him in various activi-ties or services. I remember it wasin 1981, when he was ill, he askedme to serve in the New York areafor Holy Week Services.”

Demetrios referred his relation-ship with Iakovos as “heartfelt andessential between two persons wholove the Church and work in thevineyard of the Lord.”

According to documents fromthe late Archbishop’s archive,Iakovos had requested the releaseof then Rev. Demetrios Trakatellis(now Archbishop Demetrios) fromthe Church of Greece in order toserve the Church in America per-manently. The late MetropolitanSilas of New Jersey, then servingas assistant bishop to ArchbishopIakovos, had called ArchbishopDemetrios in June of 1967 and hadasked me to go and represent Arch-bishop Iakovos in Miami.

“I said to the bishop that Iwould do it gladly, but I just re-ceived a telegram from Athens noti-fying me that I was elected Bishopof Vresthena, auxiliary Bishop toArchbishop Seraphim of Athens,and of course such a developmentchanges a lot of things. BishopSilas told me that the Archbishopwanted to promote me to a Bishop,as well,” Demetrios told the Herald.

Asked if he knew whether Arch-bishop Iakovos had recommendedhim to become his successor asArchbishop of America, Demetriossaid, “That’s indeterminable. Henever told me so himself. It wassomething that I did not care for. Iwas not eager about the position.”

Ms. Poulos told the Herald, “Iremember Archbishop Iakovos as ashining star. As a person who ledus, who guided us; as a spiritual fa-ther who had so much love, somuch faith and so much warmthfor everyone.”

She also said, “ArchbishopIakovos loved his people, theyouth, the Greek language and theChurch, and the only thing hewanted was for us to be united andlove one another.”

Ms. Poulos was the last personwhom the late Archbishop spoke

to. She said, “His last words were,‘I am leaving you. Don’t be afraid.I am departing. My time hascome.”

Arthur Anton, a longtime friendof Archbishop Iakovos and a

founding member of the Archbish-op Iakovos Leadership 100 En-dowment Fund, told the Herald, “Iremember Archbishop Iakovos as afriend; as a spiritual father; and asthe person who embraced me per-

sonally, and my entire family. Heblessed our wedding in 1951 at theBoston Cathedral. He baptized mychildren and my grandchildren,and I feel blessed to have knownhim, and to have been his friend.”

2 COMMUNITY THE NATIONAL HERALD, JULY 1, 2006

Archbishop Iakovos’ Gravestone, from his Birthplace, Now in Place

minutes later her son’s body in thefamily’s SUV in the drivewayslumped on the wheel of the car.Police discovered a handgun in thecar. The house was immediatelypronounced as a murder scene,and law enforcement authoritieswould not allow anyone to ap-proach.

“We don’t know how this couldhappen,” said a tearful man whoidentified himself as Mrs.Kalogeropoulos’ brother as hestood outside the house. Marinawas holding up as well as shecould, he said. “Not only did shelose a husband, she lost her twochildren,” he said. “We can't talkabout it yet. It’s just too much.”

Stunned neighbors have saidthe family appeared to be a hard-working family in the diverseneighborhood of multi-story brickhomes and long driveways.

“It’s a terrible tragedy. It issomething we’re not used to in thecity of Peabody. It’s normally a citythat people can go about in a safemanner,” Essex County DistrictAttorney Jonathan W. Blodgettsaid during a Press Conference atPeabody Police headquarters.

Describing the situation Mrs.Kalogeropoulos had to face, policesaid, “It was a chilling scene. It wasa very difficult scene. It appearedthere had been a struggle in thebathroom where Joanne was mur-dered. The door had been lockedand then broken down.” Police re-moved the bodies, carting themaway in body bags placed onstretchers.

NO CRIMINAL RECORDPeabody police said they had

never been called to the house be-fore and declined to speculate on areason for the double slaying.George Kalogeropoulos had nocriminal record, police said, andhe had a license to carry fourfirearms, the silver handgun foundat his feet, as well as three otherguns.

The Kalogeropoulos family hadlived in their home for 20 years,and they had moved to Peabodyfrom the Cambridge-Somervillearea.

Joanna was the lead cashier atthe Sports Authority store at theLiberty Tree Mall in Danvers.“She was always cheerful. She wasvery outgoing,” said Gina Thi-bodeou, the shop’s operationsmanager.

Although the Kalogeropoulosfamily lived in Peabody for twodecades, they apparently had not

established strong connectionswith the Greek American commu-nity in the area.

George Demopoulos, a busi-nessman and former president ofthe Federation of the GreekAmerican Societies of New Eng-land, who has been living in thearea for many years, told the Na-tional Herald, “I do not know thefamily, at all.” Rev. Andrew De-motses, who has been serving St.Basil’s Church in Peabody formore than 40 years told the Na-tional Herald, “This is a Biblicaltragedy. I do not know the family.”Spiros Venios, who is actively in-volved with the Greek Americancommunity in Peabody, havingserved as president of St. Basil’sparish council, offered the sameassessment.

Neighbors said they did not no-tice anything unusual about thefamily, which appeared to be justanother hardworking immigrantfamily in the diverse neighborhoodof multi-story brick homes and longdriveways. Marina owned a hair sa-lon in Danvers, neighbors said,while her daughter was a customerservice representative at the SportsAuthority in a Danvers mall.

Maria Rodrigues, who livesnext door to the Kalogeropoulosfamily, stared into the family’syard from her front porch and de-scribed how last Friday morningshe had seen DemetriosKalogeropoulos in his backyard,taking out the trash. He waved toher, she said, and then went backinside the house.

SOUND OF GUNSHOTSBut that afternoon, she heard

the sound of gunshots, and thenthe blaring of what sounded like acar alarm or horn, she said.

“The son was in the car, hisbody crumpled over the steeringwheel, and there was some noise,like the horn or something,” Ro-drigues said.

Joshua Roberts, a close friendof Joanne Kalogeropoulos, said hehad met her brother several times,but had rarely spoken with him.

“He was a really good kid,” hesaid. “I never asked her about herfamily stuff. I never expected any-thing like this to happen.”

George Kalogeropoulos, whoallegedly committed the murdersand then committed suicide, wasunemployed. In his profile on thewebsite “MySpace.com,” he wrote,“I do not have time to lie,” andsaid he dreamed of having chil-dren of his own someday. He por-trayed himself as a cynic who wassuspicious of “fake people.” He

wrote that he is a graduate ofMemorial High School inPeabody. He also stated that hehas a Ph.D from Rhode IslandUniversity, but this could not beverified at press time. He listed hisoccupation as “nuclear pharma-cist.” He stated that he took pridein his Greek heritage (his screenname is “Grecian Prince”).

Joanna Kalogeropoulos hadgraduated with a degree in fashionfrom Newbury College in Brook-line, and she was hoping to be-come a fashion designer. On work-days, she visited her mother fre-quently at Marina’s hair Salonacross from the mall where Joanneworked. A sign was placed on thesalon’s window: “Due to a suddenfamily tragedy, the shop will beclosed until further notice.”

As this edition of the NationalHerald was going to the press, acollective funeral service wasscheduled to take place at St. Con-stantine & Helen’s Church inCambridge on Thursday morning,June 29. Rev. Asterios Geroster-gios, pastor of the Cambridgeparish, told the Herald, “I do notknow the family, but these familieshad ties in our area, and inSomerville. They have relativeswho have decided to have the fu-neral here,” he said. FatherGerostergios referred to the inci-dent as “a great tragedy.” He alsosaid Mr. & Mrs. Kalogeropoulos“had ties with our parish becausethey were married here, but thatwas prior to my assuming my cleri-cal responsibilities in this parish.”

The Kalogeropoulos familyhails from Messinia, Greece. Tele-phone calls to WilliamKalogeropoulos, the victim’sbrother in Somerville, were not re-turned. The family is in seclusiondue to the enormous publicity theincident has received from the me-dia. Demetrios & MarinaKalogeropoulos have one moredaughter who is married and livesin her own home.

At press time, police remainedguarded about the case, simply re-peating that the investigation iscontinuing. Essex County DistrictAttorney Spokesman Stephen O’-Connell said the motive is still un-der investigation: “We are tryingto find a motive for this tragedy.Police have been interviewing rel-atives, family friends and neigh-bors, trying to understand whatprompted the slayings.”

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The tombstone of the late Archbishop Iakovos, which he purchased himself from the island of Imvros, hisbirthplace, was set to his grave last week outside the Chapel at Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of The-ology in Brookline, Massachusetts.

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scattered throughout Greece thatsurvived the fury of World War II.In it, there are monuments in bothmeanings of the word. Some arehistorically significant ruins thatsurvived the destruction of theJewish communities of Greeceduring the Holocaust, and some aretributes – monuments erected invarious Greek cities and townsduring post-War years in memoryof the centuries-old Jewish pres-ence,” he said.

“Let us not forget that of the 28Jewish communities that thrived inan equal number of Greek citiesand towns before World War II, on-ly eight managed to re-establishthemselves after the Holocaust.And even those were very small, as67,000 Jews, all Greek citizens –86 percent of the Jewish popula-tion of Greece – were exterminatedin Nazi camps,” he added.

In Greece, as in the rest of Eu-rope, Mr. Constantinis explained,the Nazis did not want to take onlythe life of Jews. They systematical-ly destroyed their monuments,cemeteries, building, archives, li-braries and religious ritual objects– anything that would have been areminder of the Jewish presence.

“They meant to erase all thatwhich is a sacred legacy to all peo-ple. The Nazis embarked on thispolicy of totally obliterating Jew-ish identity because there had beena continuous, uninterrupted Jewishpresence in Greece since before thetime of Christ. There were evenJews in Greece as early as theThird Century BC, as proven by aninscription dating from that timewhich mentions a Jew by the nameof Moschos Moschionas. Also,Saint Paul, the Christian Apostle,taught the new religion in Jewishsynagogues during his journeythrough Greece in 57 AD,” Mr.Constantinis said.

“On behalf of the Jews ofGreece, I would like to express ourgratitude for this gathering inmemory and honor of the innocentvictims of the Holocaust. I am cer-tain that the souls of our parents,brothers, sisters and other rela-tions, whose lives were lost so un-fairly and inhumanely during theHolocaust, feel comforted thattheir sacrifice has been recognizedin this way,” he added.

RISKED HIS OWN LIFETO HELP SAVE OTHERSPan-Macedonian Federation of

America President Panos Spiliakosspoke about his father, an upcom-ing lawyer from Thessaloniki, whohelped saved the lives of manyJews, in many cases risking hisown.

“My father, Demetrios Panagio-tis Spiliakos, used his involvementwith the Greek underground tosave as many lives as he could, ig-noring the inevitable terminal con-sequences for himself and his fam-ily, had he been caught,” Mr. Spili-akos said. “Children were one ofhis life’s passions. My father couldnot bare the sight of hungry andsuffering children, and God onlyknows that the dark days of the1940’s produced an ample supply.”

According to Mr. Spiliakos, hisfather sported khakis over his tall,blond, blue-eyed, erect and impos-ing frame, and at the gates of theJewish neighborhood-turned ghet-to, he drew constant salutes fromGerman guards who assumed hewas a German officer. That afford-ed him with the opportunity to visitThessaloniki’s Jewish area fre-quently. He would pretend to be in-toxicated, and would come outagain with precious company: Jew-ish children. Once outside the ghet-to, he made sure they found theirway to Athens and the Pelopon-nese, where they were “reborn” as

they melted into the countrysidepopulation and into a life of free-dom – and concealment.

“My father was too humble tospeak about his activities,” Mr.Spiliakos said. “He was intolerantof the ungrateful, however. Hecalled them ‘the enemies of soci-ety’ because he claimed ‘they dis-couraged others from stepping upto the plate,” he said.

Some acts so enormously inhu-man and incomprehensible that theonly way a person can cope withthem is by denying that they eventook place, he added.

“Fortunately, by the grace ofGod, there are also some acts thatare so incredibly human, and theiroccurrence is also denied,” Mr.Spiliakos said. “Our Jewishbrethren have been witnesses ofboth and, to their credit, have com-mitted themselves to preservingthe memories of both. For theyknow all too well that history iswritten once, and those who ignoreit, or try to change it, run the risk ofrepeating past mistakes. To thosewho deny the horrors of the JewishHolocaust, we respond with the up-lifting stories of brave individualswho overcome the natural instinctof self-preservation, and literally

shielded with their humanity thelives of their fellow men.”

Congresswoman Shelley Berke-ley of Nevada, whose grandmotherwas born in Thessaloniki, said that,had her family not come to Ameri-ca, they would probably have be-come victims of the Holocaust.“That’s part of the reason why I de-cided to run for the United StatesCongress,” she said.

Hosted by the Greek Embassyin Washington, the event was at-tended U.S. Senator Paul Sarbanesof Maryland; Congressman EliotEngel of New York; the Greek andCypriot Ambassadors to the U.S.,Alexandros Mallias and EuripidesEvriviades, respectively; GreggRickman, State Department Spe-cial Envoy for Holocaust issues;Minister-Counselor of the IsraeliEmbassy in the United States AlonUshpiz; Council of HellenesAbroad World President AndrewAthens; Director of Strategic Stud-ies for the American-Jewish Com-mittee Barry Jacobs; former Spe-cial Prosecutor Richard Ben-Veniste; American Hellenic Insti-tute Executive Director Nick Lari-gakis; and National CoordinatedEffort of the Hellenes PresidentAndrew Manatos.

Ambassador Mallias read mes-sages from Greek Foreign MinisterDora Bakoyanni and EducationMinister Marietta Yiannakou, re-ferring to the value of the book inpreserving and recording the mem-ory and history of an inseparablepart of Greek society, and citingthe need for Europe and its youthto forever reject the evils of racism,xenophobia and bigotry.

All those who spoke congratu-lated Ambassador Mallias on hisinitiative to organize the presenta-tion of the impressive volume atthe Capitol. They also spoke of thebook’s immense importance.

In its 333 pages of text and pho-tographs, the book describes themonuments and memories ofGreek Jews, almost 90 percent ofwhom were exterminated in Naziconcentration camps.

It also details the generosity oftheir Greek compatriots who, risk-ing their lives, saved many Jewsfrom a certain death during thedark days of the German occupa-tion.

The speakers also spoke of theties and common experienceswhich the Greeks share with theJews, and of the need to never for-get the Jewish Holocaust.

THE NATIONAL HERALD, JULY 1, 2006 COMMUNITY 3

GOINGS ON... Monuments and Memories: Holocaust of Greek Jewry

Pan-Macedonian Federation of America President Panos Spiliakos speaking of his father, who saved thelives of many Hellenic Jews in Thessaloniki. Also in the photo (L-R) are Senator Paul Sarbanes of Mary-land, Greek Ambassador to the United States Alexandros Mallias and the President of the Central Boardof Jewish Communities in Greece Moses Constantinis.

July 6,7,8 & 10Syros, Greece.Mid-America Pro-duction’s Festival of the Aegean2006 hosts a series of concerts cele-brating the 250th Anniversary ofMozart’s Birth and an evening ofBroadway tunes at the Apollo Mu-nicipal Theatre “La Piccola Scala”on the Cycladic island of Syros. Pe-ter Tiboris conducts the BosulavMartinu Philharmonic, the SyrosOpera Chorus and an internationalcast of soloists. July 6 & 8: a fullystaged production of Mozart’s opera“Don Giovanni.” July 7: an all-Mozart Program with pianist JeniaManoussaki and the philharmonic.July 10: “Broadway Comes to Sy-ros,” a concert featuring selectionsfrom “West Side Story,” “My FairLady” and other Broadway favorites– www.midamerica-music.com.

July 9East Meadow, N.Y.“Greek Ameri-can Night at Eisenhower Park,”7:30 PM. Part of Nassau CountyParks' International Music ConcertSeries, at the Harry Chapin Lake-side Theater. Located in Fields 6and 6A in Eisenhower Park. Specialaccommodations available for dis-abled persons, including reservedparking, accessible restrooms, anda convenient reserved location onthe hill. No formal seating at theTheater, so concertgoers are urgedto bring folding chairs. For more in-formation, call 516-572-0223 orvisit the web at www.nassaucoun-tyny.gov/parks.

July 14-17Nashville, Tenn. Online registra-tion for the 2006 National YoungAdult Conference in Nashville isnow open at www.yal.org. Work-shops with noted Orthodox speak-ers, fellowship with young adultsand Music City USA, stay at theGaylord Opryland Hotel. Events atthe Dyer Observatory and BBKing’s Blues Club. For more infor-mation, call the National Office ofYouth & Young Adult Ministries at646-519-6180.

July 20Astoria, N.Y. “CYPRUS… Landof Love and Pain.” Prepared, pro-duced and presented by the CulturalOrganizations, AKTINA Produc-tions and CYPRECO of America.Hellenic Cultural Center (27-09Crescent Street at Newtown Av-enue), 7:30 PM, on the occasion ofthe 32nd commemoration of theTurkish Invasion of Cyprus. Theevent will feature a documentary byAKTINA TV (WNYE – 25) aboutthe history of Cyprus from ancienttimes to the present; a cultural pro-gram with poems about the Turkishinvasion written by the late LucyMaroulleti; a musical program withGlafkos Kontemeniotis and YiorgosKolias; and a photo exhibition, “Be-yond the Division.” A reception willfollow. Admission is free and opento the public.

August 7-18Washington, D.C. Camp Shake-speare 2006. Focusing on theGreeks. Each summer, studentsages 10-18 converge on the Shake-speare Theatre Company to explorethe craft of acting with professionalartists and educators in 2-week ses-sions designed to enhance under-standing of theater through perfor-mance. Session IV this summer,Antigone by Sophocles, will ex-plore another time period of classictheatre to provide students with ex-posure to other classical perfor-mance styles. For more info, pleasevisit the web at www.Shake-speareTheatre.org, or call the Edu-cation Hotline at 202-547-5688.

October 13Alexandria, Va. The AmericanHellenic Institute 3rd Annual Bene-

fit Golf Tournament, at the Green-dale Golf Course in Alexandria(6700 Telegraph Road, TEL: 703-971-6170). Breakfast at 7:30 AM.Shot-Gun Start at 8:30 AM. Formore information, contact Taryn at703-283-4770.

November 3-4Portland, Ore. and Seattle, Wash.“The Divine Liturgy byTchaikovsky,” the work whichopened the floodgates to new musi-cal creativity in the Russian Ortho-dox Church. Presented by CapellaRomana. Mark Bailey, Yale Rus-sian Chorus, guest director. Friday,8 PM, at St. Mary’s Cathedral inPortland (1716 NW Davis Street).Saturday, 8 PM, at Holy RosaryChurch in Seattle (4139 42nd Av-enue SW). For more information,call 503-236-8202 (Toll fee: 866-822-7735) or visit the web atwww.capellaromana.org.

Until November 26Baltimore, Md. An antiquities ex-hibition entitled “Things withWings: Mythological Figures inAncient Greek Art” is hosted at theWalters Art Museum, 600 NorthCharles Street in Baltimore. Ex-ploring the various manifestationsof winged beings in ancient GreekArt?(410) 547-9000 or www.the-walters.org.

January 12-13Portland, Ore. and Seattle, Wash.“Mount Sinai: The Frontier ofByzantium.” Medieval ByzantineChant from Saint Catherine’sMonastery in Sinai, presented byCapella Romana. Alexander Lin-gas, director. Produced in Coopera-tion with the J. Paul Getty Museum,“Holy Image Hallowed Ground:Icons from Sinai.” Friday, 8 PM, atSaint Mary’s Cathedral in Portland(1716 NW Davis Street). Saturday,8 PM, at Holy Rosary Church inSeattle (4139 42nd Avenue SW).For more information, call 503-236-8202 (toll free: 866-822-7735)or visit the web at www.capellaro-mana.org.

April 20-21Portland, Ore. and Seattle, Wash.“Radiant Cloud,” luminous choralworks by contemporary Greekcomposers, featuring the work ofMichael Adamis, which creates asoundscape for the Uncreated Lightof the Transfiguration on MountTabor. Presented by Capella Ro-mana. Alexander Lingas, director.Friday, 8 PM, at Saint Mary’sCathedral in Portland (1716 NWDavis Street). Saturday, 8 PM, atHoly Rosary Church in Seattle(4139 42nd Avenue SW). For moreinformation, call 503-236-8202(toll free: 866-822-7735) or visitthe web atwww.capellaromana.org.

Long Term Athens, Greece. The antiquitiesexhibition “Cyprus-1000 Frag-ments of History: the Thanos N.Zintis Collection of Cypriot Antiq-uities,” is hosted at the Museum ofCycladic Art, 4 Neophytou DoukasStreet in Athens. Featuring 1,500Cypriot antiquities from the Chal-colithic to the Byzantine period, thelargest private collection to be dis-played in any Greek museum. (011-30) 210-722-8321 or 8323 andwww.cycladic-m.gr.

Note to our readersThis calendar of events section is acomplimentary service to the GreekAmerican community. All parishes,organizations and institutions areencouraged to submit their infor-mation on any Greek-related event(e-mail: [email protected]).

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TNH/DIMITRI SOULTOGIANNIS

By Alastair MacaulayFinancial Times

Nobody alive has seen a perfectproduction of a Greek tragedy be-cause no Greek tragedy has beenperfectly staged for more than amillennium. The choral odes – acentral feature of every ancientGreek play, originally written to beboth sung and danced – are an in-superable problem. Only thosewho can read Greek can have anyidea of how they operated, andwhich of us can read Greek as theGreeks did?

But here is King Oedipus, thehero who most perfectly exempli-fies the tragic fall from glory; ruth-lessly brushing aside every warningvoice; furiously rushing to uncoverthe past crimes committed by – hediscovers – himself. He, the king,learns that he has killed his fatherand married his mother: the ulti-

mate taboos.Sophocles' construction is such

that the moment of recognitionfalls like a sword.

Oedipus doesn't try to make ex-cuses or to remain king. His self-horror is such that, off-stage, with-out hesitating, he blinds himself.And when he returns sightless tothe stage, he presents the mostperfect of all tragic images: He isthe man who was blind when hesaw; who sees the truth now thathe is blind; who knows that all hecan ever see now is anguish.

And strangely, even for a mod-ern audience, the chorus helpsmake the greatness of the play –they are part of why we need to seeand hear this play, not just read it.Like us, the chorus runs a range ofemotion from exaltation, via baf-flement, to compassion. Theymake it a rite through which wespontaneously experience this

tragic horror afresh.In Oedipus the King (and in his

later work, Oedipus at Colonus),Sophocles ideally set out the crueloxymora which Shakespeare wasto recycle to yet more brilliant ef-fect in King Lear: enlightenmentin blindness, and the belief that noman should be called happy untilhe is dead.

And Oedipus the King pro-ceeds in ways which look forward,past Shakespeare to Ibsen: Every-thing of note has happened longbefore the play begins.

The drama lies not in action,but in coming to terms with pastand present. We will never seeOedipus the King staged with any-thing like perfection, but tragedyhas never been more perfectlyachieved.

TThhee FFiinnaanncciiaall TTiimmeess ppuubb--lliisshheedd tthhee aabboovvee oonn JJuunnee 2244..

Choral Odes Make Oedipus Great Play


be running unopposed, and likelyfaces a stiff challenge fromSupreme Vice President Ike Gu-las, who is also a lawyer.

Mr. James (of Virginia Beach,Virginia) and Mr. Gulas (of Birm-ingham, Alabama) will face offagainst each other, as they vie forAHEPA’s top job during thisyear’s elections.

JAMESMr. James’ agenda remains

consistent with his early message:“… to re-establish AHEPA as theleading proponent and voice ofHellenism in the world,” he writes.

“It has been my great honorand privilege this past year to serveas the Supreme President of theOrder of AHEPA. During theyear, I enjoyed a very close work-ing relationship with the SupremeLodge, the Board of Trustees andthe AHEPA staff. With their co-operation, we successfully imple-mented a significant portion of ouragenda for the year: to re-establishAHEPA as the leading proponentand voice of Hellenism in theworld,” he states.

According to Mr. James, thepast year’s efforts focused onchanging the present course in or-der to increase AHEPA’s visibility

and image through greater mem-ber participation; greater interac-tion with government officials;greater media coverage; and acloser working relationship withother organizations and the GreekOrthodox Church.

“AHEPA participated in manyimportant events and activitiesduring the year which highlightedthe mission and goals of our frater-nity,” Mr. James writes.

“A recent highlight was the78th annual AHEPA Family Ex-cursion to Athens, Thessaloniki,Cyprus and the Ecumenical Patri-archate in Constantinople. Duringthis historic trip, we hosted a ban-quet in Athens to honor the Hel-lenic Republic and its citizens. Acrowd of approximately 700 indi-viduals attended the event, includ-ing Prime Minister Karamanlis,Hellenic Republic President Karo-los Papoulias, Hellenic ParliamentSpeaker Anna Psarouda-Benakiand many other high-ranking offi-cials of the Greek Government.This event and our other efforts topromote Hellenism and our Hel-lenic ideals have changed thecourse of AHEPA and propelledus to a new level of internationalrecognition,” he adds.

According to Mr. James, de-spite AHEPA’s enormous interna-

tional successes, there are stillmany challenges confronting theorganization domestically: “Ourgreatest challenge is the need tochange our membership program;to address our aging membership;and to stop our losses. Greater ef-forts are needed to better serveand motivate our members to be-come more connected with nation-

al (headquarters) and more active-ly involved with our national agen-da,” he states. “Our AHEPA fami-ly needs additional encourage-ment to support our nationalevents, activities, projects and pro-grams, and we must put great em-phasis on our domestic agenda inorder to strengthen our leadershipposition as the largest, oldest and

most successful grassroots organi-zation of Hellenes and Phil-Hel-lenes in the United States.”

GULASMr. Gulas has served AHEPA

at the national level over the past13 years. In his letter, dated June7, he states that his goal is to helpAHEPA penetrate mainstreamAmerica more effectively; buildupon the organization’s existingprograms; and to introduce initia-tives which will reach out to chil-dren and youth.

“My goal as Supreme Presidentis to expand the borders ofAHEPA into mainstream Ameri-ca. It is my belief that, in order toprogress, we must look back,” hewrites.

The issues AHEPA faces todayare different than those the orga-nizations forbears faced a genera-tion (or more) ago, Mr. Gulas ar-gues, although AHEPA should al-ways draw on “the core Hellenicvalues espoused by the earlyAHEPANS: “Freedom, democra-cy, opportunity and equality. Oursis a compelling story, and we mustshare it with mainstream America.Only then will our membershiprolls swell, allowing us to continueour mission into the future.”

If elected supreme president,Mr. Gulas promises, “I will advo-

cate an aggressive domestic agen-da to promote the existing pro-grams of AHEPA, while addinginitiatives to reach children which,in turn will serve to spread ourname throughout our communi-ties. We must continue the goodworks of the AHEPA Cooley’sAnemia Foundation, Bone Mar-row Registry, Housing and Schol-arship Foundation, and initiatenew programs such as the sponsor-ing of Vacation Bible School atour local churches. I will proposethat each AHEPA chapter adoptand sponsor an inner-city school,either through commitment oftime or money, or both,” he writes.

“Doing so will spread Hel-lenism throughout America to anew generation of Phil-Hellenes.A strong domestic policy onlyserves to strengthen our reputa-tion abroad in Greece, Cyprus,Australia and Latin America,” headds.

Mr. Gulas emphasizes the needto bring Greek American youthback to AHEPA: “To bring theyouth back into our folds, we mustfist capture their parents. This ishow I and many others becameAhepans. We must stop suppress-ing the enthusiasm of our youngadults who are ready, willing andable to serve this great fraternity.”

Gus James to Seek 2nd Term as AHEPA Supreme President

customers. These accounts furtherassert that Poulos, after formulat-ing these ideas on his own, present-ed them to the leaders of Atlanta’sGreek community. The majority ofthose community leaders not onlyaccepted Poulos’ ideas – withoutaltering them in the least – and thenwent onto become the SupremeLodge.

The ‘establishment’ of AHEPAhas seen other explanations which,given the nature of Greek interac-tion and social organization, seemmore plausible. In “The Greeks inthe United States” (Harvard Univer-sity Press, Cambridge, Mas-sachusetts: 1964), Theodore Sa-loutos offers his version ofAHEPA’s origin:

“George A. Nicholopoulos –then known as ‘Poulos’ – and JohnAngelopoulos, both traveling sales-men working out of Atlanta andwell known to each other, met bychance in Chattanooga, Tennesseeduring the early summer of 1922.Their principle topic of conversa-tion was how to best control thewave of hostility that had developedagainst members of their nationali-ty.” The two men “agreed that thiscould best be effected through theformation of a patriotic organiza-tion, national in scope, nonpartisan

in politics and nonsectarian in reli-gion. They also believed that suchan organization had to be secret andcomprised of a select group of indi-viduals, whose purpose would be tounite their fellow countrymen; in-culcate in them an aggressive na-tional consciousness; educate them-selves in the fundamental principlesof Americanism; and aid them toadapt themselves to the social andcommercial climate of this coun-try.”

The two men, “after giving moreserious thought to the matter, pro-posed to present their plan to theGreek American public. They chosethe name of the organization; draft-ed the rules and regulations; select-ed titles for the officers; and attend-ed to other details before openlypresenting the plan. On July 26,1922 they met with the most promi-nent members of the Atlanta Greekcommunity in the classroom of thechurch, and unfolded their plan oforganization. Following a lengthydiscussion, 17 of the 25 present ex-pressed their approval.”

Events moved quickly andsmoothly. On September 25, 1922,again with Poulos leading the way,the incorporation papers for the neworganization were filed in FultonCounty, Georgia. An important sec-tion from AHEPA’s charter crystal-lizes their intent: “(to) advance and

promote pure and undefiled Ameri-canism among the Greeks in theUntied States, its territories andcolonial possessions; to educate theGreeks in the matter of democracyand government of the UnitedStates; and for the general promo-tion of fraternity, sociability and thepractice of benevolent aid amongthis nationality.”

The First Supreme Lodge or, (asit is now known) the Mother Lodge,was composed of Nicholas D.Chotas, Supreme President; JamesCampbell, Supreme Vice President;Harry Angelopoulos, Supreme Sec-retary; George A. Poulos, SupremeGovernor; and James Vlass,Supreme Governor. Support forAHEPA was immediate. The speedat which AHEPA grew is telling inits appeal.

By the time of the first nationalconvention in Atlanta on October14, 1923 (or “convocation,” as con-ventions were then called), 32 chap-ters were organized around 1,300members. By 1924, in an obvioussymbolic gesture, AHEPA nationalheadquarters was moved to Wash-ington, D.C.

By 1928, the Order had over17,000 members in 192 chapters allacross the country. By 1930, thecomplete AHEPA Family saw com-pletion with a woman’s auxiliary,the Daughters of Penelope, and two

youth organizations, the Sons ofPericles and Maids of Athena.

But this story of origin, in what-ever version you choose, just does-n’t ring true.

COMMON CAUSEMerging what Mantzoras, Leiber

and Saloutos have to report, we cannow come to a more rounded socialsequence of concurrent events. Pou-los had undoubtedly been talking,and at considerable length, with lo-cal Atlanta Greeks and other com-patriots in the Deep South, whowere all feeling the pressure of na-tivist hostility against Greeks.

Rather than seeing Poulos as thelone innovator, Mantzoras andLeiber offer, Saloutos is more fo-cused on the common cause Greekbusinessmen shared at this specificjuncture in history. Even as we ac-cept Saloutos’ basic point of depar-ture, we must push beyond even thisman’s thoughtfully constructed nar-rative.

It is clear from statements madeby members of the Supreme Lodgethat Poulos, in the years followingthe First World War, was using hisbusiness contacts to talk about hisideas with other Greeks, as well as(we can be sure) as gathering a fewtogether.

As silver-tongued as Poulos mayhave been in presenting the organi-zational goals and structure, andeven the name of the new group,without one word of real dissent, itdoes not seem in keeping with theway Greeks typically interact in so-cial settings. Consequently, certainissues must have been already com-pletely worked out in these informaldiscussions between Poulos and the(more prominent) others. We cansafely make this assumption, sincethese men moved quickly, surelyand collectively to establish theirnew organization.

INSIDE THE KKKGeorge A. Poulos had some very

unique experiences, which must al-so be considered in any historicalsurvey of AHEPA’s founding. Hewas an esteemed confidant at theImperial Palace of the Ku KluxKlan, which has only garnered thisman lasting honor.

As V.I. Chebithes reports in hisseries of National Herald articles onthe foundation of AHEPA (pub-lished in October 1950), “It is an es-tablished fact that George A. Pouloswas employed by the ImperialPalace of the Ku Klux Klan in aconfidential capacity, and that hewas present and participated in itssecret meetings and conferenceswith the policymakers and high ad-ministrators of that then-dreadfullypowerful group. In this capacity, hewas in a position to have advanceknowledge of the plots and plans ofthe Klan; the causes out of whichthey arose; and the objects of theirmadness. This advance informationwas constantly used to the best ad-vantage of the unsuspecting vic-tims. There is no doubt that whatPoulos saw and learned from his ex-periences in the secret service of theKlan’s Imperial Palace promptedthe germination of the idea to estab-lish among the Greeks an organiza-tion which would counterbalancethe power of the Klan…”

All fine phrasing aside, and read-ing between the lines of statements

later attributed to Poulos, his con-tact with the Klan was nothing shortof terrifying. While Poulos’ role as aKlan consigliere is never explainedin any detail, the fervor and single-minded dedication with which helater preached his vision of a GreekAmerican national origin speaksvolumes for how his role at theKKK’s Palace was unquestionablyas a spy, and not as a fellow conspir-ator. We can also be fairly certainthat Poulos, in his private conversa-tions with fellow Greeks over table-tops in restaurants, or behind theclosed doors of hotel rooms, sharedhis experiences in the ImperialPalace.

Still, no amount of conversationby Poulos about the Klan wouldhave moved Greeks to organize on anational level, and with such delib-erate speed, unless these sameGreeks were facing a commonproblem.

ANTI-GREEK RIOTSSustained attacks against Greeks

were commonplace all across NorthAmerica from the late 1880’s wellinto the 1930’s. Since that time, amixture of Greek American pride –and shame – has resulted in a kindof collective memory loss concern-ing these attacks. The attacks can bedocumented in hundreds of newspa-per accounts all across the UnitedStates and Canada. Most of these at-tacks were leveled against Greeksindividually, or in small groups.Petty license infractions, gamblingand drinking absorb most of the of-ficial police involvement withGreek immigrants. The rest of thesenews stories involve “native-bornAmericans” and other newly ar-rived immigrants fighting withGreeks.

Beginning in the 1880’s, theNew York Times and various Chica-go newspapers note innumerable at-tacks and “riots” involving Greekstreet peddlers. But the problemwas far more complicated. As an ex-ample of this wider problem in justa two-year period (1907-08), I ef-fortlessly located some 70 anti-Greek news reports in the PuebloSun (Colorado). Newspaper ac-counts in Mason City, Iowa alsospeak of police and “ordinary” citi-zens attacking Greeks for drinking,playing their music too loud, andconsorting with “white women.”That three of these offenses wereconducted inside private residencesor Greek-owned businesses did notstop police (and assorted others)from breaking up these alleged dis-turbances.

The phrase, “Anti-Greek Riot,”alone brings four different events tolight. In Roanoke, Virginia on July13, 1907, after an argument over anickel sandwich, a riot broke outduring which, finally, nine Greekbusinesses and at least two Syrianbusinesses were totally destroyed.

On February 20, 1909 SouthOmaha Nebraska police officer EdLowery was shot and killed by JohnMasourides. Lowery, it seems,wanted to arrest Masourides for va-grancy after a heated discussion ofthe Greek being with a “white wom-an.” In “The Anti-Greek Riot of1909 – South Omaha” (NebraskaHistory 51), Dr. John G. Bitzes suc-cinctly outlines how the very nextday, February 21st, more than 1,000

“native-born Americans” quicklybecame “a mob, which consisted of500-1,000 defiant men, women andchildren (who) began marchingwest on O Street from the site of themeeting, and then south to Q Street,where it began its attack on the un-suspecting Greeks (208).” Of theestimated 2,000 Greeks in SouthOmaha, by George Washington’sBirthday in 1909, only 1,000 re-mained in the area. Curiously, whilethe South Omaha riot sparked twocopycat anti-Greek riots in DaytonOhio and another in Lowell, Mas-sachusetts, we hear nothing of thesein Greek American historical ac-counts.

The 1918, the Anti-Greek riot inToronto, Ontario has finally seenprint in a recent 45-page booklet is-sued jointly by the ThessalonikeanSociety of Metro Toronto and theCanadian Hellenic Historical Soci-ety. With this slim volume, we final-ly hear of the tragic events whichtook place over three days andnights (August 2-5, 1918), whenmore than 5,000 people destroyedevery Greek-owned business intheir path.

Finally, the attack on an all-Greek railroad gang near Rushville,Illinois by some 1,000 “native-bornAmericans” led to the killing of twoAmericans. Over the next couple ofyears, a lengthy series of legal bat-tles involving 29 Greeks was report-ed in the Greek and the Americanpress.

ORGANIZING FORSELF-PROTECTION

Thus, rather than simply at-tribute George A. Poulos’ success tohis persuasive power as a salesman,the wider context of violenceagainst Greeks across the nationmust be reconsidered in any evalua-tion of how AHEPA was initiallysuccessfully founded.

The choice to form a fraternal or-ganization to combat these attacksis also very revealing. As Saloutosobserves, “What, in effect, was hap-pening was that the Greek Americanbusinessmen were organizing forself-protection. Instead of meetingkind with kind, and resorting to vio-lent action marked by bigotry andhate, the Greek Americans, the im-migrants of yesterday, chose themethod of peaceful assembly anddemocratic discussion. They decid-ed upon organization, persuasionand positive action. If their methodsin the past had been inappropriate,they meant to right the situation.”

At a time when it seems uncer-tain the Greek community in Ameri-ca will be able to maintain its exis-tence, we need – more than ever – toreflect upon the lasting accomplish-ments of our forbears. For theyfaced dangers and uncertainties wedo not have to contend with now be-cause of what the adversity theysuffered and the socioeconomicchallenges they underwent. Byserving as an enduring model forthe cool manner in which to over-come an adversity of the day by rea-son, courage and collective force ofpurpose, their legacy extends be-yond mere institutions.

Readers who wish to contactMr. Frangos are encouraged to e-mail him [email protected].

AHEPA Origins: Organization Started to Protect Greeks from KKKContinued from page 1


GGuuss JJaammeess IIkkee GGuullaass



LOWELL, Mass. – The faces ofthe five pupils who participated atthe 100th graduation ceremony ofthe historic Hellenic AmericanSchool of the Holy Trinity Churchin Lowell, known today as HellenicAmerican Academy of Lowell,were brimming with confidencejoy on Tuesday evening, June 13.They received their diplomas,awards, scholarships and, most im-portantly, the hugs and the congrat-ulations of their teachers and par-ents.

The five pupils who graduatedwere Athanasios Bletsis, PanosCoufos, Theodore Kacavas, FotiosKafkas, and Andriana Pana-giotopoulos.

Speaking to the National Herald,Fotios Kafkas said, “I have mixedfeelings today. I feel happy on theone hand because I finished theschool, and sad on the other handbecause I’m going to miss myteachers and friends.” Fotios leavesthe school full of good memories,he added. “I don’t know what tothink about first and what last:when we all played together in theSchool’s playground, or the movingcelebrations of the Greek Letters orthe 25th of March,” and said hewants to enter the medical profes-sion: “I want to become a doctor.”

Theodore Kacavas said, “I’mhappy now that I’m graduating, andI thank my school for all thosegood things that I learned here.”

Andriana Panagiotopoulos said,“I’m very happy today, but I’m go-ing to miss my friends and class-mates.”

Panos Coufos told the Herald,“I’m happy for my graduation to-day, but sad at the same time be-cause I’m departing from myschool, which I love dearly.” Panossaid he will choose one of threeprofessions: “Either a doctor, alawyer or an engineer.”

Athansios Bletsis has decidedfrom now that he wants to becomea pharmacist, he said, making hismother’s face shine with a bigsmile. His mother Eleni said,“Athanasios is a very good boy. Iam very happy for him.”

The ceremony started with aprocession into the main auditori-um of the School, an openingprayer by Very Rev. CleopasStrongylis, and the American andGreek National Anthems. Archi-mandrite Strongylis told the gradu-ating class, “You are not going tobe simply athletes, but championathletes. You have a dual identity.You are Greek Orthodox, and youare American citizens,” urgingthem “to try to utilize this identityto its fullest potential.”

Father Strongylis also conveyedthe blessings and greetingsMetropolitan Methodios of Boston.

DON’T BE AFRAID,EMBRACE CHANGE

Hellenic American AcademyPrincipal Dr. Priscilla Gimas toldthe graduates to have courage in theface of life’s changing circum-

stances, and to remember what theGreek Orthodox faith has taughtthem.

“You have given a solid founda-tion from the Hellenic AmericanAcademy, and you are ready tokeep adding to this beginning.Don’t be afraid of the change, butembrace it. Change is frighteningonly if you allow it to be. You haveall it takes to face your newschools, new friends, new teachersand new environments. You havereceived your education, and havelearned the guiding principals ofour Greek Orthodox Faith. Youknow right from wrong. As yougrow older and enter the challengesof your teenage years, rememberwhat your faith has taught you, andyou will always make the rightchoices,” she said.

“You are part of an ancient cul-ture and heritage: the Greek cul-ture. Be proud. Our ancestors haveimpacted every profession in theworld, just as you will also do.Keep your Greek spirit alive,” sheadded.

Holy Trinity Parish CouncilPresident Steve Themelis congratu-lated the students and parents anddiscussed the school’s future.

“As some of you know, we areworking to establish a middleschool, and are currently expand-ing our pre-K classroom for thesecond straight year. Unfortunately,we are saying goodbye to some ofour teachers, Mrs. Delucia. MissTrider, Mrs. Harland and MissMoscufo. We wish them good luck

and good health. We are currentlyhiring new teachers, and they willbe ready before school starts,” hesaid.

School Committee Chair MeliaMahony said, “You’re going for-ward into an unknown future.Don’t be afraid because you havethe love, support and care of yourparents, family and friends. Youhave the advantage of 100 years ofhistory, a history of pride and ac-complishments.”

Numerous awards and scholar-ships were given from the Acade-my’s Alumni Association, AHEPA,Kastraki Society, Pan-LaconianSociety, Pan-Messinian Federationand Holy Trinity Parish Philopto-chos Society.

Speaking to the National Herald,Dr. Gimas said, “The Academy isprogressing. When I assumed myduties in July of 2005, we had 138students. For the coming September,165 students have been enrolled. Wehope to start the 7th grade in 2007,and the 8th grade in 2008.”

Dr. Gimas, a first generationGreek American who speaks fluentGreek, also said, “I learned theGreek language from my parents,who had come from Greece, and athome, we spoke only Greek. Myfather use to tell me ‘I do not un-derstand,’ until one day I saw him,after reading the National Heraldand the Atlantis, he began readingan American Newspaper,” addingthat, “there are many who say I amGreek American or American reek,but I say I’m Greek. I respect thefact that this country gives me theright to vote, and to have all therest, but the blood that is circulat-ing in my body is Greek. I knewmore about March 25th than the4th of July.”

Dr. Gimas has now completedher first year at the helm of the Hel-lenic American Academy of Low-ell. “This year, we put together acurriculum according to the rulesand regulations of the state of Mas-sachusetts, because we anticipatebeing accredited by Academic edu-cation authorities. We are celebrat-ing our 100th year anniversary, andwe are proud of that. Rememberthose first Greek immigrants whowere selling their wedding rings inorder to build the church and theschool? They made sacrifices for areason: It is important to preserveour Hellenic heritage, language andtradition. We are Greeks, and weare proud,” she said.

Dr. Gimas told the Herald thather goal is “not only to establish7th and 8th grades, but also a Mid-dle School.”

100th Graduation: The Legacy and Dream


BOSTON – The annual Greekfestival of the TransfigurationChurch in Lowell has become thebest-known cultural event in thecity of Lowell for many years. Thisyear was no exception, although itwas a one-day affair instead of theusual three days.

The guests, Greek Americansand hundreds of Americans fromall walks of life, arrived early thisyear. By 11 AM on June 10, theyhad already formed big lines lead-ing to the food area, eager to buytasty Greek fare and pastries. Pen-ny Kokkinos, owner of the “GreekArt & Favors” store in Lowell, theonly store of its kind in the entireMerrimack Valley and beyond, wasquickly setting up her electronicequipment for the entertainment.Penny Kokkinos has a richer col-lection of Greek music and songs

in New England than any other DJ.“We usually have a three-day

festival, but this year, we decidedto have it only one day because itrequires a lot of work, and the peo-ple, the volunteers, are tired,” JohnZaralides, chairman of the organiz-ing committee for the festival andpast president of the parish council,told the National Herald.

“It seems to me that even thisone day event will be successful.Look, it’s only 11 o’clock in themorning, and we already havelines,” he said.

Mr. Zaralides praised the mem-bers of the parish who donated sogenerously to the festival: “Thisyear, we have received more dona-tions than ever before,” he said.

“We published in the parish bul-letin that we were going to need adonation of $300 for the eggs, or$500 for lamb or $200 for cheese,so this way, people donated themoney to purchase the food, and

thus, almost everything will beprofit for the church.”

“It is so moving to see a grand-mother who lives only on her so-cial security only to donate moneyto this festival,” he added.

It was under Mr. Zaralides’presidency that the new communi-ty center facility was built.

“The proceeds from the festivalwill go towards the operational ex-penses of the church,” he ex-plained, “and if there is anythingover that, it will go towards thecommunity center mortgage,which was 950,000 and is present-ly 589,000.”

Parish Council Vice PresidentMike Karagiannis told the Herald,“It’s worth it to have this festivalbecause it brings the communitytogether. We work together. Wemake the preparation of the foodand the pastries. We talk. Some-times we disagree, too, but in theend, we all work together to benefit

the church.”Mr. Karagiannis is not only

working hard on the food prepara-tion and setting up for the festival,but he also stays after the end andcleans the kitchen equipment, uten-sils, pots and pans. “Somebody hasto do that, as well, and I do it glad-ly,” he said.

Mr. Karagiannis is a youngman, married with two children,and is completely dedicated to theOrthodox faith and Greek CulturalHeritage: “I was brought up speak-ing and learning Greek, and I pre-fer to hear the Liturgy in Greek be-cause I understand it, but my wife,who is not Greek, feels more com-fortable in English,” he said.

When Mr. Karagiannis wasasked what motivates him to get in-volved with community affairs, hesaid, “God; love of the church; thepeople. We have nothing withoutGod, and without God, we arenothing.”

There are four Greek Orthodoxparishes in Lowell, but Mr. Kara-giannis said he thinks there maynot be enough faithful in the Low-ell area to fill all the pews.

“It would have been better if weonly had one or two. The churchesare empty on Sundays,” he said.“Where are all the people? Life haschanged today. Many people go tosports events on Sunday mornings,and others go shopping. I went on aSunday morning to the super mar-ket to buy milk for the coffee hourafter church services, and the mar-ket was full, so I asked myself,don’t these people go to church?”

Mr. Karagiannis spoke about hiswife and said, “She was convertedto Orthodoxy on her own. Shewanted it to do that. I didn’t pressher, at all. She loves it. She loveseverything we have in the Ortho-dox Church, and she tells me howcomfortable she fells coming tochurch. She is also learning Greeklittle by little,” he said.

Greek Festival in Lowell a Moving Experience

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The kitchen at the Transfiguration parish in Lowell is busy during the annual Greek festival, with manyvolunteers preparing the food. Pictured are Festival Chairman John Zaralides, Parish Council PresidentMargo Ziogas, Vice President Mike Karagiannis, George & Christina Economou, and Dave & Elen Ver-contaire.

The graduates of the Hellenic American Academy of Lowell: (L-R) Athanasios Bletsis, Panos Coufos, An-driana Panagiotopoulos, Theodore Kacavas and Fotis Kafkas.


Ten countries are currentlyworking on this "roadmap"through consular efforts and regu-lar meetings with new members inthe E.U.

CLEANED UP ITS ACTIn spite of heavy past criticism

regarding its border safety, inter-nal terrorism and visa violationsthrough lengthy illegal residencyin the U.S., Greece has cleaned upits act during the last few years.

According to Greek Govern-ment officials in the Ministries ofInternal Affairs, Public Order andDecentralization, the U.S. hasbeen particularly harsh and un-bending towards Greece, a coun-try which has come a long way cor-recting those problems.

The 2004 Olympic Games inAthens and the immediate post-Olympics period were testamentto Greece's ability to provide andmaintain a security network whichplaces the country among thosewith the minimum rate of terror-ism, they argue, noting that theGames were both an athletic, com-mercial and security success, asathletes, guests, visitors and citi-zens generally felt quite safe on alllevels.

The eradication of the notori-ous domestic terrorist outfit, 17November, in 2002 is yet anothermanifestation of Greece's commit-ment not only to fight terrorism,but also to safeguard its land andits people, they add.

Moreover, "Greece is no longera country that exports immigrants,but one that receives and acceptsthem," a Greek law enforcementagent said, referring to the grow-ing numbers of legal and illegalimmigrants from different coun-tries (e.g., Albania, Serbia, Polandand Russia).

During the last five years,Greece has modified its immigra-tion laws and has restructured itsregulations, enforcing a more sys-tematic way of handling immi-grants.

Greece has also tightened itsborder security, enforcing the lawthrough newly trained teamswhich, in addition to patrollingand protecting Greek borders,fight contraband trafficking withincreasingly positive results:

According to the National Her-ald's recent research (see Greek-language daily edition, June 14 is-sue), based on statistics posted byHellenic Police, 5,802 foreign indi-viduals were arrested on illegal de-portation charges between Jan-uary and May of 2006.

The previous year, the numberwas up to 40,520 illegal immigrantsin the prefecture of Attica alone.In 2004 there were 15,168 such ar-rests.

The Hellenic Coast Guard, incooperation with the Greek Navy,makes similar efforts to protectmaritime boundaries. Accordingto Greek Government officials, allefforts are currently in accordancewith those of other Europeancountries aiming at suppressing il-legal immigration on an interna-tional level. Greece has also re-peatedly proven its relentless com-mitment to control its borders, andit has become very difficult forGreece's immigrants to leaveGreece for other countries, partic-ularly via air travel, officials said.

New passports, which are nowmandatory for every citizen wish-ing to travel outside Greece, arean additional criterion whichGreece has met and is ready to im-plement, as of this coming August,in view of its desired future partici-pation in VWP.

The U.S. Government and theAmerican Embassy in Athens haveagreed that, during the last fewyears, Greece has cooperatedclosely with American authorities,intensifying its efforts to crush ille-gal immigration from Greece tothe U.S.

THE CRITERIABut precisely how does a coun-

try qualify to participate in theVWP? According to the State De-partment, as of February 2006, inorder to be designated to partici-pate, countries must meet certainlegislatively established criteria, asset forth in the Immigration andNationality Act, Border SecurityAct, and the Enhanced Border Se-curity and Visa Entry Reform Act.Among these criteria are the fol-lowing:

• Foreign Governments providereciprocal visa-free travel for U.S.citizens (90 days for tourism orbusiness purposes).

• Governments issue secure,machine-readable passports whichsatisfy internationally accepted

standards.• Governments certify that they

have a program to incorporatebiometric identifiers into theirpassports, in accordance with In-ternational Civil Aviation Organi-zation standards.

• Governments certify that theyreport the theft of blank passportsto the U.S. Government in a time-ly manner, and do so consistently.

• The country must have a verylow nonimmigrant refusal rate (asexplained in Section 217.c.2.A ofthe Immigration and NationalityAct); and…

• The incidence of nationals ofa particular country, traveling asnonimmigrant visitors who are de-nied admission, withdraw their ap-plication and violate the terms of aVWP admission is less than twopercent of the total number ofnonimmigrant nationals travelingto the U.S. during the previous fis-cal year.

In addition to those specific cri-teria for VWP participation, Sec-tion 217 of the INA also requiresthat the Department of HomelandSecurity, in consultation with theSecretary of State, evaluate the ef-fect a country's designation as aVWP participant would have onthe law enforcement and securityinterests of the United States, in-cluding interests related to en-forcement of immigration lawsand the existence and effective-ness of extradition agreements andprocedures.

In order for a country to be des-ignated as a VWP participant, adetermination must be made thatsuch interests would not be com-promised by the country's designa-tion.

Specific factors to be consid-ered in such a review are not es-tablished in the legislation. In thepast, however, the following typesof issues have been considered:

• Security of a country's pass-port application, production and

delivery processes.• Security of passports and oth-

er documents used to demonstrateidentity and citizenship, and inci-dence of fraud or misuse involvingsuch documents.

• Nationality and citizenshiplaws, and application of such laws.

• Existence of security and lawenforcement threats in the country(e.g., terrorist activities, organizedcrime, money laundering, humanand drug trafficking), and effortsto address such threats.

• Immigration controls andalien smuggling activities in thecountry, and efforts to addresssuch threats.

• A government's political andeconomic stability.

• The degree of cooperationwith the U.S. and other interna-tional partners on law enforce-ment issues, including extradition.

The following countries arecurrently in the program: Andor-ra, Austria, Australia, Belgium,Brunei, Denmark, Finland,France, Germany, Iceland, Ire-land, Italy, Japan, Liechtenstein,Luxembourg, Monaco, theNetherlands, New Zealand, Nor-way, Poland, Portugal, San Mari-no, Singapore, Slovenia, Spain,Sweden, Switzerland and the Unit-ed Kingdom.

For citizens with the unrestrict-ed right of permanent abode inEngland, Scotland, Wales, North-ern Ireland, the Channel Islands

and the Isle of Man, the Secretaryof Homeland Security, in consulta-tion with the Secretary of State,may add countries to the programor remove them from the programat any time.

WHERE DO GREEKAMERICANS FIT IN?

Almost six years ago, Chris Spy-rou, former chairman of theDemocratic Party in New Hamp-shire and current president of theHellenic American Union, togeth-er with Senator Ted Kennedy ofMassachusetts were active inpreparing the ground for Greece'sinclusion to the VWP, but Greecehad not met all the criteria bythen.

But if Greece manages to com-ply with U.S. requirements, and ifat least two senators take the leadto activate the re-examination pro-cess for Greece, it is possible thatGreece's application could be con-sidered more favorably.

The issue now appears to lielargely in the hands of the GreekAmerican community and its lead-ership.

There is a lot of room for sub-jective interpretation of Greece'squalifications. The United Statescould agree to reexamine theprospect of including Greece inthe VWP and review the stepsGreece has taken in issuing high-tech biometric passports; improv-ing border security; controlling thenumber of Greek immigrants stay-ing in the U.S. past the prescribedtime limit determined by theirvisas; and verification of legal doc-umentation, as well as communi-cation and collaboration with vari-ous domestic and international im-migration authorities.

With a thriving Greek commu-nity in America, one wonders whatprevents the U.S. Governmentfrom trusting Greece, thus delay-ing the process of allowing it toparticipate in the Visa Waiver Pro-gram.

Why Do Greeks Still Need Visas to Enter the United States?Continued from page 1

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By Stavros MarmarinosSpecial to The National Herald

NEW YORK – The UnitedStates House of Representatives isconsidering legislation on whetherto erect a statue of Constantino Bru-midi, the famous painter of Greekand Italian decent, at the U.S. Capi-tol.

Congressman Mike Bilirakis ofFlorida introduced a bill (H.R.5562) to the House of Representa-tives to “direct the Joint Committeeon the Library to obtain a statue ofConstantino Brumidi for display inthe Capitol Visitor Center.”

The bill, introduced on June 8, isbeing co-sponsored by Reps. Car-olyn B. Maloney (D-New York),Bill Pascrell (D-New Jersey) andJohn L. Mica (R-Florida). It was re-ferred to the House AdministrationCommittee.

Congressional leaders from allethnic backgrounds gathered in theCapitol last year (on July 26, 2005)to commemorate the bicentennial of

the birth of Brumidi, whose Capitolfrescoes brought a classical ele-gance to the architectural symbol ofAmerican democracy. Two resolu-tions, one in the United States Sen-ate and another in the House of Rep-resentatives, had been introducedearlier to authorize the ceremony,which was held in the Capitol Ro-tunda, the inside of which isadorned with "The Apotheosis ofGeorge Washington,” Brumidi’smost famous work.

The Apotheosis, painted in 1865,reflects a vision of George Wash-ington which appealed to the Amer-ican public just after his death. TheApotheosis served as a powerfulsymbol of the country’s immortal-ized hero.

That ceremony marked thefourth time, and the first in the 21stCentury, that America rememberedConstantino Brumidi inside thebuilding he helped transform withhis work. He was first honored inthe Capitol in 1952, and again in1968 and 1980.

The Senate resolution last yearwas initiated by U.S. SenatorHillary Rodham-Clinton (D-NewYork). Greek American U.S. Sena-tor Olympia J. Snowe (R-Maine)joined in the effort, putting SenatorClinton’s office in touch withprominent members of the GreekAmerican community. SenatorsMichael Enzi (R-Wyoming), andEdward Kennedy (D-Mas-sachusetts) also co-sponsored thelegislation.

In addition to “The Apotheosisof George Washington,” which ap-pears in the Capitol Rotunda, Bru-midi created artworks in the Houseof Representatives Chamber, manycommittee rooms, the President’sRoom, the Senate Reception Room,and throughout the corridors of theCapitol. One can not tour the UnitedStates Capitol without being inun-dated with Brumidi’s work. TheWest Corridor of the Capitol hasbeen termed the “Brumidi Corri-dor.” The influence of Brumidi’sartistic sensibilities on the artwork

of the nation’s Capitol are undisput-ed, though definitive and scholarlytreatments of Brumidi’s life andwork are less evident.

Constantino Brumidi was bornin Italy to a Greek father and Italianmother in 1805. He grew up inRome, and studied at the ItalianAcademy of Arts. He immigrated toAmerica in 1852, at the age of 47.For the rest of his life, some 27years, he devoted his time to numer-ous commissioned frescoes, paint-ings, and sculpture in the Capitolbuilding.

His works depicted allegoriesand scenes from American history,drawing heavily from Pompeian,ancient Roman and classicalBaroque influences. Brumidi cap-tured great Americans, as well asNative Americans, with allegoricalRoman figures.

The only known quote from Bru-midi has been preserved by Ameri-can author Smith Fry, who assertsthat, upon reaching America Brumi-di said, “I have no longer any desirefor fame and fortune. My one ambi-tion and my daily prayer is that Imay live long enough to make beau-tiful the Capitol of the one countryon Earth in which there is liberty.”

The quote may not be authentic.Mr. Fry, the author of “The ThrillingStory of the Wonderful CapitolBuilding and Its Marvelous Con-tents” (1911) and “Fry’s PatrioticStory of the Capitol” (1911) pro-vides no documentation.

In 1860, Brumidi married anAmerican woman named Lola Ger-mon. There is no information on hisfirst marriage in Italy, but he didstay in touch with a daughter, Elena,who had remained in Rome.

Constantino Brumidi died at hishome in Washington, DC on Febru-ary 18, 1880, Brumidi died in rela-tive obscurity and penury, thoughCongressional records indicate thathe was well paid. His salary wasoriginally pegged at the annualsalaries awarded to members of theU.S. Congress, but this was eventu-ally changed to a per diem rate of$8-10. The largest work commis-sioned, “The Apotheosis,” was con-tracted for a lump sum of $40,000.Brumidi received all but the $500reserved for completion of the pro-ject.

Through the years, Brumidi’sreputation waxed and waned, bothduring and after his lifetime. For al-most 100 years after his death, hisgrave in Washington was unmarkedand unadorned. Little notice wasmade of the artist of the Capitolfrescoes. The public’s limitedawareness of Brumidi’s existencewas expanded by a conscious resur-rection of his reputation in the1950’s by Myrtle Cheney Murdock.

Americans learn from a youngage that they can look up to GeorgeWashington, but for those who walkthrough the Rotunda of the Capitol,the figurative becomes literal. Gaz-ing upward to the dome, one seesWashington looming high above, alife-sized and heavenly vision. It isBrumidi’s Apotheosis. The Generaland first President sits in majesty,flanked on the right by the Goddessof Liberty and on his left by awinged figure of Fame sounding atrumpet and holding a palm frondaloft in a symbol of victory. Thir-teen female figures stand in a semi-circle around Washington, repre-senting the thirteen original states.On the outer ring of the canopy, sixallegorical groupings surround him,representing classical images ofagriculture, arts and sciences, com-merce, war, mechanics, and marine.

This image of Washington,painted in 1865, reflects a vision ofWashington which appealed to theAmerican public just after his death.The Apotheosis served as a power-ful symbol of the immortalization ofthe country’s first and greatest hero.Paintings and sculptures of Wash-ington’s celestial rise were soon tobe found in living rooms and civichalls across the country. The reli-gious connotation was clear: herewas a man so virtuous and belovedthat he surely had ascended to heav-en, escorted honorably by classicalpersonifications of freedom and lib-erty. In effect, the public’s civicworship of Washington led to a

nearly religious worship just afterhis death. Washington was suddenlydeified.

Over the next two centuries, thisiconic worship of the Father of hisCountry would take on many forms.After his death, the moral educatorsof the early 19th Century crownedWashington as the ultimate symbolof virtue: an honest mortal worthyof imitation. Once defined as theembodiment of virtue, Washing-ton’s image became an easily recog-nized and powerful tool. Brumidihad something to do with that.

In an editorial in the June 17 edi-tion of the Washington Post, JosephN. Grano, chair of the ConstantinoBrumidi Society, which advocatesnaming the new Capitol VisitorCenter after Brumidi, wrote the fol-lowing:

“Brumidi’s work, in particular, isenormously significant because itcombines traditional principles andtechniques for wall and ceiling dec-orations with the innovative spiritthat characterized 19th CenturyAmerica. The artistic expression ofhis Victorian-era work preserves atreasure trove of artistic traditionalong with an obvious personal en-thusiasm for the accomplishmentsand promise of the new nation. Hisskillfully painted work also createsa colorful visual narrative that com-plements the architecture of theCapitol itself.”

Dimitri Soultogiannis con-tributed to this story.

Bilirakis Pushes for Brumidi Statue to be Erected at the U.S. Capitol

By Demetris TsakasSpecial to The National Herald

NEW YORK – Her family is soproud of her. She is only 14 yearsold, and she is an honors student atboth the Greek and Americanschools she attends.

“Eight years ago, no one couldhave imagined Stella would be flu-ent in Greek,” Helen Samartzis-Pa-patheodoros said about her daugh-ter. “We wanted Stella to attendthis particular school, SaintNicholas in Flushing.”

According to the teenager’smother, the reason why she and herhusband never thought Stella couldbecome fluent in their native lan-guage is because they were almost

never home when Stella wasyoung.

“Stella had to spend many hourswith our housekeeper, who didn’tspeak a word of Greek,” Mrs. Pap-atheodoros said. Today, Stella Pap-atheodoros not only speaks Greek,but is the best student in her class atthe Stephen & Areti CherpelisGreek Afternoon School in Flush-ing, Queens. The graduation cere-mony was held two weeks ago atSaint Nicholas Cathedral in Flush-ing.

Stella’s graduation speech fo-cused primarily on the lessons peo-ple should learn from the AncientGreek playwright, Euripides. “OurGreek ancestors have taught us thatwe can’t win any fights if we are

not brave and willing to takerisks,” she said, praising all thoseimmigrants, including her parents,who came to an unknown land, theUnited States, and started a newlife.

“Stella always made her class-mates feel proud of who they areand where their parents comefrom,” Mrs. Papatheodoros saidabout her youngest daughter. “Dur-ing the graduation ceremony, Stellagot to speak since she had the bestgrades in her class,” she said.“Stella encouraged her classmatesto never give up, and to alwaysfight against what they think is notfair,” she said.

“During all these years Stella,along with the help of her great

teachers and the conducive envi-ronment of her school, managednot only to excel in class, but alsoto excel in extracurricular activitiessuch as music and theater,” Mrs.Papatheodoros said. “Stella partici-pated in two Greek theatricalplays,” she said.

Stella Papatheodoros also grad-uated from St. Kevin ElementarySchool in Flushing with a 99.9 av-erage.

Like most of her Greek Ameri-can classmates, Stella went toschool every morning, and attend-ed Greek school two afternoons aweek. But that doesn’t mean herother afternoons weren’t busy dur-ing the rest of the week. Stella alsotook music lessons at the QueensNew York School of Music, as wellas ballet lessons at the AmericanTheater Dance Workshop. Allthese activities helped Stella excelin theater, music and dance andqualified her to attend classes at thefamous Frank Sinatra musicschool.

Stella’s father, Constantine, wasborn in Alexandria, Egypt and atthe age of one, his parentsStylianos and Mary, just like manyother Greek Egyptians, decided tomove to Athens in order to start anew life. He came to the UnitedStates in 1977 to pursue a degree inEconomics from City University ofNew York (CUNY), and today isthe financial manager of a con-struction company, the AWRGroup.

Stella’s mother was born inAthens, and came to the UnitedStates in 1976 to study Economicsat Northern Illinois University,from which she graduated withcum laude honors. Up until 2004,Mrs. Papatheodoros worked atRoyal Olympic Games, and sincethen has headed up the accounting

department at Genco.Mr. & Mrs. Paptheodoros were

students when they first met on anairplane on their way to Greece,and at that point, no one couldimagine that a few years later, in1987, they would be getting mar-ried at a Cathedral in Athens. Aftertheir wedding, they moved back toNew York, where they had theirtwo daughters Mary Grace andStella.

Mary Grace, 16, is also one ofthe best students at Townsend High

School in Flushing. During thethree years she has been attendingthe school, she has received manyawards. Together with some of herclassmates, she helped create theGreek Club, which has been veryactive within the student communi-ty. Mary Grace, like Stella, is analumna of St. Nicholas Greek Af-ternoon School in Flushing, andher dream is to one day go to lawschool.

The Papatheodoros girls are do-ing just fine.

Flushing Student Excels at Both Greek and American Schools

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Christy-Christopoulos, Mary– The Chicago Tribune on June 25reported the death of Mary Christy-Christopoulos, nee Lambesis,beloved wife of the late TakisChristopoulos (James Christy);loving mother of Stella (Robert)Cottini; devoted daughter of thelate Nicholas and Angeliki Lambe-sis; fond sister-in-law, cousin andaunt of many. Past president andtreasurer of the Hellas Chapter No.9 Daughters of Penelope. Visita-tion for family and friends washeld this past Tuesday morning,June 27, until time of the funeralservice at the Interment ElmwoodCemetery. Kindly omit flowers.Memorial donations to the GreekAmerican Rehabilitation & Nurs-ing Home, 220 N. First St., Wheel-ing, IL 60090, appreciated. Ar-rangements by John G. Adinamis,Funeral Director, LTD c/o Smith-Corcoran Funeral Home (TEL:773-736-3833).

Deagiantis, George -GeorgeDeagiantis, 75, of Clark, New Jer-sey died last Saturday, June 24, atSaint Barnabas Medical Center inLivingston, New Jersey. He was aself-employed painter with his ownpainting business for 35 years be-fore retiring. A prominent memberof AHEPA, he was a trustee at St.Nicholas Greek Orthodox Churchin Newark, New Jersey and wasthat parish communitys fundraiserand festival coordinator. Mr. Dea-giantis was also a Mason. Born inLevidi, Greece, he moved to Mon-treal, Quebec in 1947 and came tothe United States in 1957. He livedin New York City before moving toClark. Surviving are his wife, Sula;a son, Bill; a daughter, Helen Dea-giantis-Kofos; a brother, James,and three grandchildren. Funeralservices were held at St. NicholasGreek Orthodox Church inNewark, New Jersey this pastTuesday, June 27. Arrangementswere by the Paskas Funeral Homein Livingston.

Hotis, Peter – Newsday onJune 23 reported the death of PeterHotis of Sound Beach, New York(formerly of Commack, NewYork), who died on June 21.Beloved husband of Edith. A highschool and college football starknown as the Galloping Greek. Heenlisted in the Marines, while serv-ing in Korea he was involved in ex-tensive action, and as a result be-came a highly decorated war veter-an. Beloved father of Valerie, Pe-ter, Stephen, Christine, Pamela andJohn. Adored Grandfather ofCourtney, Ariana, Zack, Wyatt,Dylan, Daphne, Ryan, Trevor, andAidan. Visitation was at the O.B.Davis Funeral Home in MillerPlace, New York last Friday andSaturday, June 23-24. Cremationservices followed at WashingtonMemorial Park.

Janulis, Stanley – A service forStanley Janulis, 71, of Tucson, Ari-zona, a native of Newark, New Jer-sey, was held on June 20 at Sts.Constantine & Helen Greek Ortho-dox Church in Orange, New Jersey

after the funeral at the Shook CedarGrove Funeral Home, 486 Pomp-ton Ave., Cedar Grove. Mr. Janulis,who died June 9 at home, was aself-employed hairdresser. A nativeof Newark, he also lived in SanFrancisco. Surviving are a brother,Konstantinas, and a sister, HelenVasiliades.

Klizos, Stan –Stan Klizos, 75,of Lincoln Park, New Jersey andSinger Island, Florida, died on June12 at Memorial Sloan-KetteringHospital in New York City. He wasborn in Kassala, Sudan and cameto this country in 1959 settling inBrooklyn, having lived in LincolnPark and Singer Island. Mr. Klizoswas Vice President in the Interna-tional Department for the ChaseManhattan Bank, NYC for 30years before retiring in 1989. Hewas a member of Saint CatherineGreek Orthodox Church in WestPalm Beach, Fla. Surviving are hiswife of 50 years Antonella (neeGuarneri) Klizos; two daughtersElaine Rossi (and her husbandRobert of Wayne, New Jersey) andLaurie Rocha (and her husbandGilbert of Martinez, California);two sisters Tasoula Demetriadesand Mary Georgiades, both ofNicosia, Cyprus; and two grand-daughters Isabella and Lily GraceRossi. He was predeceased by hisbrother George Klizos in 1998. Fu-neral services were held on June 15from the Vander May Wayne Colo-nial Funeral Home in Wayne, thenat Saint George's Greek OrthodoxChurch in Clifton, Jersey. Inter-ment was at Immaculate Concep-tion Cemetery in Montclair, NewJersey. In lieu of flowers, memorialdonations to the St. Jude Children'sResearch Hospital, 501 St. JudePlace, Memphis, TN 38105. For aphoto and more information visitvandermay.com.

Labovites, Pericles – Pericles"Spud" Labovites, 95, one ofWorcester Massachusetts' finestathletes, died on Wednesday June21, at UMass-Memorial Hospital,surrounded by his loving family.His wife of 52 years, Olive (Kote)Labovites, died in 2004. He leavesbehind two sons: Mark J. ofWorcester and George P. ofBoston; a grandson, Nicholas M.Labovites of Worcester; cousins,nieces and a nephew. When askedabout his nickname, he said, "be-cause I like potatoes," and that wasthe essence of this great man. Bornin Argyrocastro in Greek Albaniain 1911, Spud was the son of Dr.and Mrs. Telemechos Labovitesand immigrated to the UnitedStates in 1917 with his adoptiveparents, Harry and Vasiliki"Bessie" Labovites. He graduatedfrom North High School, Worces-ter Academy and Holy Cross GreekOrthodox School of Theology.Originally slated for the priest-hood, Mr. Labovites attended thetheological school, which at thattime was located in Pomfret, Con-necticut. He was a student andgood friend of the late ArchbishopIakovos. From 1947 through 1951,he was the Physical Education Di-rector at the Jamestown, New YorkBoys Club. Mr. Labovites was hon-ored by the United States Senate onMarch 23, 1977 for his "unselfishdedication to our youth." Spud wasmost happy when involved withsports, and had directed theWorcester Central Y Junior ChurchBasketball League to involve 42different churches to participate inthe sport. He was also the assistantathletic director at the Ionic Av-enue Boys Club, and was instru-mental with the Greek Fraternal or-ganization, the Sons of Pericles (a

youth arm of AHEPA), playingbasketball throughout New Eng-land. Spud was the Athletic Direc-tor at Worcester Junior College,coaching baseball, basketball, soft-ball and tennis. He then coachedmany sports at the YMCA for over25 years, offering great encourage-ment to every individual hecoached. In 1932, he was asked torun with the Greek Olympic teamprior to the first Los AngelesOlympics, and was one of the firstGreek Americans to complete theBoston Marathon in 1933. He alsowas a track star at North HighSchool, and played on the Collegeof the Holy Cross Basketball team.Mr. Labovites was a 2nd Lieu-tenant in World War II, serving inBelgium, Germany and France,and later became a member of theVernon Hill American Legion Post435. Spud has been honored manytimes for his contributions to theGreek community, and has also re-ceived many civic awards, but wasmost humbled when presentedwith the Greek Orthodox DiocesanAward of Boston in June of 2000for his unwavering contributionsand support to St. Spyridon GreekOrthodox Cathedral in Worcester.Mr. Labovites had been a memberof St. Spyridon since 1958, andwas a board member and a cantorfor the past 25 years. He was also amember of the Pan-Epirotic Soci-ety and the St. George Society ofDouvianini. Clearly, Spud was aman who brought much joy to ev-ery person he met, and will be re-membered as a man who alwayshad a kind word and an encourag-ing smile. The funeral was last Sat-urday morning June 24, at St.Spyridon Greek Orthodox Cathe-dral. Burial was at Hope Cemetery.Calling hours were held at the O’-Connor Brothers Funeral Homelast Friday evening, June 23. Inlieu of flowers, contributions maybe made to St. Spyridon Greek Or-thodox Cathedral, 102 RussellStreet, Worcester, MA 01609.

Leon, Bill (Vasili Illia) – Billfell asleep in the Lord last Sunday,June 18, at the age of 76. Son of thelate Stavro and Marigo (nee Sola)Illia of Epiros, Greece. He was a

Korean War Veteran of The UnitedStates Air Force. Bill was a double-degree graduate of WashingtonUniversity in Electrical and Indus-trial Engineering. He was a profes-sional Engineer who worked forAmeren UE for 48 years, retiringin 1995. He is survived by his dear-ly loved wife of 42 years, Judith H.Leon (nee Rodefeld); beloved fa-ther of Steven P. Leon, D.D.S.,Stephanie Leon Streeter, P.E.,Michelle M. Leon-Nicholas andthe late Maria Leon; beloved Pa-pou of Christopher B. Mowry,Maria A. Leon, Cassiani E. Leonand Michael S. Nicholas; he wasthe beloved father-in-law of Bever-ly A. Leon, Matthew B. Streeterand John V. Nicholas; dear brotherof Helen McDermott and the lateOlga Constantinides; our dearbrother-in-law, uncle, great-uncle,cousin and friend. Services: Funer-al from Kutis South County Chapel(at Butler Hill) on June 21, and atSt. Nicholas Greek OrthodoxChurch in St. Louis, Missouri. In-terment St. Matthew Cemetery.Member and past Commander ofAHEPA #395. In lieu of flowers,contributions to St. Nicholas GreekOrthodox Church or AssumptionGreek Orthodox Church in St.Louis appreciated.

Maris, Charles Louis – TheMilwaukee Journal-Sentinel onJune 24 reported the death ofCharles Louis Maris, who was bornto eternal life last Thursday, June22, 2006, at age 86. Survived by hisbeloved wife, Dolores, whom hemarried in 1978. Devoted father ofCharles G. (Linda), Theodore(Cheryl) and George (Molly). Lov-ing Papou of seven grandchildren,Charles Ray, Robert, Emily, Eliza-beth, Mary Catherine, Adam andKeegan. Stepfather to Jeffrey, Deanand Randy Ruhle and Denise (Jef-frey) Farrell. Step-grandfather ofKassiani, Vajra, Mariko Ruhle andKassiani (Matthew) Waljeko andZachary Farrell. Also loved by oth-er relatives and friends. Callinghours were held at the Krause Fu-neral Home in Milwaukee last Sun-day evening, June 25, with a Trisa-gion service. Funeral was at SaintsConstantine & Helen Greek Ortho-dox Church this past Mondaymorning, June 26, with Rev.Theodore Trifon officiating. Burialat Pinelawn Cemetery. In lieu offlowers, memorials appreciated toSaints Constantine & Helen GreekOrthodox Church. Condolences to:www.krausefuneralhome.com, W.National Ave. (TEL: 262-786-8009).

Melonas, Demetrios P. –TheChicago Tribune on June 25 report-ed the death of Demetrios PaulMelonas, age 67, devoted son ofthe late Paul and Ioanna, nee Tsat-saras; dearest brother of the late

Maria Vasloff, the late Michael(Panagiota) and the late Louie;fond uncle of many nieces andnephews. Funeral services this pastMonday morning, June 26, at HolyTrinity Greek Orthodox Church inChicago. Burial was at ElmwoodCemetery. Calling hours were heldat Salerno's Galewood Chapels lastSunday evening. Please omit flow-ers. Arrangements entrusted toHellenic Funeral Service, NicholasM. Pishos, Funeral Director (TEL:773-745-1333).

Pappas, Rose E. –The Chicagotribune reported on June 19 thatRose Evgenia Pappas, nee Legones,age 67, beloved wife of Peter of 38years; cherished and loving mother

of Niko (Aneta), James (Lisa) andStacy; fond grandmother of Taylorand Peter; loving daughter of thelate James and Georgia, neeChristofalos; dearest sister of Patri-cia (George) Poulos, Joan Loxas,Betty (Tom) Babikian, Clara (Gus)Karapanos, Mike Legones and thelate Jean Liggins; dear sister-in-law,aunt and cousin of many here and inGreece passed away. Visitation andfuneral services were held on June19 at St. Demetrios Greek OrthodoxChurch in Elmhurst, Illinois. Inter-ment was at Elmwood Cemetery.Please omit flowers. Arrangementsentrusted to the Hellenic FuneralService (Nicholas M. Pishos, Fu-neral Director). Info: 773-745-1333.

8 OBITUARIES/CLASSIFIEDS THE NATIONAL HERALD, JULY 1, 2006

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todaytoday

By Brendan McCarthyChicago Tribune

Alexis Giannoulias left Greecein 1962 with little money, no fami-ly and lots of hope. He settled inChicago, his son said, and soughtto find a job, start a family andmake a name for himself.

He sold pickles and worked oddjobs at odd hours. He married aGreek woman. And in 1978, heopened Broadway Bank in hisEdgewater neighborhood.

"He epitomized the AmericanDream," said his son, Alexi Gian-noulias, Democratic candidate forIllinois state treasurer. "He alwayswanted to start a bank. And as thebank started thriving, he embracedthe idea of community, of helpingpeople start businesses and livetheir dream."

Mr. Giannoulias, 69, thefounder of Broadway Bank and areal estate broker, died last Sunday,

June 25, of a heart attack while onvacation in Egio, Greece. He wason vacation by himself, waiting tobe joined in Greece by his wife of38 years, Anna.

Mr. Giannoulias' small bankingbusiness quickly grew into a four-branch financial institution special-izing in small business and com-mercial real estate lending, and incatering to the local community.

His bank also became a placefor family – it employed his threesons. Mr. Giannoulias' sonDemetris is chief financial officer.Another son, George, is a boardmember.

Each morning, Alexis Giannou-lias would enter his second flooroffice to find a line of people wait-ing to speak with him, Alexi Gian-noulias said. He wasn't the type tocarry a personal desktop assistantor strap several cell phones to hisbelt. He didn't even have a comput-er.

"He dealt with people face-to-face," Alexi Giannoulias said. "Itdidn't matter if you had $200 in asavings account, or if you had a $5million loan with him. He foundtime to meet with you. He attendedcustomers' weddings, baptisms andfunerals."

Mansoor Lakhani, a Skokiebusinessman and hotel owner, firstmet with Mr. Giannoulias 22 yearsago in his office to ask about aloan.

"I would always call him, andhe never denied me," Lakhani said."He would never turn anyoneaway."

Lakhani said he was given greatbusiness advice, and perhaps mostimportantly, he gained a friend."He made people feel like family,"Lakhani said.

Mr. Giannoulias also worked inreal estate as a broker for UnitedInvestors, his son said. But hismost cherished job, his son added,

was that of father. "He was first and foremost a

family man," his son said. "Hewould go to work, and then afterwork, he would take care of hisfamily. That's what he did."

Mr. Giannoulias was activelyinvolved in the local Greek com-munity. He donated $500,000 toestablish a Greek Studies chair atthe University of Illinois at Ur-bana-Champaign, according to hisson and Demetrios Kotsakis, abusinessman and friend.

"He was very well known in thecommunity," Kotsakis said. "Hewas always helping people withmoney if they were behind or inhard times. He was very revered."

In addition to his sons and hiswife, Mr. Giannoulias is survivedby a grandchild. Funeral serviceswere still pending at press time.

The Chicago Tribune pub-lished the above on June 27.

Alexis Giannoulias (1936-2000), Bank Founder with Humble Beginnings,

Passes Away at 69: Started working odd jobs, became community benefactor

Notice of formation of Co-Counsel, LLC adomestic Limited Liability Company (LLC).Articles of Organization filed with the Sec-retary of State on 6/21/2006. NY OfficeLocation: Bronx County. Secretary of Stateis designated as agent upon whom processagainst the LLC may be served. Secretary ofState shall mail a copy of any processagainst the LLC served upon him/her to:Co-Counsel LLC C/O David Colgan, 2550Independence Ave. #6L, Bronx, NY 10463.Purpose: To engage in any lawful act or ac-tivity.

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The late Alexis Giannoulias is shown in this undated family photo.Giannoulias, 69, died of a heart attack last Sunday, June 25, while onvacation in Egio, Greece. He came to Chicago from Kalavryta in theearly 1960's and eventually founded a bank with four branches andabout $800 million in assets.

AP PHOTO/VIA CHICAGO TRIBUNE

of a meeting with Portuguese coun-terpart, Diogo Freitas do Amaral,regarding the reunification ofCyprus.

"We support Turkey for the Eu-ropean Union, but first, they mustrespect and comply with their obli-gations to the EU and the people ofCyprus," Lillikas said.

Turkey invaded Cyprus in 1974to foil and exploit a Greek-led coupwhich might have united the entireisland with Greece. Ankara propsup breakaway Turkish Cypriotgovernment in the north of the is-land, where it also stations about40,000 troops.

Earlier this month, Turkey con-cluded its first detailed round ofmembership talks with the EU, butonly after Cyprus and the rest ofthe 25-nation bloc reached a last-minute compromise to resolve astandoff over Ankara's relationshipwith the divided island republic.

The EU urged Turkey to honorits obligations to extend its cus-toms union to include Cyprus andnine other member states which

joined the bloc in 2004.Turkey refuses to fulfill its cus-

toms union obligations by openingits ports and airports to GreekCypriot traffic until a crippling in-ternational embargo on the break-away Turkish Cypriot state is lifted.Neither does it recognize Cyprus.

"We are grateful to Portugal forthe support given to Cyprus and toour efforts," Lillikas added.

According to Lusa news agen-cy, Lillikas had earlier told a groupof journalists, "Turkey can't have itboth ways. We hope Ankara under-stands that it is more important tojoin the EU than to occupy thenorth of Cyprus."

The Portuguese Governmentapparently shares that opinion:"Turkey must recognize the Re-public of Cyprus immediately afterits 2007 elections if it wants to ad-vance in its negotiations to join theEuropean Union," Freitas do Ama-ral said.

Turkey and the EU have startedaccession negotiations, a processexpected to take at least 10 years.

On Tuesday, Halonen paid a vis-it to the picturesque Melk

monastery west of Vienna and tooka scenic boat ride on a stretch of theDanube River near the abbey.

STABILITY, REFORMS,RUSSIAAND ENERGY

Finland has said it will push forstability and reforms in the westernBalkans during its presidency. It al-so plans to pursue an initiative ofincreased cooperation between theEU and Russia.

At a separate news conferenceMonday aimed to take stock of theAustrian presidency, Schuesselwarned that future EU presidencieswould not be able to ignore energypolicy.

"No presidency will be able towalk past this topic," Schuesseltold reporters in Vienna. "Nothingis guaranteed (when it comes to en-ergy)," he added, noting that it wasimportant for Europe to think andact in a "networked" manner.

Schuessel, flanked by ForeignMinister Ursula Plassnik and ViceChancellor Hubert Gorbach, alsonoted that more than 2 million newjobs had been created in Europe inthe past year, and that efforts hadbeen made to reach out to the peo-

ple of Europe."Europe is an absolute success

story," Schuessel said.But Plassnik acknowledged that

more work needed to be done togain popular support for a Euro-pean constitution aimed at creatingsimpler, faster EU decision-mak-ing and giving the bloc a presidentand a foreign minister – selected bythe EU governments – to raise Eu-rope's status as a global player.

"One can't satisfy 450 millionEuropeans with a single communi-cations measure or proposal,"Plassnik said.

Under Austrian stewardship,European leaders agreed to givethemselves an extra 12 months ofthinking about the EU's future, adecision which will leave it up toGermany to resolve the stalemate,as it holds the EU presidency in thesecond half of 2007.

Among other things, the phrase"constitution" had rankled manyEuropeans as being overly ambi-tious, and had stoked fears of anEU super state. French and Dutchvoters rejected the proposal in ref-erendums last year.

The Roman coin, which weighsonly 3.2 grams (0.1 ounces), wasreturned after Greek officials initi-ated legal action against theBritish dealership, based on a Eu-ropean Union directive on therepatriation of cultural goods ille-

gally removed from the territory ofa member state.

UNCONDITIONALLYVoulgarakis said the Classical

Numismatic Group unconditional-ly handed the denarius over thismonth to a lawyer representing theGreek state, after Greece was ableto prove it had been illegally exca-vated.

"It is the first time the EU di-rective was enforced in Britain,"Voulgarakis said.

The coin was issued by a mobilemilitary mint used by Brutus to payhis soldiers during the wars whichfollowed Caesar's assassination in44 BC by a group of his friends andprotégés – immortalized in Shake-speare's play, "Julius Caesar."

Decorated with the head ofBrutus on the one side and a pair

of daggers flanking a cap on theother, the denarius carries the in-scription Eid Mar – short for theIdes of March, or March 15, thedate of Caesar's murder.

A denarius corresponded to aRoman legionary's daily pay. Bru-tus whose full name was MarcusJunius Brutus, committed suicideafter being defeated in 42 BC atPhilippi in Greece by Octavian,who became Rome's first emper-or.

THE NATIONAL HERALD, JULY 1, 2006 GREECE/CYPRUS 9

By Paul LogothetisAssociated Press

LONDON (AP) – Nearly twoyears after a scandal which rockedthe Athens Olympics, Greek sprint-ers Kostas Kenteris and KaterinaThanou conceded that they brokeanti-doping rules and acceptedtheir competition bans.

The runners, who embarrassedthe host nation by failing to reportfor drug tests on the eve of theAthens Games, dropped their ap-peals this past Monday, June 26,before the Court at Arbitration forSport.

The International Association ofAthletics Federations said the ath-letes will be eligible to return tocompetition on December 22 afterthe completion of a two-year ban,provided they pass the mandatorydrug tests required to win reinstate-ment.

"The proceedings are now at anend," the IAAF said in a statementfrom its Monaco headquarters."The parties are pleased in the in-terests of the sport that this long-running dispute has been broughtto a conclusion."

Kenteris and Thanou acknowl-edged they breached anti-dopingrules when they missed three dop-ing tests between July 27 and Au-gust 12, 2004 – in Tel Aviv, Chica-go and Athens – and failed to pro-vide a urine and blood sample onAugust 12, 2004, the eve of the2004 Olympic Games' openingceremony, the IAAF said.

After missing the Athens drugtests, both athletes spent four daysin a hospital after claiming theywere injured in a motorcycle crash.They later withdrew from theGames, and were provisionallysuspended by the IAAF on Decem-ber 22, 2004.

The Greek Track & Field feder-ation cleared the athletes in March2005 of deliberately evading thetests, saying they hadn't been prop-erly notified.

But the IAAF appealed to CASin a bid to overturn the Greek rul-ing and impose minimum two-yearbans. On May 15, CAS rejected therunners' bid to have the provisionalsuspension lifted pending a finalruling.

"We discovered the athletes andthe IAAF have reached an agree-ment," CAS Secretary-GeneralMatthieu Reeb said Monday. "Wewere just informed that the appealwas withdrawn and the athleteshave accepted their two-year ban.They will be eligible to compete

again as of the 22nd of December.It's a big piece of work which isnow over."

"This is a positive developmentfor us because it will allow her(Thanou) to compete again,"Thanou's lawyer, Nikos Kollias,told the Associated Press.

"I talked to her, and she told meshe is very happy. Our aim, fromthe start, was for her to return to ac-tion as soon as possible, and this iswhat will happen. The IAAF willsupport her effort to return to ac-tion."

Kenteris was a surprise winnerof the 200-meter gold medal at the2000 Sydney Olympics, andThanou took silver in the 100 me-ters at the same games.

Both were national heroes inGreece and – until the scandalbroke – showered with honors andsponsorship deals. A ferry to hishome island was even named inKenteris' honor.

Kenteris and Thanou also havebeen charged by a Greek prosecu-tor with faking the motorcycle ac-cident. No trial date has been set.

Sprinters Accept Sports Court Ruling and Drop Appeal

Finland: Turkey’s Road to E.U. a Rocky One

Greek Authorities HailReturn of Ancient Coins


BBlloonnddee bboommbbsshheellll vviissiittss GGrreeeecceeAAmmeerriiccaann aaccttrreessss aanndd ffoorrmmeerr PPllaayybbooyy cceenntteerrffoolldd PPaammeellaa AAnnddeerrssoonn lliiss--tteennss ttoo qquueessttiioonnss dduurriinngg aa nneewwss ccoonnffeerreennccee iinn AAtthheennss tthhiiss ppaasstt MMoonn--ddaayy,, JJuunnee 2266.. AAnnddeerrssoonn wwaass iinn AAtthheennss oonn bbeehhaallff ooff tthhee MMaacc AAiiddss FFuunndd,,tthhee cchhaarriittyy ggrroouupp ffoorrmmeedd bbyy MMAACC CCoossmmeettiiccss ttoo hheellpp AAIIDDSS ppaattiieennttss..

RReessiissttiinngg eedduuccaattiioonn rreeffoorrmmAA ssttuuddeenntt aanndd aa GGrreeeekk OOrrtthhooddooxx mmoonnkk hhoolldd aa bbaannnneerr dduurriinngg aa ssttuuddeenntt ddeemmoonnssttrraattiioonn iinn AAtthheennss tthhiiss ppaassttTTuueessddaayy,, JJuunnee 2277.. PPoolliiccee uusseedd tteeaarr ggaass ttoo ddiissppeerrssee rriiootteerrss tthhrroowwiinngg ppeettrrooll bboommbbss aanndd ssttoonneess dduurriinngg aapprrootteesstt aaggaaiinnsstt pprrooppoosseedd eedduuccaattiioonn rreeffoorrmmss.. OOnnee ssuussppeecctteedd rriiootteerr wwaass aarrrreesstteedd,, wwhhiillee aatt lleeaasstt ttwwoo ppeeoopplleewweerree iinnjjuurreedd..


GGrreeeekk sspprriinntteerr KKoossttaass KKeenntteerriiss,, lleefftt,, ssmmiilleess aafftteerr hhee ddoonnaatteedd hhiiss OOllyymmppiicc mmeeddaallss ttoo tthhee SSppoorrttss MMuusseeuumm ooffTThheessssaalloonniikkii tthhiiss ppaasstt MMaarrcchh 33.. SSpprriinntteerr KKaatteerriinnaa TThhaannoouu,, rriigghhtt,, ppoosseess wwiitthh hheerr OOllyymmppiiaakkooss ssppoorrttss cclluubbmmeemmbbeerrsshhiipp ccaarrdd tthhiiss ppaasstt JJuunnee 66.. KKeenntteerriiss aanndd TThhaannoouu,, GGrreeeeccee''ss ddaarrlliinnggss ooff tthhee 22000000 OOllyymmppiicc GGaammeess iinnSSyyddnneeyy,, hhaavvee ddrrooppppeedd tthheeiirr ssuussppeennssiioonn aappppeeaallss ffoorr mmiissssiinngg ddooppiinngg tteessttss bbeeffoorree 22000044 AAtthheennss OOllyymmppiiccss.. TThheesspprriinntteerrss aacccceepptteedd aa rruulliinngg tthhee wwoorrlldd ssppoorrttss'' hhiigghheesstt ttrriibbuunnaall tthhiiss ppaasstt MMoonnddaayy aanndd aarree eexxppeecctteedd ttoo rreettuurrnnttoo ccoommppeettiittiioonn tthhiiss DDeecceemmbbeerr..

WASHINGTON (ANA) UnitedStates-Turkey relations have takena battering since the war in Iraq,according to a 20-page report re-leased last week by the prestigiousand influential Council on ForeignRelations – a supposedly nonparti-san U.S. think tank – which hasurged for action on both sides toimprove bilateral ties.

The report, prepared by analystsSteven A. Cook and Elizabeth D.Sherwood-Randall, recommendsrevivifying ties between the twocountries.

It also referred extensively to theCyprus issue, calling on Washing-ton to take a lead role in settling thedispute and exert its influence topersuade the Republic of Cyprus toshow "a more constructive stance."

In the report, "Generating Mo-mentum for a New Era in U.S.-Turkey Relations," which was re-leased on June 21, the authors notea chill between Ankara and Wash-ington following Turkey's refusalto allow U.S. forces to passthrough southeastern Turkey into

northwestern Iraq in 2003, particu-larly among the military establish-ment in Washington, and the factthat several U.S. officials now be-lieve Turkey is not a reliable ally.

They also point to a rising tideof anti-Americanism among theTurkish populace, while claimingthat limited reforms to the coun-try's constitution and institutions –falling short of full democratiza-tion – mean that public opinion hasa much greater influence on for-eign policy.

As a result, the authors argue,Washington can no longer rely onits ties with Turkey's elite, includ-ing the Turkish military, in order topromote its interests.

Regarding Cyprus, the reportcalls for the immediate appoint-ment of a special coordinator forthe Cyprus issue, a position whichhas remained empty since the de-parture of Ambassador Tom West-on, and maintains that the provi-sions of the United Nations reunifi-cation blueprint submitted by UNSecretary-General Kofi Annan fa-

vored the Greek-Cypriot side.It urges the U.S. Government to

"encourage" the European Unionto exert its influence on the CypriotGovernment to show a "more con-structive stance" and calls on Presi-dent Bush to take steps to end theinternational isolation of Turkish-Cypriots.

The authors also assert thatfinding a solution to the Cyprus is-sue has become much more diffi-cult after Cyprus joined the EU.

Other steps recommended bythe report are to establish a regulartrilateral dialogue between theUnited States, Turkey and IraqiKurds; more active support ofTurkey's EU candidacy; and creat-ing a "high-level committee ofU.S.-Turkey cooperation."

The report also cites much clos-er ties between Washington andAnkara in the past, mentioning, in-ter alia, that U.S. intelligence ser-vices collaborated with secret ser-vices of other countries in order totrack down and arrest rebel Kur-dish leader Abdullah Ocalan.

Council on Foreign Relations Critical ofCyprus, Urges Improving Ties with Turkey

AP FILE PHOTOS

AA rraarree RRoommaann ccooiinn cceelleebbrraattiinngg tthhee aassssaassssiinnaattiioonn ooff JJuulliiuuss CCaaeessaarr iisssseeeenn oonn aa ssccrreeeenn dduurriinngg aa pprreessss ccoonnffeerreennccee iinn AAtthheennss tthhiiss ppaasstt TTuueessddaayy,,JJuunnee 2277.. TThhee 33..22--ggrraamm ssiillvveerr ccooiinn wwaass iilllleeggaallllyy eexxccaavvaatteedd iinn GGrreeeeccee aannddccoonnffiissccaatteedd iinn GGrreeaatt BBrriittaaiinn ffrroomm ssuussppeecctteedd aannttiiqquuiittiieess ssmmuugggglleerrss.. IItt iissddeeccoorraatteedd wwiitthh tthhee hheeaadd ooff BBrruuttuuss,, oonnee ooff CCaaeessaarr''ss mmuurrddeerreerrss..

AP PHOTO/THANASSIS STAVRAKIS



10 EDITORIALS/LETTERS THE NATIONAL HERALD, JULY 1, 2006

In a thoroughly fascinating set of remarks, Dr. John Brademas, the firstAmerican-born Greek elected to the United States Congress and presidentemeritus of New York University, provides us with a great inside look at theway the system works in America (see this week’s viewpoints page), and em-phasizes the greatness of Greek civilization and the positive influence hisHellenic heritage has had on his life.

Dr. Brademas served the people of Indiana in the House of Representa-tives for 22 years (1958-80). For part of that time, he was majority whip, thenumber-3 man in the House. He then served at the helm of NYU, thelargest private university in the country, for 11 years (1981-92).

In his address to the Queens College Center for Byzantine & ModernGreek Studies at the end of May, his long years of experience in govern-ment, politics and institutional life come shining through.

He recounts his experiences with Senator Paul Sarbanes of Marylandand the late Congressman Ben Rosenthal of New York (among other legis-lators), and their struggles to preserve the U.S. arms embargo againstTurkey for invading Cyprus. He discusses his personal experiences withPresidents Ford and Carter, and with former Secretary of State Kissinger,drawing comparisons between U.S. foreign policy of the 1970’s with those oftoday:

If we examine the ongoing Turkish occupation of Cyprus, he said, “wehave not only a serious, unresolved problem for American policymakers,but yet another example of monumental errors by the Executive Branch…the war in Iraq has become one of the most serious calamities in Americanhistory.”

Dr. Brademas also discusses his latest project: the John Brademas Cen-ter for the Study of Congress at NYU, the purpose of which is to help peo-ple understand the way the U.S. Congress functions.

Finally, he concludes by drawing attention to Greek American SenatorsSarbanes and Olympia J. Snowe of Maine and their fine records of publicservice, encouraging his young audience to enter the public sphere, and toseek office. His message is clear: to have an impact on policy, we must un-derstand the way the system works, and get involved.

Sobriety is in orderFor some, the latest flap at the Federation of Hellenic Societies of

Greater New York may seem rather typical: Greeks have egos, and theyhave tempers, and this is just another one of those ego trips people are tak-ing over at the Federation.

That may be true, but only partially so.To some observers, the conflict seems to be only about who gets to be the

next Federation president, but there is no “only about.” The issue runsdeep.

The fight over who gets to be president is no small thing. We are talkingabout the organization which organizes and hosts the Greek Americancommunity’s single largest cultural event each year: New York's annualGreek Independence Day Parade.

We are also talking about an organization where most of the individualmember societies and associations can distinguish themselves for their geo-graphic uniqueness, and where they gather together to reflect the richnessof the Hellenic cultural mosaic.

As such, the presidency of the Federation is nothing to sneeze at. Afterall, the presidency is any organization’s leadership. And that’s what the issueultimately comes down to: leadership.

Unfortunately, no one is demonstrating good leadership at the moment.Petros Galatoulas and his camp submitted the necessary paperwork in a

timely manner for the election process. Nikos Diamantides, who has servedas president for the past two years, and his camp failed to submit their pa-perwork in regulation time.

Mr. Galatoulas cried foul and said that the bylaws, which stipulate adeadline, render Mr. Diamantides’ attempt to seek re-election invalid.

The ad hoc committee which supervises the election process rightly gaveMr. Diamantides and his supporters a two-day extension, as it would havebeen silly to have an election with only one party running unopposed due toa technicality.

The extension granted to Mr. Diamantides did not sit well with some ofMr. Galatoulas’ supporters, however (either that, or they were turned off bythe insistence to adhere to a strict deadline), and the some of them droppedout of his coalition. Suddenly, Mr. Galatoulas’ camp, technically, was shortof the necessary 21 members required to run for the Federation’s board.

So Mr. Diamantides and his supporters, who submitted their documentslate, ran in an election which ended up excluding Mr. Galatoulas and hissupporters.

In other words, each camp wanted to exclude the other based on techni-calities; both wanted to run unopposed; and fair elections were not held.

Mr. Galatoulas rightly argues that new elections should be held, but thestrength of his argument is weakened by his earlier insistence on adheringstrictly to technicalities, which came back to haunt him.

Mr. Diamantides and his supporters were approached by a group ofwell-respected members of the community, who offered to mediate andproposed holding a new set of elections again in six months. They were re-jected out of hand.

Now there’s a court case pending, as Galatoulas supporters have takenlegal action to have the issue resolved in court.

We regret that the matter has deteriorated to such an extent. Some mea-sure of sobriety is in order. Mr. Galatoulas should persuade his supportersto withdraw the lawsuit, and Mr. Diamantides should consent to anotherround of elections.

And while we applaud the effort to mediate, the community shouldn’thave to wait another six months for things to restabilize. An independentboard of respected community members will provide the necessary stabilityfor the Federation and give it time to clean up its roster; update its constitu-tion; and place it on a strong footing to make a fresh start and then hold fairelections.

We would add that it would be nice if other candidates stepped forward.Under the circumstances, it might be a good idea to open the process up tofresh blood – without drawing any, of course.

An inside look

Peter Marudas isRight: PatrarchateNeeds New Strategy

To the Editor:The recent two-part article by

Peter Marudas, “New StrategyNeeded to Save Endangered Ecu-menical Patriarchate,” is seriousand provocative. I know Mr. Maru-das. His entire career has been inthe press and public service forpersons of influence, including 23years as chief of staff for SenatorPaul Sarbanes. He is a public rela-tions professional and expert. Hehas had personal knowledge andinvolvement during his career inboth Greek-Turkish relations andthe Ecumenical Patriarchate. Heknows of what he writes.

The examples he gives aboutthe miscues by well-meaning, butpolitically-unaware, individuals atthe Archdiocese, the Archons andthe Patriarchate have not served tohelp the endangered Patriarchate.In fact, they have served to place itin greater danger by angering fur-

ther the enemies of the Patriarchatein Turkey.

Many of your readers, and par-ticularly those who participated inthe events noted, may disagreewith his characterization of theevents he lists as failures. But look-ing at them objectively and dispas-sionately from a political view-point, one must conclude that Mr.Marudas is correct in his opinionthat these events have served toalarm the Turks, rather than per-suade them to loosen the yoke. Theresult is that the Turkish Govern-ment, which is complete control ofPatriarchate’s real estate, and itssubjects therein, continues to makematters worse for the Patriarchate.

Mr. Marudas points out that onecause of these miscues is that thedecisions outlined in his articlewere made within a small circle ofindividuals who were unaware ofthe political implications, andwithout their seeking advice fromprofessionals and politically astuteindividuals. He rightly points outthat the Patriarchate needs “toreach out much more broadly foradvice, information and support.”

Experts of many different na-tionalities who are in positions ofinfluence in the secular world, andwho are supporters of the Patriar-chate and all that it represents, areout there and would be willing toassist the Patriarchate. They onlyneed to be asked.

Along with outlining the pastmistakes and making a plea for thePatriarchate to reach out for help,Mr. Marudas gives us a list of rec-ommendations for changing thePatriarch’s image to that of an in-ternational figure who would bedifficult for the Turkish govern-ment to ignore. He also gives a listof specific steps and policies whichare realistic and positive, andwhich would reverse the presentnegative trend. Chief among theseis for the Patriarch to convene aGreat and Holy Synod of all theOrthodox Churches.

Any Orthodox Christian read-ing this article should come awaywith the impression that the presentpolicies and actions by certain peo-ple on behalf of the Patriarchatehave not worked, and that theymust be re-examined and changed.

A new cohesive and positive poli-cy, as recommended by Mr. Maru-das, should be considered andadopted by the Patriarchate and itssupporters.

Respectfully submitted,Andrew Kartalis

Beachwood, Ohio

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By Theodore G. KarakostasSpecial to The National Herald

The keepers of the personalitycult of Mustafa Kemal in Turkeyhave finally emerged from behindthe scenes following the murder ofa pro-secular judge. Pro-Turkishforces in America’s think tanks andthe neoconservative movementhave been waiting for the Generalsto reassert their power, as they didwith the Coups of 1960, 1971,1980 and the notorious “SilentCoup” of 1997.

The Generals openly attendedthe funeral of the judge in full mili-tary uniforms, and are openly en-couraging demonstrators againstthe Islamic administration of PrimeMinister Erdogan.

Although avoiding direct con-frontation with the Islamists, theGenerals have made their presenceknown through the Gray Wolves,who have been threatening the Ec-umenical Patriarchate with theirfrequent demonstrations over thepast two years.

The Patriarchal seminary on theisland of Halki was expected toopen two years ago, until ultra-na-tionalist Turks and the Turkish Na-tional Security Council declaredthat the opening of Halki would be“treachery” against Turkey. TheNSC (i.e., the Military) indicatedthat Halki represented the “MegaliIdea” of Venizelist Greece, andhenceforth, the Ecumenical Patri-archate became a political weaponfor the Generals to use in discredit-ing the Islamists. It would not bethe first time that the Gray Wolveswould be operating under the aus-pices of the Turkish Military; in1996, members made their way tothe occupied territories of Cyprus,where they slaughtered four GreekCypriots.

WELL-DOCUMENTEDIn addition, the relationship be-

tween the Turkish ParamilitaryState and active terrorists (includ-ing Islamic ones) has been well-documented. A recent State De-partment Country Report onTurkey notes the support TurkishSecurity forces give to the notori-ous Islamic organization known as“Hizbullah.” The Boston Globe in

a December 2003 article affirmedthat “Hizbullah” had protectorswithin the Turkish State.

While it is certainly possiblethat the murder of the judge inTurkey was committed by an en-raged Islamist over the banning ofheadscarves for women in govern-ment and education, the movementled by Prime Minister Erdogan hasnothing to gain, and much to lose,through this act of terrorism.

For Greece and Cyprus, thereare new risks and opportunitiesarising from the activities of theGenerals. It is quite possible thatTurkey’s traditional propagandistsin America will disseminate mate-rial within the media which is sym-pathetic to, and supportive of, theGenerals.

The Bush Administration couldmove to reaffirm its support forTurkey, despite Ankara’s owntreachery in the Iraq War, if theneocons conclude that Turkey canbe “saved.” On the other hand,Turkey is politically vulnerabledue to the emergence of Kurdishautonomy in northern Iraq; re-newed activities by the PKK (Kur-dish Worker’s Party); and the do-mestic political crisis which hasbeen predicted by observers of theTurkish political scene since the Is-lamists began their rise to power in1994.

Greece and Cyprus must standabsolutely firm within the Euro-pean Union and continue to de-mand that Ankara grant recogni-tion to Cyprus and allow Cypriotships to use Turkish ports. Ankarais politically weakened, despite po-tential increase of American andBritish support for Turkey in thecoming weeks. The decision of theGenerals to go public, and to intim-idate an elected civilian govern-ment, should be used by Athensand Nicosia to destroy Ankara’sEuropean ambitions. The Generalshave severely (perhaps fatally)compromised Turkey’s dream ofjoining the European Union.

There are uncertainties facingTurkey and the traditional powerswhich have been protecting Ankarabecause of perceived geo-strategicinterests. Should the Generals pre-vail and drive Erdogan from pow-

er, how will the millions of Is-lamists who have given money andvotes to the Justice & DevelopmentParty react? In December 1991, thesecular military in Algeria over-threw an Islamic Party which wason the verge of winning nationalelections, and the subsequent CivilWar was not pretty.

The traditional conflict betweenKemalist secularists and Islamistsin Turkey is far more vicious thananywhere else in the Islamic world.Mustafa Kemal ordered the execu-tions and imprisonment of count-less numbers of devout Muslims,and also earned the hatred of Mus-lims worldwide for abolishing theCaliphate and prohibiting Islamicdress for women.

Al Quaeda demonstrated that ithas its own local Turkish factionwhen it claimed responsibility forthe bombing of two Synagogues inConstantinople in December 2003.

A statement from Al Quaedaduring that period warned Turkeyto return to Islam. If the conflict inTurkey between the Generals andthe Islamists escalates, there is apossibility of not only an uprisingby Turkey’s Islamists, but also ofthe arrival of volunteers fromthroughout the Islamic world toTurkey, ready to get their revengeagainst the Kemalists for the aboli-tion of the Caliphate by Kemal in1924. And what effect will Ameri-can plans for Iran have in Turkey?

The Generals and the Islamistsare in agreement on some foreignpolicy matters. The Islamistsviewed the war on Iraq as an attackon brother Muslims, while theGenerals were hostile to the Ameri-can effort because the destruction

of the dictatorship of Saddam Hus-sein opened the way for an au-tonomous Kurdish entity whichstands as an inspiration forTurkey’s own Kurdish population.Should the Americans proceedwith their plans for a strike on Iran,this could very well result in re-newed popular support for the Is-lamic movement in Turkey, andeven the Generals would be hardpressed to support American plansfor Iran.

The Generals would have toconsider that Iran is more powerfulthan Iraq and that Ankara, asTehran’s neighbor, might suffer theconsequences from a vengeful Iranshould Turkey provide support forthe illusions of American neocons.

Whatever happens between theGenerals and the Islamists inTurkey, it is becoming increasinglyapparent that Turkey is an unstablecountry owing to the political andreligious unrest.

Moreover, the destruction ofIraq and the Kurdish question havemade even Turkish secular inter-ests incompatible with the Ameri-can and Israeli agendas.

Both the rise of Islamic funda-mentalism in Turkey, and the resul-tant extremism of the Generals,demonstrates that Turkey has nobusiness ever joining the EuropeanUnion.

This is the time for Greece andCyprus to harden their positions; topresent themselves as the stabledemocracies they are; and to showthe Western world that, in light ofthe madness engulfing Turkey, thesecurity interests of the West as awhole depend on the security ofAthens and Nicosia.

The Generals Return: Turkey Has No Business in E.U.

By E. John RumpakisSpecial to The National Herald

PORTLAND, Ore. – Serving asthe national president of America’sleading Hellenic American organi-zation is indeed an honor and animmense responsibility to provideproductive leadership with notableaccomplishments.

In just 16 years, AHEPA willcelebrate the 100th anniversary ofits founding in Atlanta, Georgia in1922. A small group of visionarymen realized that survival meant acollective response to the chal-lenges of their times. Yet to thisvery day, their purpose remainsvirtually unchanged, for in manyways, it resembles the Americanconstitution.

AHEPA began with its first pres-ident, Nicholas D. Chotas, in 1922.During the next 84 years, a total of58 presidents have served as the or-ganization’s elected leaders.

It is interesting to note that, dur-ing this period, 41 presidents served

no more than a one-year term, while13 served two years each. Threemen, V.I. Chebithes, Harris J.Booras and George C. Vournas eachserved three one-year terms. Be-yond these terms of service was onesupreme president who not onlyserved three years (1924-27), but healso returned to serve an additionalfive successive years from 1935through 1940, and this was the dis-tinguished V.I. Chebithes.

In studying the overall record ofservice, there appear to be two erasover the 84-year duration. It com-mences with the first 40 years from1922 through 1962, when 19 presi-dents served. Most important is tonote that only six presidents servedone-year terms, while a record 13served two or more years. The con-clusion is that 32.5 percent of thetime, supreme presidents servedtwo or more years.

In the more contemporary suc-cessive period of 1963 till 2006, anera spanning 44 years, only four in-dividuals served two years: Kimon

Doukas (1965-67), Louis Manesio-tis (1969-71), Nick Smyrnis (1979-81) and Dr. Spiro Macris (1995-97). It is interesting to note that, inthe second era, only 9.1 percentserved more than one term as com-pared with the first era.

It is rather obvious that somepolicies or practices brought aboutthese pronounced changes.

Though one can observe thatAHEPA has had less stability in re-cent years, it has not lost its deter-mination to succeed. It is clear thatthe efficiency and vitality of a re-elected supreme president benefitsthe organization, providing that hehas delivered with respect toAHEPA’s objectives. The confi-dence possessed by a second termAHEPAN could very well be anexceptional opportunity to leapforward. It is common knowledgethat experience brings better boun-ty when applied.

During the fourth week of thiscoming July, the 84th AHEPASupreme Convention will take

place at the Westin Diplomat Hotelin Hollywood, Florida. Delegatesof the annual national conventionhave recently received letters fromthe incumbent Supreme President,Gus J. James II, and Supreme VicePresident Ike Gulas. Mr. James an-nounced he is willing and able tocontinue, while Ike Gulas has stat-ed his goals to run for SupremePresident. Keeping history and thebest interests of the Order in mind,delegates will hopefully use theirgood judgment and wisdom as tothe most befitting candidate toserve in the highest office.

Mr. Rumpakis served as aSupreme Governor of AHEPAfor two terms (1998-99, 1999-2000). He is presently a memberof the AHEPA National Commit-tee, and has served as a nationaldelegate for more than ten years.He has also served on AHEPA’sCyprus & Hellenic Affairs andInternational Affairs Commit-tees.

AHEPA Presidents and their Terms of Service

COMMENTARY

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THE NATIONAL HERALD, JULY 1, 2006 VIEWPOINTS 11

By Dr. John BrademasPresident Emeritus, NYU

President (James L.)Muyskens, Professor Ioannides,distinguished guests, graduatingstudents, awardees and friends all,I am greatly honored by the invita-tion of the distinguished Directorof the Center for Byzantine &Modern Greek Studies of QueensCollege of the City University ofNew York, Dr. Christos P. Ioan-nides, to address you on this occa-sion.

It is, indeed, for several reasonsthat I am pleased to be with you.

First, as you know, I am thefirst native-born American ofGreek origin elected to theCongress of the United States –that was in 1958 – and over theyears, my Greek ancestry has hada great influence on my life.

My late father, Stephen J.Brademas, who was born in Kala-mata, used to say, “Be proud youare an American, but be proud,too, that you are Greek.” So, al-though my late mother was not ofGreek descent, I grew up inNorthern Indiana, with a keenawareness of my Hellenic her-itage. Years later, when I decidedto run for Congress, my fathersaid, approvingly, “We Greeks in-vented democracy; some of usshould practice it.”

I also recall my father havingsaid, “I’ll never leave much moneyto my children” – which was true –“but I will leave you all with a first-class education.” That was alsotrue, and of course, that was therichest legacy of all.

Indeed, two of the characteris-tics I believe most commonly asso-ciated with the Hellenic tradition– first, respect for learning and ed-ucation; and second, for democra-cy, for the vocation of democraticpolitics – proved fundamental tomy own career.

After completing my studies atHarvard and Oxford Universities,I returned to my hometown –South Bend, Indiana – and imme-diately plunged into politics, run-ning for Congress in 1954, losingby half a percent; winning on mythird try and ten more times, serv-ing in the House of Representa-tives, therefore, for 22 years, andso with six Presidents: three Re-publicans (Eisenhower, Nixon andFord) and three Democrats(Kennedy, Johnson and Carter).

As a legislator, I focused onwriting measures to supportschools, colleges and universities;libraries and museums; the artsand the humanities; and to pro-vide services for children, the el-derly and the disabled. But I wasalso, as I shall shortly make clear,keenly interested in foreign policy.

Losing my race in 1980 for elec-tion to a twelfth term – the chiefreasons were the Iran hostage cri-sis and the high price of gas – I wasshortly thereafter invited to be-come president of New York Uni-versity, a position in which I serveduntil 1992, when I became presi-dent emeritus, my present respon-sibility. I continue to be involvedin a wide range of activities…

But there is yet another reasonI’m honored to be with you – andthat is to pay tribute to the memo-ry of one of my colleagues duringmy years as a member ofCongress, for nearly 21 years theoutstanding Representative of theQueens Eighth District in the U.S.House of Representatives, Ben-jamin S. Rosenthal…

And as I speak of Ben Rosen-thal, I want to discuss with you theissue that brought Ben Rosenthaland me together: the fight fordemocracy in Greece and thestruggle for justice for Cyprus.

In April 1967, a group of armycolonels in Greece overthrewyoung King Constantine of the

Hellenes. I then, the only GreekAmerican in Congress at the time,sharply attacked the coup, and Irefused to go to Greece or visit theGreek Embassy in Washington.

A key leader in the effort togenerate opposition to the repres-sive policies of the military junta,which for seven years ruledGreece, was Congressman Ben-jamin Rosenthal, who chaired theSubcommittee on Europe of theHouse Committee on Foreign Af-fairs, and who called hearings onthe issue.

Indeed, just 31 years ago nextJuly, in 1975, I testified beforeBen’s Subcommittee and said,“Unfortunately, officials of theState Department, and other offi-cials of the Nixon Administration,have chosen not to make clearAmerican disapproval of theregime which has robbed theGreek people of their basic liber-ties in the land we like to describeas the cradle of democracy.”

I thereupon announced my op-position to continued UnitedStates military aid to Greece.

Ben Rosenthal and I had an-other, still more dramatic, occa-sion to work together, for in July1974, the Greek military juntasupported a coup on the islandRepublic of Cyprus. The GreekCypriot National Guard bombard-ed the presidential palace inNicosia, forcing the President ofCyprus, Archbishop Makarios, toflee…

In August of 1974, however, ina second attack, Turkish planesbombed Nicosia, and 40,000 Turk-ish forces engaged in a massive in-vasion of Cyprus. The Turkish mil-itary was armed with weapons andammunition supplied by the Unit-ed States, and supported by tanks,aircraft and boats supplied by ourcountry.

On August 15, I led a group ofthe other four Members of theHouse of Representatives ofGreek origin – Paul Sarbanes, Pe-ter Kyros, Skip Bafalis and GusYatron – to meet with Secretary ofState Henry Kissinger. My col-leagues and I reminded SecretaryKissinger that American law re-quired a halt to further shipmentof arms to any country usingAmerican weapons for other thandefensive purposes.

“You must enforce the law,” Itold Kissinger, and then remindedhim that the reason Richard Nixonwas on his way in exile to Califor-nia – this was the week PresidentNixon resigned; it was a colorfulweek – was because he had not re-spected the laws of the land or theConstitution of the United States.“You should do so,” I toldKissinger.

Neither the new President,Gerald R. Ford, nor Kissinger did.

Because the Executive Branchof our national government re-fused to carry out the law, we inCongress acted. And on Septem-ber 24, 1974 the House of Repre-sentatives approved, by a vote of307 to 90, an amendment to banfurther military aid to Turkey untilthe President certified that “sub-stantial progress toward agree-ment has been made regardingmilitary forces in Cyprus.”

That amendment was offeredby Congressman Rosenthal.

Rosenthal, in support of hisamendment, told the House, “TheUnited States bears not only thelegal responsibility for which weare in unconditional violation ofour own laws, but also a majormoral responsibility in violation ofthe U.N. Charter, the NATOcovenants and our own agree-ments with both nations, because80-90 percent of the equipmentthat was used during that aggres-sive military action was made, paidfor, and delivered by the UnitedStates. This year, presently, we aredelivering $80 million in militarygrant assistance to the governmentof Turkey.”

Here, I think it’s important tonote that Ben Rosenthal, PaulSarbanes and I, and our other col-leagues who pressed for the em-bargo on further military aid toTurkey, had all been strongly op-posed to the Greek military junta.Moreover, we made clear in thedebate that central to our positionon aid to Turkey was respectingthe rule of law in our country, aswell as the purposes of the NATOalliance.

In a New York Times Maga-zine article 30 years ago (“TheKissinger Legacies” by LeslieGelb, October 31, 1976), Kissingeris quoted as having said, in re-sponse to legal arguments sup-porting the arms embargo, “Thereare times when the national inter-est is more important than the

law.”All of us understand, as we

meet in May of 2006, and considersuch issues as the rationale for thewar in Iraq and for domesticsurveillance without judicial war-rant, that our country seems oncemore engaged in a debate con-cerning respect for the laws of theland on the part of the ExecutiveBranch of our national govern-ment.

I may tell you that, a fewmonths after Congress imposedthe embargo on arms to Turkey,then Congressman Sarbanes and Imade a trip to Greece and Cyprus.We flew to Cyprus from Athens ona plane supplied by the UnitedStates Embassy in Athens. Whenwe landed at the Akrotiri AirBase, the plane, lifted by a gust ofwind, ran into a wall and stopped.The pilot shouted, “Everybody offthis airplane fast.”

As Paul Sarbanes and I walkeddown the ladder of the plane, andseeing a fire engine racing towardus, I said to Paul, “That Kissingerwill stop at nothing.” When,months later, I told Henry thatstory, he smiled and replied, “Thatwas just a warning.”

I must note here that the lead-ers on Capitol Hill who succeededin winning the embargo were the“Gang of Four” – Ben Rosenthal,Paul Sarbanes and I in the House,and Tom Eagleton of Missouri inthe Senate… even as I have hadoccasion to recall a meeting at theWhite House when President Jim-my Carter called the “Gang ofFour” to the Cabinet Room, afterhe had been in office for a year orso, to discuss the embargo on armsto Turkey.

Also present that day wereVice President Walter Mondale,Secretary of State Cyrus Vanceand National Security AdvisorZbigniew Brzezinski. I might addthat all of them, and all of us – Sar-banes, Rosenthal, Eagleton andBrademas – were Democrats.

Here, I must note that I hadhelped draft (Georgia) GovernorJimmy Carter’s pledge in his 1976presidential campaign that a re-sumption of a normal arms rela-tionship with Turkey would beconditioned on a just settlementon Cyprus.

Accordingly, my colleagues andI were not happy when the Presi-dent asked us to support removingthe embargo, for there had beenno action at all to resolve theCyprus question. Turkish troopsstill occupied the North.

So I replied, “Mr. President, Iwill tell you exactly what I toldyour predecessor (namely, Presi-dent Ford) in this very room. I amdeeply disappointed.” My re-sponse meant that, in Congress,President Carter would have afight on his hands.

The White House went all outin pressing its case, and in Septem-ber of 1978, by a narrow margin inthe House of Representatives, thereal arena, the embargo was lifted.

President Carter telephonedme right after the vote. I remindyou that, at this time, I was theMajority Whip of the House ofRepresentatives, part of theDemocratic Leadership groupwho joined the President and VicePresident every other Tuesday forbreakfast at the White House. ThePresident said, “Now, John, wemust do what’s right for the peopleof Greece.” I replied, “No, Mr.President. We must do what’sright for the people of the UnitedStates.” I wasn’t going to let himmake a Greek Congressman outof me. President Carter thenadded, “Well, next time, I wantyou Greeks on my side” – meaningGreek Americans. I said, “Mr.President, we may not be many,but we’re everywhere.”

Now here we are, nearly a gen-eration later, and some of us arestill making the point that funda-mental to understanding theCyprus issue – and to resolving it –is that the rule of law in the UnitedStates must be respected, obeyedand enforced.

That the Cyprus question con-tinues unresolved only reinforcesmy conviction that we – Paul Sar-banes, Tom Eagleton, Ben Rosen-thal and I – were correct in the po-sition we took over three decadesago, and we still are.

Two years ago, Romano Prodi,the new Prime Minister of Italy,then President of the EuropeanCommission, told me during hisvisit to NYU that Cyprus was his“biggest headache…”

I am well aware of the argu-ments concerning rejection, by anoverwhelming majority of GreekCypriots, of the so-called AnnanPlan for resolving the Cyprus is-

sue. I have not time here to reviewthe reasons for the “no vote,” butyou will find them brilliantly artic-ulated in a recent book, “An Inter-national Relations Debacle: TheUN Secretary-General’s Missionof Good Offices in Cyprus – 1999-2204,” by Claire Palley (Hart Pub-lishing, Oxford, Portland, Oregon:2005).

Among the reasons, she notes,that Greek Cypriots, in over-whelming numbers, said no to theAnnan Plan were the following:

• Turkey’s claims to a rightof unilateral intervention.

• Large numbers of Turk-ish troops to remain in Cyprus af-ter the settlement.

• The great majority ofTurkish settlers could remain inCyprus.

• Lack of enforcement pro-visions to ensure implementationof Turkey’s promises to restoreterritory and to return homes torefugees.

• Further large flows ofTurkish settlers after Turkey’s Eu-ropean Union membership.

• Denial of the right of re-turn of nearly half the GreekCypriot refugees.

• Heavy financial burdenof the settlement would fall onGreek Cypriots.

As my friend, Costa Carras,founder of “Friends of Cyprus,”told the Association of Cypriot,Greek and Turkish Affairs in Lon-don only last March, there is “aGreek Cypriot conviction (that)there has, in recent years, beenbad faith on the part of the U.S.and the U.K. These two certainlybear some of the responsibility forhaving skewed the Annan Plan inAnkara’s favor and against theirown declared political principleson the fundamental issues of secu-rity, settlers and property…”

So, where are we now on theCyprus issue?

Now, I am sure from what Ihave said that you realize I havenot attempted to give you an in-depth analysis of the Cyprus issue;its history; its consequences; andthe outlook for the future forCyprus…

It seems to me ladies and gen-tlemen, that finding a just resolu-tion for Cyprus is an indispensablerequirement as the EuropeanUnion considers the applicationfor E.U. membership of Turkey.There are, in my view, certaincommitments which, if Turkeywishes to join the E.U., that coun-try must undertake.

First, of course, is that Turkeycomply with the so-called Copen-hagen criteria, which include re-spect for minorities; respect forhuman rights; and respect for de-cent treatment of peoples. Cer-tainly, it is not rational that anE.U. member-state militarily oc-cupies another E.U. member-state, and Cyprus is now a memberof the European Union. As todaythere are nearly 40,000 Turkisharmed forces in Cyprus, their con-tinued presence, if Turkey were inthe European Union, would be anoffense to common sense.

Second, it is also unreasonablefor one member of the EuropeanUnion to refuse to give diplomaticrecognition to the existence of an-other member, and as you allknow, Turkey has refused to rec-ognize the Republic of Cyprus…

If the issue of a just settlementon Cyprus is one challenge toGreeks – and to those who careabout Greece – there it yet anoth-er of which I shall speak, and it isalso related to Turkey’s desire tojoin the European Union.

Only last year, His EminenceArchbishop Demetrios, Primateof the Greek Orthodox Church inAmerica, testified on Capitol Hillbefore the United States HelsinkiCommission. His Eminence andreligious leaders of other tradi-tions voiced their concern aboutthe systematic efforts on the partof Turkey to undermine the Or-thodox Church and the Ecumeni-cal Patriarchate in Constantino-ple…

Turkey must accord the Ecu-menical Patriarchate the right toeducate clergy of all nationalities,not solely Turkish citizens. In thisregard, Turkish authorities shouldallow the reopening of the Schoolof Theology on Halki. And finally,Turkey should agree to respect theproperty rights, as well as the hu-man rights, of the Ecumenical Pa-triarchate.

I have already spoken of theCopenhagen criteria. Here I notethat, only last month in Brussels(April 26), E.U. EnlargementCommissioner Olli Rehn, madeclear that Turkey must fully meetits obligations toward Cyprus, es-

pecially in the field of free trade.As you know, early this year,Turkey refused to allow a Cypriotcommercial ship to approach aTurkish port.

Here, I must raise what is obvi-ously another question about howgenuine Turkey’s commitment isto reform. Early this month (May6), the respected British publica-tion, The Economist, said in an ar-ticle, “Flying in the Wrong Direc-tion,” that the Turkish Govern-ment “may be turning away fromEurope,” and cited governmentefforts “to limit free speech evenfurther in a new anti-terror bill.”

In his address at the Universityof Cincinnati Law College, Dr.Ioannides, speaking of Turkey’sE.U. ambitions, spoke – as I didfive years ago at the BosphorousUniversity – of the “overwhelmingrole of the military in Turkish soci-ety and politics,” and cited the newTurkish Penal Code, which pro-vides for the prosecution for thosewho “insult Turkishness.”

Dr. Ioannides noted the prose-cution of the famed Turkish au-thor, Orhan Pamuk, because hehad “insulted Turkishness” byspeaking in an interview of dis-crimination against Turkey’s Kur-dish minority.

And last month (April 2006),Turkish journalists were on trialfor having criticized a court’s deci-sion to stop a conference in Istan-bul last September, where scholarswere discussing the mass killingsof Armenians during the reign ofthe Ottoman Empire, the Armeni-an Genocide…

I should also cite the PenalCode Article 305, which calls forjail sentences for those makingpropaganda for the withdrawal ofthe Turkish troops on Cyprus orthe Armenian Genocide. If therewere a similar law in the UnitedStates, my friend and former col-league, Congressman Jack Murthaof Pennsylvania, would be in deeptrouble for calling on U.S. troopsto get out of Iraq.

Only this week, on May 22, therespected Financial Times editori-alized about “last week’s murderof a prominent Turkish judge, os-tensibly by an Islamist aggrieved athis court’s ruling on the headscarfcontroversy…”

We meet today at a time whenone political party controls all thebranches of our national govern-ment – the White House, the Sen-ate, the House of Representativesand the Supreme Court – and, Ineed not impress upon this audi-ence, the war in Iraq has becomeone of the most serious calamitiesin American history.

Even members of Congress inPresident Bush’s party are begin-ning to pull away from him – onIraq and on other issues.

I do not raise this point to dis-cuss the current political scene inthe United States, however.Rather, the Cyprus issue and theconflicts it has caused betweenPresidents – of both parties – andmembers of Congress – of bothparties – continue to illustrate, asIraq does now, the significance ofthe separation-of-powers constitu-tional system created by our coun-try’s Founding Fathers.

It is because I believe Ameri-cans need to understand betterthan we presently do the role ofCongress in our political systemthat we have launched at NewYork University, in our Robert F.Wagner Graduate School of Pub-lic Service, the John BrademasCenter for the Study of Congress.

For unlike the House of Com-mons in the United Kingdom, forexample, in the American consti-tutional system, our national legis-lature, Congress, has power, inde-pendently of the ExecutiveBranch, to initiate and shape poli-cy.

Yet with 100 Senators and 435Representatives, and without thestrict party discipline characteris-tic of European parties, it is verydifficult, even for informed Amer-icans, to understand Congress.

So what we have established atNew York University is a Centerto which we shall invite Presidents,Senators and Representatives, sit-ting and former, Democrats andRepublicans – this will not be apartisan endeavor – along withcongressional staffers, cabinet sec-retaries and other executivebranch officials, diplomats, parlia-mentarians from other countries,students and scholars, to discussthe processes by which the U.S.Congress makes policy and impor-tant issues of national policy…

I could see that to consider theresponsibility of national legisla-tive bodies in shaping and con-ducting the foreign policy of their

countries, for example, a sympo-sium on United States policy to-ward Greece, Turkey and Cyprus– with attention given to the roleof Congress – could be a fittingsubject for the Brademas Center.Needless to say, we would ensurethat opposing points of view wouldbe heard.

Let me here recall that, in myaddress at the Bosphorus Univer-sity in Istanbul in 2001, I expressedthe hope that Turkish ambition tojoin the European Union wouldbe a powerful incentive tostrengthen the forces of democra-cy in Turkey, and I maintain thathope today.

Now as we meet today to paytribute to all of those graduatingfrom Queens College Center forByzantine and Modern GreekStudies, I salute those among youwho have received honors andawards and wish you all well inwhatever careers you undertake.

Even as I hope that you will, ascitizens and voters, remain faithfulto the ideal of participation in ourdemocracy, I also hope that atleast a few of you will consider ca-reers in public life – even, and es-pecially, electoral politics.

I voice this hope as I pay re-spect to two outstanding membersof the United States Senate ofGreek origin. First, I cite my val-ued friend, the first Greek Ameri-can elected to the United StatesSenate, the senior Senator fromMaryland, a giant in the modernUnited States Senate – a legislatorrespected by all sides for his intel-ligence, integrity and energy –Paul S. Sarbanes. I call Paul Sar-banes “a modern Pericles…”

If Paul Sarbanes is a Democrat-ic Senator of Greek heritage, I citeas well the first Greek Americanwoman elected to Congress, a Re-publican, from Maine, OlympiaBouchles-Snowe. Elected to theHouse of Representatives in 1978,and to the Senate in 1994, SenatorSnowe has, like Paul Sarbanes,won respect on both sides of thepolitical aisle for her intelligence,her sense of fairness and her ca-pacity to think for herself.

Perhaps there are some gradu-ates of Queens College here todaywho will follow in the tradition ofthese two outstanding public ser-vants.

Ladies and gentlemen, I havefocused my remarks today on anissue that should concern us all –as American citizens of Greek de-scent; as Americans of whateverdescent; as citizens of other coun-tries; as human beings concernedto work for a world of justice andpeace.

Yet as I consider the occasionwhich brings us together thisevening, I trust you will agree withme that we can all find inspirationin the eloquent words of that emi-nent scholar of Greece, BernardKnox, in his book, “The OldestDead White European Males(W.W. Norton, New York: 1993,pgs. 66-67):

“We should not forget the as-tonishing originality which setsthem (the Greeks) apart; whichmakes them unique. They invent-ed democracy more that 2,000years before any modern Westernnation took the first steps towardit. They invented not only philoso-phy and the theater, but also themodel of a national literature,with its canon of great writers; itscritics and commentators; and itslibraries.

They invented organized com-petitive athletics – it is not fornothing that the sports which tookplace at Barcelona were calledOlympics. They invented politicaltheory, rhetoric, biology, zoology,the atomic theory – one could goon. Above all, in startling contrastto the magnificent but static civi-lizations of the great Eastern rivervalleys – Tigris, Euphrates andNile – they created, in the restlessturbulence of their tiny city-states,that impatient rhythm of competi-tion and innovation which hasbeen the distinguishing character-istic of Western Civilization eversince…

We must always acknowledgehow greatly, how deeply, how irre-vocably, we are in their debt.”

Listening to such words, everyone of us of Greek origin can takespecial pride in that heritage…

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Foreign Policy and the World’s Future through Congressional Eyes

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