The National HeraldA weekly Greek-AmericAn PuBlicATion

March 25-31, 2017

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1915-2016

VOL. 20, ISSUE 1015

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TNH Staff

NEW YORK – On March 16, theHellenic Medical Society of NewYork (HMSNY) held the Dr.Mary Kalopothakes Symposiumat Lenox Hill Hospital in NewYork City to honor DistinguishedFemale Physician of the Year Dr.Maria Theodoulou, Medical On-cology, at New York OncologyHematology (NYOH) in Albany,NY. The award is named inhonor of the first Greek-Ameri-can female physician Dr. MaryKalopothakes.

Dr. Theodoulou is recognizedinternationally for her breastcancer research. Prior to joiningNYOH, she was an attendingphysician at Memorial SloanKettering Cancer Center, and aProfessor of Medicine at theJoan and Sanford Weill MedicalCollege of Cornell University,both in New York City. Herawards and honors include theHally Yaccino Steiner Award-Susan G. Komen for the Cure,Greater New York City, Out-standing Physician Award- SassFoundation for Medical Re-search, Clinical Excellence &Community Advocacy in BreastCancer- Brook Air Force Base,San Antonio, TX, and the AXIOSAward from American HellenicEducational Progressive Associ-ation’s Cancer Foundation.

The introduction was madeby Dr. Stella Lymberis, Chair, 1stVice President of the HellenicMedical Society of New York,and Clinical Assistant Professorof Radiation Oncology at NewYork University. The Presidentof the Hellenic Medical Society,

Dr. MariaTheodoulouHonored byHMSNY

TNH Staff

NEW YORK – In response to theswathe of supertall luxury resi-dential towers rising in NewYork, local studio Oiio ownedby Ioannis Oikonomou has pro-posed a conceptual skyscraperthat loops over to boast lengthrather than height.

The Big Bend would beformed from a very thin struc-ture that curves at the top andreturns to the ground, creatingwhat the architecture firm de-scribes as the longest buildingin the world.

Oiio, based in New York andAthens, came up with the pro-posal to highlight the race forheight between Manhattan’sluxury condo developers,Dezeen reports.

“Cities have become a reser-voir of emotions and symbolism,

deposited daily by their inhabi-tants,” Oiio founder Oikonomoutold Time Out New York.

“Architects are now free fromthe old constraints and areready to wrestle with a city fab-ric covered by layers on top oflayers, made of meaning andmemory.”

THE BIG BENDThere is an undeniable ob-

session that resides in Manhat-tan. It is undeniable because itis made to be seen.

There are many differentways that can make a buildingstand out, but in order to do sothe building has to literary standout.

We have become familiarwith building height measure-ments. We usually learn aboutthe latest tallest building andwe are always impressed by itsprice per square foot. It seemsthat a property’s height operatesas a license for it to be expen-sive.

New York City’s zoning lawshave created a peculiar set oftricks trough which developerstry to maximize their property’sheight in order to infuse it withthe prestige of a high rise struc-ture. But what if we substitutedheight with length? What if ourbuildings were long instead oftall?

If we manage to bend ourstructure instead of bending thezoning rules of New York wewould be able to create one ofthe most prestigious buildingsin Manhattan; the longest build-ing in the world.

The Big Bend can become amodest architectural solution tothe height limitations of Man-hattan.

We can now provide ourstructures with the measure-ments that will make themstand out without worryingabout the limits of the sky.

Greek Architect Wantsto Change Skyline ofManhattan

By Theodore Kalmoukos

WASHINGTON, DC – Promi-nent cardiologist and professorDr. George Dangas was the re-cipient of the DistinguishedTeacher Award during the 66thAnnual Convocation of Ameri-can College of Cardiology(AMC) on March 19 in Wash-ington, DC.

AMC also honored Dangas’wife, Dr. Roxane Dangas, a well-

known cardiologist herself.Dangas told TNH that he

feels happy in receiving thehonor, and moved for many rea-sons. “First of all, it was a happysurprise for someone who formany years has been dealingwith the education and trainingof students with lectures, stud-ies, research, and the rest that aprofessor does. When I see thatthe students and trainees havecreated such a positive climate

on international level so that mycandidacy reaches the ears ofthe officials of AMC, which isthe greatest scientific associa-tion globally, it is somethingvery important.”

Dr. Dangas also considers itan honor for the Greek-Ameri-can community when a Greekdoctor from Greece, who grad-uated from the University of

Dr. George Dangas Receives Award

Historic Restoration of Jesus' Burial Shrine CompletedPeople line to to visit the renovated Edicule in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, traditionallybelieved to be the site of the crucifixion of Jesus Christ, in Jerusalem Tuesday, March 21, 2017A Greek restoration team has completed a historic renovation of the Edicule, the shrine that tra-dition says houses the cave where Jesus was buried and rose to heaven. Story on page 9.

AP PhoTo/DuSAn VrAnic

Dr. Yancopoulos, Grand Marshal, Talks to TNH

By Theodore Kalmoukos

WASHINGTON, DC – During hisschool’s spring break, 16-year-oldSpero Xanthos of Washington, in-stead of taking a break to enjoyhis free time as so many of hispeers did, traveled to Athens andvolunteered his services at theCaritas Philanthropic Organiza-tion, serving Syrian refugees hotmeals and giving them clothes.

Xanthos, an excellent studentat the Field School, is the son ofJohn and Evangelia, who areoriginally from Corfu and Crete,respectively.

Xanthos distinguishes himselfby his maturity and seriousness.He has a big philanthropic heartfull of love and compassion forothers, and especially those inneed.

Caritas is a Roman-Catholicorganization that operates at theVictoria Square, and providesmore than 500 meals per day tothe refugees.

Xanthos got the idea to volun-teer while visiting Greece with hisfamily in 2015. “We had come

16-Year-Old Xanthos Helps Refugees in Greece

TNH Staff

PALOS HILLS, IL – The GreekOrthodox Metropolis of ChicagoPhiloptochos Society held theirannual Quilt-a-thon on March18 at Saints Constantine & He-len Greek Orthodox Church inPalos Hills. This was the 16thyear that Greek Orthodoxwomen from throughout theGreater Chicago area gatheredto make over 200 quilts for hos-pitals and shelters. A special em-blem with a cross is sewn ontoeach quilt that reads, “Love andcomfort to you, love from, madeby the Greek Orthodox Philop-tochos Society.”

As in previous years, thequilts will be distributed to var-ious hospitals and institutionssuch as Children's Memorial,Comers, La Rabida, Hope, CrisisCenter, Philoxenia House, andmore, to be given to seriouslyill children and those with life-threatening diseases.

Six years ago, Metropolis of

Chicago Chancellor BishopDemetrios of Mokissos namedand dedicated this annual eventthe Maria Pazoles MemorialQuilt-a-thon, recognizing

Maria's indelible efforts andcontributions to this heart-warming and worthwhile char-

Chicago Philoptochos Quilt-a-Thon

Anastasiades Keynote Speaker at “Invest in Cyprus” ForumSeated, L-R Nikos Mouyiaris, keynote speaker Nicos Anastasiades, President of Cyprus, andPolys Hajioannou, CEO Safe Bulkers, standing Endy Zemenides, were among those in attendanceat Capital Link’s “Invest in Cyprus” Forum that took place on March 22 in New York.

The ladies of the Metropolis of Chicago Philoptochos madeover 200 quilts for the 16th annual Quilt-a-thon.

TNH Staff

NEW YORK – Dr. George Yan-copoulos, President and Chiefscientific officer of the pharma-ceutical company Regeneron, isthe Grand Marshal for the GreekIndependence Parade on March26 in New York. One of the lead-ing scientists and the head ofone of the largest pharmaceuti-cal companies listed on the NewYork Stock Exchange, Dr. Yan-copoulos, spoke with The Na-tional Herald about his life andwork and the full circle momentof being selected as Grand Mar-shal. His achievements havehonored and continue to honorthe Greek community.

The American-born Yan-copoulos grew up in Woodside.He was class valedictorian atboth the Bronx High School ofScience and Columbia Univer-sity, and earned MD and PhDdegrees in 1987 from Colum-bia’s College of Physicians &Surgeons. Yancopoulos workedin the field of molecular im-munology at Columbia with Dr.Fred Alt and received the LucilleP. Markey Scholar Award for hisefforts. In 1989, he left his aca-demic career and became thefounding scientist for Regeneronwith Leonard Schleifer (towhom he refers as “Len”throughout the interview).Among his honors, Yancopouloswas awarded Columbia'sStevens Triennial Prize for Re-search and its University Medalof Excellence for DistinguishedAchievement. In 2004, he waselected to the National Academyof Sciences and the AmericanAcademy of Arts and Sciences.His father was not, however,very enthusiastic about hischoice to become a scientist, ashe explained to TNH.GY: My father was very un-

happy because he knew scien-tists didn’t make very muchmoney and he wanted me to be-come a conventional doctor.Back then being a doctor was agreat job and you could makemoney…The family had beendestroyed by two wars in Greece

Regeneron’sfounding scientist tolead the NY parade

Tnh/coSTAS BeJ

Continued on page 4 of our insert dedicated toGreek Independence Day

By Beverley Gerolymatos

VANCOUVER, CANADA – Whathappens when you take a bril-liant journalist (Robert Fisk), aworld class diplomat (CatherineBoura) and a critically acclaimeddocumentarian (Nelefer Pazira)and put them on stage to discussthe Middle East and the refugeecrisis? The answer is a jammedto capacity (700 seats) crowdwho eagerly listen to these ex-perts who have experienced therefugee crisis from three differ-ent vantage points.

The event held in Vancouveron March 7, was a collaborationbetween the Stavros NiarchosFoundation Centre for HellenicStudies and Simon Fraser’s Uni-versity (SFU) President’s Square.SFU President Andrew Petterwelcomed the audience and re-marked that “we at Simon FraserUniversity believe that thehealth of communities –localand global- depends upon citi-zens coming together to shareinformation, exchange views.The university provides a publicsquare for dialogue on major is-sues of the day.”

Robert Fisk, a multi-awardwinning Middle East correspon-dent for The Independent, ren-dered an on-the-ground perspec-tive of events in the Middle Eastand the origins of the refugeecrisis. The audience hung onevery word. Fisk did not mincewords when he rebuked the me-dia, and blamed the infamoushistoric Balfour agreement forthe crisis in the Middle East.

Fisk lamented that “the West-ern democracies are preciselythe countries that have imposed

Perspectiveson theRefugeeCrisis

ATHENS, Greece (AP) - Policein Greece were contacting Tues-day the targets of eight parcelbombs addressed to European fi-nance officials and businesses invarious European countries, afterthe devices were discovered andneutralized at a postal sorting of-fice near Athens.

Authorities were not officiallyreleasing information on who thedevices were being sent to untilthose targeted had been in-formed. The parcels had beenfalsely labeled as being sent fromacademic institutions.

One of the devices had beenaddressed to Jeroen Dijsselbloem,who is caretaker finance ministerin the Netherlands until a newDutch ruling coalition is formedfollowing last week's parliamen-

Greek PoliceContactingBomb Targets

WITH THIS ISSUE

Greek Independence Day Parade In New York This Sunday! Let's All Attend!

John AckermAn

Continued on page 6

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By Dr. ConstantinaMichalos

HOUSTON, TX – It’s springbreak. Thank God! As far as I amconcerned, it couldn’t come soonenough. While millions of stu-dents from kindergarten throughgraduate school flock to beaches,ski slopes, cruises, the Disneys oneither coast, some unfortunatesouls, namely my students, de-scend on the university library.

I am proud to say that I craftmy syllabi very carefully, with aneye toward a week free fromreading and grading papers.

Everything is due when we re-turn. It’s a gift to me from me. Ihave no problem taunting my stu-dents. “This is why I killed myselfto get a doctorate – so that youcan work through spring breakwhile I veg!” Very mature, I know.BTW, I’m not the only one. I askedstudents who are not in myclasses what they had planned forthe week, and most of them gri-maced. I am not naïve enough to

believe they are spending all oftheir time on my assignment. Itwill get written the night beforeit’s due, as if I can’t tell. But addto mine three other papers and atake-home exam and – voila – theGrinch has stolen spring break.It’s the little things that get usthrough the semester.

So what have I been doing?NOTHING! ABSOLUTELY NOTH-ING! Take that, Ben Franklin. A

whole week during which I didnot make lists and adhere tothem obsessively. Mowed theyard and treated it withWeed&Feed. Went to the gym afew times. Met a friend for lunch.Visited a colleague who broke herleg. Got a haircut, manicure andpedicure. Watched movies andmarathoned “The Man in theHigh Castle.” Read two books (inone day): My Name is Lucy Bar-

ton and Dear Ijeawele, or A Fem-inist Manifesto in Fifteen Sugges-tions. Struggled to write this ar-ticle.

Hillbilly Elegy is sitting on mynightstand. Maybe over my lasttwo days of freedom. Probablynot. My garage needs to be orga-nized. It can wait until who-knowswhen. I have to write mywill. Maybe that can’t wait, butapparently it’s going to have to.

I have to write this article.There is something liberating

about doing absolutely nothing.However, we are programmed,conditioned, reminded, re-warded, warned to be productive24/7. Because we are compul-sively connected, even whenwe’re off, some device is on – cellphone, computer, notebook.We’re afraid that we are per-ceived as slackers if we discon-nect or even if we take our des-ignated time at all. Not me.

Just as the season was begin-ning last June, MarketWatch re-ported that 55% of Americanworkers do not take all of theirvacation time. And we are dyingyounger and with more fre-quency for our efforts. The MarchAARP Bulletin reports that menwho failed to take an annual va-cation were 42% more likely todie of a heart attack and, accord-ing to the Framingham HeartStudy, “women who vacationedonce every six years were morelikely to develop coronary arterydisease or suffer a heart attackthan women who vacationedtwice a year.”

The whole point of a vacationis to do just that – vacate ourminds. Empty our heads of theincessant interference by reports,agendas, emails, texts, other peo-ple. Release the stress and pres-sure of deadlines, meetings,phone calls, deciphering emojis,other people. But Americanworkers would rather give 658million vacation days back totheir employers because theydon’t want to return to all thatwork they left behind (37%),they believe no one else can dothe job as well (30%), those insenior positions must set an ex-ample (28%), those who aspireto those senior positions want toshow complete dedication to thejob (22%), and, sadly, most donot believe their employers sup-port the time off they begrudg-ingly provide (80%) (Market-Watch).

In a strange twist of theProtestant work ethic, Americanemployers are not required bylaw to offer paid vacation days

to their employees. However,common sense more often pre-vails (how else would employersattract and retain anyone?). Theaverage number of paid vacationdays offered by private employersto full-time employees is 10 daysafter 1 year of service, 14 daysafter 5 years, 17 days after 10years, and 20 days after 20 years(Giezen, Robert W. Van. "Paidleave in private industry over thepast 20 years : Beyond the Num-bers: U.S. Bureau of Labor Sta-tistics". But there’s usually atrade-off. If we get off for Christ-mas Eve, we have to work NewYear’s Eve, Martin Luther KingDay for the 4th of July. And thinkof all those people who have tocut short their Thanksgiving din-ner to work various “black” daysof the holiday week.

Not so in other countries.Whereas the average number ofpaid vacation days in the U.S. is13, the average number in Aus-tria is 35 (42 for the elderly)(http://www.vpcalendar.net/av-e r a g e - v a c a t i o n - d a y s - b y -country.html). And that’s not thehighest.

This is one geopolitical argu-ment we have lost. Just becausewe work more days in the yeardoes not make us the most com-petitive economy in the world.According to John de Graaf, thenational coordinator for TakeBack Your Time, a group that re-searches the effects of overwork,the U.S. came in fourth in theWorld Economic Forum’s 2010-2011 rankings. Sweden, on theother hand, came in second. Bylaw, Sweden offers workers fiveweeks of paid vacation.

So what do we prove by work-ing instead of vacationing? Thatwe are better people, dedicatedto some higher purpose? Ohplease. We are better peoplewhen we do vacation. We focuson family and friends instead ofanonymous co-workers who alltoo often do not work as hard aswe do anyway. We are rested andrefreshed. We return with a newperspective, a new attitude, per-haps even a new idea.

I go back to campus tomor-row. On Wednesday, I will pickup those papers. And I will havethem corrected and graded bynext Monday. I have the fastestturnaround time of anyone in mydepartment, not because I’mcompeting or trying to impressbut because my students need tosee their strengths and weak-nesses while the assignment isfresh in their minds if they aregoing to learn anything from it.

Am I ready for their whining?Sure. Am I counting down toEaster break (two weeks) and theend of the semester (three weeksafter that)? Absolutely!

By Anthe Mitrakos

CHICAGO, IL – The ParthenonMarbles must return to Greece,ruled a jury, judges and a crowdmajority at the National HellenicMuseum’s (NHM) “Trial of theParthenon Marbles.”

The event, held on March 16at the Art Institute Chicago, waspart of an acclaimed series of an-nual mock trials that have in-cluded the trials of Antigone,Orestes, and Socrates. Honorableguests include some of the city’smost revered legal professionals,who come together to debate onthe trial at hand before a crowdof civilians who also participatein the voting process.

This year’s trial attracted over800 attendees who came to hearproceedings and cast their finalvote in favor of returning themarbles to their birthplace. “Themarbles together tell a story.Apart, they tell a tragedy and thatis what is happening right now,”said jury member GeorgiaLoukas. “The Parthenon is syn-onymous with Greece.”

The jury ruled 8 to 4 for themarbles’ return. “Greece wasnever paid for the marbles, andwe all know in Chicago whenyou see people carrying thingsout the back of a building andyou don’t see evidence recordedon the books…” jury memberChris Lawson said, amusing thecrowd.

Other members of the juryopened the discussion of rightfulownership, and examined themoral implications of having acreation as globally admired asthe Parthenon, taken apart fordisplay in multiple areas.

“Justice, as well as equity re-quire that the half [of the mar-bles] that is in England be re-turned to mother Greece, to bewith its other half in the Acropo-lis Museum,” said Judge AnthonyKyriacopoulos.

Even some of those who votedagainst sending the marbles backto Greece alluded to the im-morality of the pieces being therein the first place.

“My ancestors came over fromBritain on the Mayflower,” saidAnne Morgan, “Letting [the mar-bles] stay at the British Museumwill allow the British to make themoral decision to give them backon their own,” she said.

Judge Richard Posner cast thesole dissenting vote in the 4 to 1judge decision, asserting that the

sculptures created by the AncientGreeks belong to the worldrather than Greece, and shouldremain at the British Museum,where they have resided for 200years.

“If we really were to adopt theprinciple that the original homeof cultural artifacts has an inde-feasible claim for the return ofthem, think about what our mu-seums would look like,” Posnerargued. “This museum is full offoreign artifacts…as are manyother museums, facilities, build-ings and so on. Are we to returnthem whenever asked for themby a country from which the ar-tifacts come? Half our art wouldgo back to France,” he said.

But Posner’s position was notbacked up by his peers, whovoted to have the marbles re-turned to Greece for a numberof decisive factors, both moraland legal.

Judge P. Kocoras pointed out

a common British law statingthat “a thief who steals the prop-erty of another does not acquirevalid title to the property. A pur-chaser of stolen property from athief can never gain title greaterthan that which the thief cantransfer. The same legal princi-ples apply when a nation islooted of its property by a con-quering force,” he said.

Known as the Elgin Marbles,the Parthenon Marbles are a col-lection of surviving sculpturesdating back to the Classical Greekperiod. They were created by thesculptor Phidias and his group ofassistants, and originally adornedthe Parthenon and other Athen-ian Acropolis buildings before be-ing removed from 1801 to 1805.

It is said that Thomas Bruce,British ambassador to the thenruling Ottoman Empire, alsoknown as Lord Elgin, received apermit to remove the sculpturesand transfer them by sea to Great

Britain. The remaining marblesnot taken by Lord Elgin were sub-sequently removed in the 1970sand are now on display at theAcropolis Museum in Athens.

Priceless antiquities, theParthenon Marbles date back to447 BC and include, amongother pieces, a number of panelsthat once adorned the 247-footParthenon Frieze. The marbleshave been the center of interna-tional debate, especially amongthose concerned with culturalhistory.

Since the early 1980s, theGreek government has called forthe return of the marbles toGreece, disputing the British Mu-seum Trustees’ legal rights to thesculptures. The British Museum,however, has routinely deniedthis accusation and has advo-cated that the sculptures remainin place in its world class, ency-clopedic museum in Londonwhere they have been on perma-

nent public display since 1817. “The question of where the

surviving sculptures from theParthenon should be displayedhas long been a subject of publicdiscussion,” the British Museumstates on its website. “TheTrustees remain convinced thatthe current division allows dif-ferent and complementary storiesto be told about the survivingsculptures, highlighting their sig-nificance for world culture andaffirming the universal legacy ofAncient Greece.”

But the vast majority ofjudges, jury members and thecrowd at the NHM’s “Trial of theParthenon Marbles” believe oth-erwise.

“By having the marbles ex-posed and exhibited the way theyare violates the intention of thecreators,” said Michael Kos-mopoulos, who voted to have themarbles returned. “I don’t thinkthe Ottoman Turks, an occupying

force, had the right to give [themarbles] away.”

Judges Richard A. Posner andWilliam J. Bauer of the SeventhCircuit Court of Appeals, IllinoisSupreme Court Justice Anne M.Burke, US District Judge CharlesP. Kocoras, and Cook County Cir-cuit Judge Anna H. Demacopou-los presided over the proceed-ings, providing insightful rulingsat the conclusion of the events.

Greece was represented in itseffort to regain control of theMarbles by Daniel K. Webb, SamAdam Jr., and Robert A. Clifford,while the British Museum wasrepresented by Patrick J. Fitzger-ald, Patrick M. Collins, and TinosDiamantatos.

This year, two experts tookthe stage to provide the audiencewith important historical facts.Testifying on behalf of Greecewas Dr. Fiona Rose-Greenlandwhile Molly Morse Limmerserved as the British expert wit-ness. Both experts were cross-ex-amined for a lively explorationof the nature of historical per-missions and the treatment of ar-tifacts that eventually reside inmuseums.

Both sides offered compellingcases that asked the judges, juryand audience to consider thecomplexities of law, history andheritage. The evening provideda robust debate on topics sur-rounding cultural heritage andits preservation, as cultural uni-versalism, nationalism, and sym-bolic representation were dis-cussed. Also questioned waswhether law, morality, or justiceshould be the applicable aspectfor debating the case.

“What I would say to theBritish is, ‘keep calm, carry on,and send them home,’” said Her-aclea Karras, who was part of thejury.

The NHM Trial Series havesince the very beginning at-tracted Chicago’s professionalcommunity for a night of pas-sionate debate examining moraland legal angles to a number oftrials, real, fictional and hypo-thetical, raising awareness aboutGreek cultural heritage and his-torical memory.

“This Trial was our most suc-cessful ever. The lawyers’ argu-ments were brilliant, giving manylay people a glimpse into whatreal life courtroom theatrics looklike,” NHM Trustee and TrialPlanning Committee Chair, Kon-stantinos Armiros said.

National Hellenic Museum Hosts the Trial of the Parthenon MarblesCOMMUNITY2 THE NATIONAL HERALD, MARCH 25-31, 2017

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TH

E NATIONAL HERA

LD

Sam Adam Jr. examines expert witness Fiona Rose-Greenland,PhD, testifying on behalf of Greece.

LEFT:TinosDiamantatos cross-examinesexpertwitness Dr. FionaRose-Greenland.

RIGHT:Judge

Charles P.Korcorasreacts toaudience

vote.

L to R: Tinos Diamantatos, Patrick Fitzgerald, Dan Webb,Patrick Collins, Robert Clifford, Sam Adam Jr.

DimiTri elioPouloS ©elioSPhoTo2017

Spring has Sprung

THE NATIONAL HERALD, MARCH 25-31, 2017 3

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With most respect and love

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TNH Staff

NEW YORK – Emmy-awardwinning news anchor ErnieAnastos was honored by NewYork City Mayor Bill de Blasioat a special reception on March21 at his official residence, Gra-cie Mansion. In recognition ofthe Fox 5 anchor’s many accom-plishments, the mayor declaredMarch 21 “Ernie Anastos Day inNew York.”

"It's absolutely amazing to behonored by the city of NewYork, the greatest place in theworld and the people I love themost,” Anastos said in a state-ment to the New York DailyNews.

The 73-year-old broadcasteris one of the most respected inthe business. He joined the Foxaffiliate after years with the lo-cal ABC and CBS affiliates.Among his notable work overthe years, Anastos has anchoredcoverage of the 9/11 WorldTrade Center attacks, traveledto Cuba to interview Fidel Cas-tro on the 45th anniversary of

the Cuban Revolution, and hasinterviewed world leaders in-cluding Presidents JimmyCarter, George H.W. Bush, andBill Clinton, Soviet PresidentMikhail Gorbachev, and SouthAfrican Bishop Desmond Tutu.Anastos won an Emmy for Hiscoverage of John F. Kennedy

Jr.’s death in 1999 from the siteof the Cape Cod plane crashearned Anastos an Emmyaward.

“As an accomplished writer,a respected broadcast journalistand celebrated anchorman,Ernie Anastos has been a leaderin the television industry for

more than 40 years,” de Blasiosaid, the Daily News reported.

“Throughout his impressivecareer, Ernie has always demon-strated an unyielding commit-ment to raising the standards ofreporting and helped keep gen-erations of New Yorkers well-in-formed. Today, we also celebrate

him as a symbol of the bold andindomitable spirit of New York’sGreek American community.”

Anastos is a Hall of FameBroadcaster and has won morethan 30 Emmy awards andnominations, including “BestNewscast in New York” and theEdward R. Murrow Award forbroadcast excellence. The NewYork Times recently describedhim as “the ubiquitous anchor-man.”

Hosted by the Mayor andFirst Lady Chirlane McCray, theevent also celebrated Greek her-itage in honor of Greek Inde-pendence Day, March 25.Among the guests at the eventwere His Eminence ArchbishopDemetrios, the Consul Generalof Greece in New York Konstan-tinos Koutras, Consul General ofCyprus Vasilios Philippou, Con-sul of Greece Manos Koubarakis,President of the Federation ofHellenic Societies Petros Gala-toulas, Onassis Foundation Ex-ecutive Director and Cultural Di-rector Amalia Cosmetatou,Nicolas Bornozis- founder, Pres-ident and CEO of Capital Linkand his wife Olga Bornozi, busi-nessman John Catsimatidis, Fr.George Anastasiou- pastor of theChurch of the Transfiguration ofChrist in Corona, Queens and aChaplain for the NYPD, AndrewGounardes- Counsel at the Of-fice of the Brooklyn BoroughPresident, singer Yiannis Pa-pastefanou, Maria and TasoPardalis, George Zapantis, mem-bers of the Greek military, NewYork police and firefighters, andother members of the Greek-American community. MissGreek Independence JuliaKokkosis was also present alongwith other participants in thepageant first runner-up FlorenceEmmanuela Dallas, second run-ner-up Fotini Mamos, MissAthens Panagiota Chasen, MissNisyros Stella Fragioudakis,Miss Crete Irene Koutsoulidakis,and Miss Messinia KaterinaLampropoulos.

Live Greek music greeted theguests who were served horsd'oeuvres with a Greek theme,including grilled octopus,spanakopita bites, and Greeksalad skewers.

By Eleni Sakellis

NEW YORK – Disney’s Beautyand the Beast is making historywith its $170 million openingweekend at the box office in theUnited States and $350 millionglobally. The film is an updatedversion of the animated classicthat made history a quarter of acentury ago when it was the firstanimated film to earn an Acad-emy Award nomination for BestPicture.

The new live-action version,written by Evan Spiliotopoulos,who spoke with The NationalHerald about the film, delightedfans of the original and thosenew to the story. “We are justincredibly happy with the audi-ence response to this film andwe worked very hard to do rightby the animated masterpiece aswell as put our own stamp onthis classic story,” Spiliotopoulostold TNH.

For those unfamiliar with thestory, the plot summary isstraightforward: a young prince,imprisoned in the form of abeast, can be freed only by truelove. What may be his only op-portunity arrives when he meetsBelle, the only human girl to

ever visit the castle since it wasenchanted.

The film expands on the ani-mated version, adding depth tothe characters and some newsongs. Starring an enchantingEmma Watson as Belle and awonderful Dan Stevens as theBeast, the film is one of the fewin recent memory to inspirecheers and applause from theaudience in the movie theatre.It is as delightful as fans of thestory and the 1991 film couldhave hoped. Many are indeedstill singing the songs a day ortwo after having seen the film.

The tremendously talentedall-star cast includes KevinKline, Luke Evans, Josh Gad,Ewan McGregor, Ian McKellen,and Emma Thompson. Theemotional journey the audiencetakes along with the charactersis impressive. We laughed, cried,cheered, and then left singingthe songs, and asking what ex-actly is the Beast’s name? He iscalled Prince, but Prince what?Some sources suggest PrinceAdam, but Spiliotopoulos wasable to clear things up. He said,“Nope. He has no name. TheAdam thing is a myth.”

By any name, the characterand the fairy tale have en-chanted audiences worldwidesince the story first appeared ina collection of fairy tales inFrance in the 1700s. Though,according to research from uni-versities in Durham and Lisbon,the story may be much older,perhaps 4000 years old, as re-ported in the BBC. Since then,Beauty and the Beast has beenrewritten and remade manytimes, but the core of the story,the transformative power oflove, and not judging people bytheir outward appearance alone,remains a valuable lesson.

Belle is also an avid readerwhich sets a positive examplefor young children, especiallyyoung girls. In this new version,she even takes the time to teacha young girl to read, though itonly serves to cement the vil-lage’s opinion of her as strange.

Cinema buffs will notice thenod to the 1946 French filmclassic La Belle et la Bête byJean Cocteau, which starredJosette Day as the Beauty andJean Marais as the Beast.

The film’s soundtrack fea-tures all the favorites from theanimated classic plus four neworiginal songs. Among them,“How Does a Moment Last For-ever” sung beautifully by CelineDion who sang the film’s titlesong duet with Peabo Bryson inthe 1991 version, and “Ever-more” a poignant song sung bythe Beast, was also recorded byJosh Groban for the soundtrack.

COMMUNITY4 THE NATIONAL HERALD, MARCH 25-31, 2017

TNH Staff

BAY RIDGE – The Holy Crossparish in Bay Ridge celebratedthe 10th anniversary of Archi-mandrite Gerasimos Makris astheir priest on Sunday morning,March 19. Expatriates crowdedthe church for the Divine Liturgy

presided over by His EminenceArchbishop Demetrios to ex-press their appreciation for Fr.Makris and his years of dedi-cated service as their pastor.

Makris, as the National Her-ald reported, was appointedhead of the Holy Cross commu-nity ten years ago at a turning

point for the church. He hasmanaged in a short time to unifythe community and bring loveand peace, as befits the vineyardof the Lord and lead the churchto new success.

The celebration of the HolyCross, the Stavroproskiniseos,also held on March 19, marking

the third Sunday of Lent,brought out the faithful whofilled the church in honor of theday.

During the luncheon that fol-lowed the church services,Parish Council PresidentDemetrios Kalamaras welcomedArchbishop Demetrios and

pointed out the progress of thecommunity and schools, andMakris’ accomplishments. Thecommunity has maintained andupgraded the Demetrios andGeorgia Kaloidis ParochialSchool, as well as the Greek Af-ternoon School.

Also attending the luncheon

were the City Councilmemberfor Brooklyn’s 43rd District Vin-cent Gentile and New York StateAssemblymember for Brooklynand Staten Island Nicole Mallio-takis, who praised Fr. Makris’achievements and presentedhim with a proclamation in hishonor.

New York City Council Member Vincent Gentile presented the proclamation to honor Fr. Gerasi-mos Makris at the luncheon that followed the Divine Liturgy. New York State Assemblymember

Nicole Malliotakis, and Holy Cross Parish Council President Demetrios Kalamaras also attendedthe event along with the members of the church community.

Beauty and the BeastSets Box Office Record

Ernie Anastos Honored by Mayor de Blasio

Greek-American anchor Ernie Anastos honored by Mayor Billde Blasio. Greek pride filled Gracie Mansion at the crowdedevent in honor of Greek Independence Day.

PhoToS: Tnh/coSTAS BeJ

Holy Cross of Bay Ridge, Brooklyn Celebrates Fr. Makris’ 10th Anniversary

TNH Staff

NEW YORK – Dressed in theirdistinctive uniform and standingat full attention, one of the du-ties of the Greek PresidentialGuard or Evzones is to maintaina round the clock vigil at theTomb of the Unknown Soliderin front of Parliament House inAthens.

The highly stylized walk dur-ing the Changing of the Guarddemands an ability to raise theirlegs to shoulder height whilebalancing a 12 kilo (about 26.5lbs.) M1 rifle tipped with a bay-onet and wearing nail shodleather clogs that can weigh 1.5kilos (3.3 lbs.) each.

The Evzones carry out theirduty in all weather conditions,and while dealing with over-en-thusiastic tourists, and even ri-otous demonstrations including,on at least two occasions, ex-ploding Molotov cocktails. YetEvzones famously remain un-flinching at all times and willnot stand down unless orderedto do so. This elite military unitthat embodies the ideals of Hel-lenism, honors the Greek com-munity in the United States eachyear when they appear in GreekIndependence Day parades. The

cheering crowds would proba-bly be impressed to learn thatamong the Evzones is a 23-year-old Greek-Australian who de-ferred his higher education inthe UK specifically to return toGreece in order to try out forthe Evzones.

Although Jason Robertsonwas born and lived in Greece asa child, he grew up in a familyentirely Anglo in nature and hasspent all his adult life in the UK.He recently completed an un-dergraduate degree in London,attended a summer course atHarvard Business School and, iffinancing can be found, will bereturning to do a Master's atCASS City University in Londonin September. Although nationalservice is compulsory for Greekmales, he could have easilyavoided serving in the military,and yet was inspired to becomean Evzone because of what theyare and represent. Wanting tobecome a member of the Presi-dential Guard can easily be adream too far. As is well-known,recruits must be over 6 feet(+1.87m) tall and the selectionprocedure is extremely rigorous.Of all the recruits conscriptedinto the Greek Army each year,only around 1 percent is ever

chosen. The internal trainingregime is so difficult that ofthose selected, no more thanhalf ever have the honor ofwearing the white kilt (400 hun-dred pleats representing 400years of Ottoman occupation)and tailor-made clogs. Thenthere is the self-discipline andabsolute dedication required toactually perform ceremonial du-ties, whether it be for the gen-eral public or visiting digni-taries, come rain or shine, dayor night. Moreover, there is ab-solutely no financial incentiveinvolved. Despite their onerousresponsibilities and what theysymbolize for the nation theyserve, Evzones only make stan-dard conscript pay of about 7euro - or just $10 a month.

So why is Robertson’s storyimportant? It is a sad fact thatwe live in an era in which theyoung are unengaged and there-fore largely disenfranchisedfrom their potential. The distrac-tions of such things as on-linegaming and social media, incombination with high youthunemployment, and bleak jobprospects brought on by the fi-nancial crisis have produced ageneration of Greeks in limbo.The worst thing is that this apa-

thy is self-sustaining. Robbed oftargets and hope, today's youthare in danger of remaining un-

fulfilled and unproductive asthey grow old in a society thatappears to have lost its sense ofpurpose.

In such discouraging and dis-orienting times, Robertsonfound purpose in the Greekideal and its proud history.While the obligation of militaryservice for most others is viewedas something of a nuisance, heis among the few who regard itas a constructive learning expe-rience. Robertson is honored towear a uniform that means somuch and to have the opportu-nity to do his duty as a Greekcitizen. Though he was raisedon Anglo principles and hasspent his adult life abroad, he isone of a select few representingGreece at the New York GreekIndependence Day Parademarching up 5th Avenue thisyear. Along with his fellowEvzones, he epitomizes theessence of what it is to be Greek- proud and determined, capa-ble and resilient, the very idealsthat founded Western civiliza-tion. It is therefore hoped thathis story can inspire young peo-ple in Greece and those of Greekdescent living abroad who sharethe same values and love of thehomeland.

Jason Robertson: The Australian Evzone in New York

Jason Robertson of the Presi-dential Guard.

DimiTriS TSoumAniS

Tnh/coSTAS BeJ

COMMUNITYTHE NATIONAL HERALD, MARCH 25-31, 2017 5

TNH Staff

WASHINGTON, DC – The U.S.Senate passed a resolution au-thored by Senators Bob Menen-dez (D-NJ) and John Barrasso(R-WY) commemorating the196th Anniversary of Greek In-dependence Day on March 25.

“The United States andGreece have a deep and endur-ing relationship that dates backto the founding of our great na-tion on the democratic princi-ples pioneered by the ancientGreeks. I am honored to againstand with my colleagues in theSenate and Greek-Americansacross the country to celebratethe 196th anniversary of Greekindependence.” Sen. Menendezsaid. “This resolution identifiesAncient Greece as the birthplaceof democracy, and applauds theGreeks’ continued commitmentto democratic principles. Con-gratulations to Greek-Americansand the people of Greece ontheir nearly two centuries of in-dependence, and best wishes toeveryone during the upcomingcelebrations.”

The resolution:• Celebrates the 196th An-

niversary of Greek Indepen-dence Day

• Recognizes the birth ofdemocracy in Ancient Greeceand Greece’s everlasting com-mitment to democratic gover-nance principles

• Identifies the importantrole Greece has played in thewider European Region andthroughout the world

Authored by Sens. Menendezand Barasso, the resolution has22 original co-sponsors, includ-ing Sens. Michael Bennet (D-CO.), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Cory Booker (D-NJ),Sherrod Brown (D-OH), TomCarper (D-DE), Bob Casey (D-PA), Thad Cochran (R-MS),Chris Coons (D-DE), Joe Don-nelly (D-IN), Dick Durbin (D-

IL), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY),Ron Johnson (R-WI), Chris Mur-phy (D-CT), Bill Nelson (D-FL),David Perdue (R-GA), Gary Pe-ters (D-MI), Jack Reed (D-RI),Marco Rubio (R-FL), JeanneShaheen (D-NH), Chris VanHollen (D-MD), Sheldon White-house (D-RI), and Ron Wyden(D-OR).

The full text of the resolutionfollows:

115TH CONGRESS 1STSESSION S. RES.

Recognizing the 196th an-niversary of the independenceof Greece and celebratingdemocracy in Greece and theUnited States.

IN THE SENATE OF THEUNITED STATES

Mr. MENENDEZ (for himself,Mr. BARRASSO, Mr. BENNET,Mr. BLUMENTHAL, Mr.BOOKER, Mr. BROWN, Mr.CARPER, Mr. CASEY, Mr.COCHRAN, Mr. COONS, Mr.DONNELLY, Mr. DURBIN, Mrs.GILLIBRAND, Mr. JOHNSON,Mr. MURPHY, Mr. NELSON, Mr.PERDUE, Mr. PETERS, Mr.REED, Mr. RUBIO, Mrs. SHA-HEEN, Mr. VAN HOLLEN, Mr.

WHITEHOUSE, and Mr.WYDEN) submitted the follow-ing resolution; which was re-ferred to the Committee on

RESOLUTION Recognizing the 196th an-

niversary of the independenceof Greece and celebratingdemocracy in Greece and theUnited States.

Whereas the people of an-cient Greece developed the con-cept of democracy, in which thesupreme power to govern wasvested in the people;

Whereas the founding fa-thers of the United States, manyof whom read Greek politicalphilosophy in the original Greeklanguage, drew heavily on thepolitical experience and philos-ophy of ancient Greece in form-ing the representative democ-racy of the United States;

Whereas PetrosMavromichalis, the former Com-mander in Chief of Greece anda founder of the modern Greekstate, said to the citizens of theUnited States in 1821, ‘‘It is inyour land that liberty has fixedher abode and . . . in imitatingyou, we shall imitate our ances-tors and be thought worthy of

them if we succeed in resem-bling you.’’;

Whereas the Greek nationalanthem, the ‘‘Hymn to Liberty’’,includes the words, ‘‘mostheartily was gladdened GeorgeWashington’s brave land’’;

Whereas the people of theUnited States generously offeredhumanitarian assistance to thepeople of Greece during theirstruggle for independence;

Whereas Greece heroicallyresisted Axis forces at a crucialmoment in World War II, forcingAdolf Hitler to change his time-line and delaying the attack onRussia;

Whereas Winston Churchillsaid, ‘‘if there had not been thevirtue and courage of theGreeks, we do not know whichthe outcome of World War IIwould have been’’ and ‘‘nolonger will we say that Greeksfight like heroes, but that heroesfight like Greeks’’;

Whereas hundreds of thou-sands of the people of Greecewere killed during World WarII;

Whereas Greece consistentlyallied with the United States inmajor international conflicts

throughout the 20th century; Whereas Greece is a strategic

partner and ally of the UnitedStates in bringing political sta-bility and economic develop-ment to the volatile Balkan re-gion, having invested billions ofdollars in the countries of theregion and having contributedmore than $750,000,000 in de-velopment aid for the region;

Whereas the Governmentand people of Greece activelyparticipate in peacekeeping andpeace-building operations con-ducted by international organi-zations, including the UnitedNations, the North AtlanticTreaty Organization, the Euro-pean Union, and the Organiza-tion for Security and Co-opera-tion in Europe;

Whereas Greece receivedworldwide praise for its extra-ordinary handling during the2004 Olympic Games of morethan 14,000 athletes and morethan 2,000,000 spectators andjournalists, a feat the govern-ment and people of Greece han-dled efficiently, securely, andwith hospitality;

Whereas Greece, located ina region where Christianitymeets Islam and Judaism, main-tains excellent relations withMuslim countries and Israel;

Whereas Greece remains anintegral part of the EuropeanUnion;

Whereas the Government ofGreece has taken importantsteps in recent years to further

cross-cultural understanding,rapprochement, and coopera-tion in various fields withTurkey, and has also improvedits relations with other countriesin the region, including Israel,thus enhancing the stability ofthe wider region;

Whereas the governmentsand people of Greece and theUnited States are at the fore-front of efforts to advance free-dom, democracy, peace, stabil-ity, and human rights;

Whereas those efforts andsimilar ideals have forged aclose bond between the peopleof Greece and the United States;and

Whereas it is proper and de-sirable for the United States tocelebrate March 25, 2017,Greek Independence Day, withthe people of Greece and toreaffirm the democratic princi-ples from which those two greatcountries were founded:

Now, therefore, be it Re-solved, That the Senate— (1)extends warm congratulationsand best wishes to the peopleof Greece as they celebrate the196th anniversary of the inde-pendence of Greece; (2) ex-presses support for the princi-ples of democratic governanceto which the people of Greeceare committed; and (3) notesthe important role that Greecehas played in the wider Euro-pean region and in the commu-nity of nations since gaining itsindependence 196 years ago.

Menendez Resolution Honoring Greece’s 196th Independence Day

Senators John Barrasso (R-WY) and Bob Menendez (D-NJ).

itable project.The project has been sup-

ported in part from the Metrop-olis and mostly from donationsand sponsors of the quilts. Al-though it is a year-long projectimplemented by the diligent ef-forts of the Quilt-a-thon Com-

mittee, many of the quilts arefinished on Quilt-a-thon day bymembers of the PhiloptochosLadies from throughout theGreater Chicago area. In addi-tion to the over 200 quilts ex-pected to be made, one hundredfleeces, and one hundred neckroll pillows are also expected tobe finished.

Continued from page 1

Fr. Tom De Madeiros of Saints Constantine & Helen Greek Or-thodox Church in Palos Hills, IL with Metropolis of ChicagoChancellor Bishop Demetrios of Mokissos at the Quilt-a-thon.

Metropolis of ChicagoPhiloptochos Quilt-a-Thon

John AckermAn

TNH Staff

WINNIPEG, CANADA – WhenDino Chouzouris first immi-grated to Winnipeg with hisfamily from Greece in the1970s, the pressure to assimilateinto a predominantly white,English-speaking communitydid not go unnoticed, CanstarCommunity News-TheSou’wester reported.

One of the first groups withwhich his family connectedwhen they arrived in 1974 wasthe Greek Community of Win-nipeg and St. Demetrios GreekOrthodox Church, which helpedhis family acclimatize to life inWinnipeg — a purpose the com-munity still serves today.

Founded in 1917, Winnipeg’sGreek Community, Chouzourissaid, was a place for his familyto practice their religion, con-nect with other Greek expatri-ates in the city, and embracetheir culture.

After 100 years, assimilationand fears about how closely thechildren will follow Greek tra-ditions have faded. The Greekcommunity that once tried to

Anglicize names in theiradopted country now embracesthe Hellenic heritage, culture,and traditions firmly.Chouzouris said, The Sou’westerreported, “Now you baptizeyour child and call him Costa…you don’t anglicize it at all. Andit’s a good thing – it’s somethingto be very proud of. It gives youa sense of identity.”

Nancy Vardalos Ginakes ispart of the committee organiz-ing the community’s centennialevent on March 25 at the Victo-ria Inn Hotel & Convention Cen-tre.

“Join us as we celebrate thepast and present history of ourcommunity,” the community’sFacebook page announces. “AsGreeks we love to dance andhave a great time. The bandParea, coming all the way fromToronto, will perform live foryour entertainment with kefiand enthusiasm. Our Kefidancers will dance to entertainand put you in the mood for anoriginal Greek Party! Put onyour dancing shoes and be pre-pared to dance the night away!”the page states.

Winnipeg Greek Community Celebrates 100 Years

Nancy Vardalos Ginakes and Dino Chouzouris, president ofthe Greek Community, celebrating 100 years of Greek life inWinnipeg.

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COMMUNITY6 THE NATIONAL HERALD, MARCH 25-31, 2017

n THRU MARCH 26ASTORIA – The extremely pop-ular Greek play the Cockroachby Vassilis Mavrogeorgiou, star-ring Thodoris Petropoulos andFanis Gkikas, is produced for thefirst time in New York. The Cock-roach is the story of Ioanna, asmall red cockroach who strug-gles to achieve her life goad:travel to the moon. Ioanna wan-ders around the sewers and darkallies, she is crossing the ocean,she is dancing and singing, shemeets other insects, rodents andhumans, while she has an un-shakable faith in her greatdream. In fact, faith is all shehas. The performance is in Greekwith English subtitles. Directedby Thodoris Petropoulos, theplay features original music byKostas Gakis. The ProductionManager is Helen Driva. Theshow runs Friday, Mar. 3 to Sun-day, Mar. 26. Fridays and Satur-days at 8 PM and Sundays at 5PM at The Greek Cultural Center,located at 26-80 30th St, Astoria,NY. For more information call718-726-7329 or emailinfo@greekculturalcenter.org.Tickets are $15 for Students, $25General Admission and are avail-able at brownpapertickets.com.

n THRU MAY 4MANHATTAN – The A.S. OnassisProgram in Hellenic Studies atNYU presents Greek Cinema To-day Spring 2017 Film Series onThursdays through May 4 at6:30 PM at 12 Waverly Place,Room G-08, in Manhattan. Cu-rated by Visiting Prof. EleftherisAstrinaki, the series includesunique films such as Raw Mate-rial directed by Christos Kara-pelis on March 30, 4.1 Miles byDaphne Matziaraki and 722TMX Engineer Battalion by Yan-nis Koufounikos on April 6,Spring Awakening on April 13,Golden Dawn: A Personal Affairon April 20, and Park on May 4.The film screenings are free andopen to the public and includeappearances by the filmmakers.More information is available atvt507@nyu.edu or 212-998-3979.

n MARCH 25NEW LONDON, CT – SaintSophia Church, the Order ofAHEPA, and the Greek-Americancommunity invite all to join theflag-hoisting ceremony on Sat-urday, Mar. 25th at 11:30 AM aswe gather to celebrate Greek In-dependence Day. The ceremonywill take place at Saint SophiaChurch, 200 Hempstead Streetin New London, CT with a re-ception to follow in the Commu-nity Center. Phone: 860-442-2377.

ASTORIA – Pre-Parade events-2017 Flag Raising Ceremony atAthens Square Park, 30th Aveand 30th Street in Astoria, onSaturday, Mar. 25 at 12 Noon.Join the Greek community forthis free event. Open to the pub-lic. A Traditional Greek DanceExhibition will be held at CretanHouse “Omonoia" at 32-33 31stStreet in Astoria on Saturday,Mar. 25 at 2 PM. More informa-tion on all the pre-parade eventsis available athellenicsocieties.org.

TARPON SPRINGS, FL – Cele-brate Greek Independence Dayon Saturday, March 25, from 6-11 PM, when the City of TarponSprings will present Night in theIslands–a free event on the worldfamous Sponge Docks, Dode-canese Blvd. between Hope andAthens Streets. Enjoy Greek mu-sic, dancing, and dining! We of-fer an hour of free Greek dancelessons by the Levendia DanceTroupe from 6-7PM. The eventfeatures live music by Ellada, anexciting band composed of threeof the most accomplished Greekmusicians in Florida—LeonidasZafiris, bouzouki; Elias Poulos,vocals; and Dino Theofilos, key-board. To reserve a table for din-ner, please contact participatingrestaurants Costa’s, Hellas,Mama’s, or Mykonos. Night inthe Islands also will be offeredSaturdays May 6, July 15, Au-

gust 5, September 9, and Octo-ber 7. Mark your calendar andmake this a regular destination!More information is available byphone: 727-942-5605 or onlineat www.tarponarts.org.

LOWELL, MA – Pan MessinianFederation Greek Dance atOlympia’s Zorba Music Hall, 437Market Street in Lowell on Sat-urday, Mar. 25 from 7 PM to 11PM. Georgio Karatza and his or-chestra Athenian Entertainmentwill be performing at the event.For reservations and more infor-mation, phone: 978-459-7652 or978-569-7233.

CAMBRIDGE, MA – Mario Fran-goulis Concert at Sanders The-atre Memorial Hall – HarvardUniversity, 45 Quincy Street inCambridge at 8 PM on Saturday,Mar. 25. Ticket information: box-office.harvard.edu, mariofran-goulis.com, or on Mario Fran-goulis on Facebook. Phone:617-547-4770. Prices: $95; $75;$65; $45, and $5 discounts avail-able for Senior Citizens and Stu-dents for any ticket level. Groupsof 10+ people are eligible for a10% discount.

n MARCH 26MANHATTAN – The New YorkGreek Independence Day Paradewill march up Fifth Ave. in Man-hattan from 64th to 79th Streetson Sunday, Mar. 26 starting at1:30 PM rain or shine, celebrat-ing Greek heritage. More infor-mation is available at hellenic-societies.org and by phone:718-204-6500.

DETROIT, MI – The 16th AnnualDetroit Greek Independence DayParade will be held on MonroeStreet in Historic Greektown De-troit on, Sunday, Mar. 26 at 3PM. More information is avail-able at greekparades.com.

n MARCH 29CHICAGO – The 2nd annualHALC (Hellenic American Lead-ership Council) Pub Quiz at StateRestaurant, 935 W. Webster, onWednesday Mar. 29, from 7-10PM. A fun night filled with drinksand trivia. Cash prizes, raffle,and more. You don’t have to play,just come and have fun. Ticketsare $25 and are available onlinewww.hellenicleaders.com/pub-quiz. Includes: Soda and appe-tizers; cash bar. Each team musthave one HALC member.

n MARCH 30 MANHATTAN – On Thursday,Mar. 30, at 6 PM at The RussianTea Room, 150 West 57th St,New York, EMBCA - The EasternMediterranean Business CultureAlliance presents an informativepanel discussion on the presentstate of development, design andconstruction in New York and be-yond. Locally based industryleaders operating in the globalmarketplace lend their insights-John Catsimatidis- CEO/Chair-man Red Apple Group, PeterGoetz-Founding Partner Emeri-tus Goetz Fitzpatrick, George E.Leventis- Managing Principal/Di-rector Langan International, andFrank J. Sciame- CEO/ChairmanF.J. Sciame Construction. Paneldiscussion moderated by LouKatsos- President, Jekmar Asso-ciates. Tickets are available on-line, http://embca.com/rsvp-2017-03-30/ for a suggestedadmission fee of $20. Studentswith ID admitted for free.

n APRIL 1EAST MEADOW, NY – Holy Trin-ity Orthodox Church, 369 GreenAvenue in East Meadow will hosta Lenten Retreat, “Prayer andMysticism in the OrthodoxChurch” on Saturday, Apr. 1. TheVery Rev. Vasilios Bassakyros willspeak on the power of prayerand his experience living withthe monks at Saint Catherine’sMonastery located on MountSinai in Egypt. The retreat willbe held from 12 PM (lunch) to 5PM. Admission is free. For moreinformation, visitwww.htocem.org or contact usat 516-483-3649 or info@hto-cem.org.

GOINGS ON...

A list of the generous donors for the National Herald Ethnikos KyrixFoundation in 2016. We thank you.

1. Dr. Nikos Michalis Spanakos Brooklyn, NY $2002. Mr. & Mrs. Panagiotis Velentzas San Antonio, TX $3003. Anonymous $1004. Mr. John Vlahos Somerset, MA $2005. Anonymous $10006. Mr. & Mrs. Apostolos Tomopoulos Astoria, NY $507. Mr. Evangelos Gardikas San Diego, CA $758. Mr. Andreas Dracopoulos New York, NY $25,0009. SNF USA, INC New York, NY $10,00010. University Orthopedics Astoria, NY $25011. Ms. Evangelia Mourelatos Astoria, NY $10012. Ms. Eugenia Katsoudas Flushing, NY $20013. Mr. & Mrs. Evangelos Gizis Manhasset, NY $10014. Ms. Maria Haldezos Wethersfield, CT $2015. Mr. & Mrs. Efstathios Rafaelidis Astoria, NY $10016. Mr. Elias Perdikologos Flushing, NY $5017. Mr. & Mrs. George Iakovou Arlington, MA $20018. Mr. & Mrs. Michael Bikakis Wethersfield, CT $10019. Ms. Eva Panaghi Brooklyn, NY $5020. Mr. & Ms. Basil Papanikolaou Danverport, IA $1021. Mr. & Mrs. John Gianos Pelham Manor, NY $1,000

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Ms. Roula Makridis Phoenix, AZ $50

44. Ms Georgia Rakitzis & Ms. Anna Maidiotis North Hills, NY $100

45. Mr. Stratis Gianakakos Jacksonville, FL $2546. Three Twenty Five Rest. Corp New York, NY $20047. Dr. Seraphim P. Papajiannis Quincy, MA $10048. Ms. Lisa Papamarkou Jewell New York, NY $20049. Mr. & Mrs. Michael Zervos Ronkonkoma, NY $5050. Mr. John Vlahos Somerset, MA $10051. Mr. & Mrs. Apostolos Tomopoulos Astoria, NY $5052. Mr. Athanasios Tsagdis &

Mrs. Phyllis Zouvelos Astoria, NY $5053. Mr. & Mrs. Chris Costianis Morton Grove, IL $2054. Mr & Mrs. Alexandros Tsoukalas Flushing NY $20055. Mr. & Mrs. Peter Marathakis Ravena, NY $10056. Mr. & Mrs. Alex L. Rigopoulos La Mesa, CA $20057. Mr. & Mrs. George Alexiou Astoria, NY $10058. Ms. Anna G. Kulakis Astoria, NY $10059. Mr. Argirios Kabissios Waltham, MA $10060. Mr. & Mrs. Mihalis Agadis Lanchester, PA $10061. Mr. George Kouros Kensington, MD $50062. Ms. Maria E. Kouros Kensington, MD $10063. Mr. Ioannis Kragiopoulos Kensington, MD $20064. Mr. Nicholas Kolas Naples, FL $200Total $51,260

National Herald Ethnikos Kyrix Foundation 2016

Dr. George Liakeas offeredgreetings and thanked Dr. Lym-beris for her efforts in organiz-ing the event. Konstantine “Gus”Costalas Regional Chief Finan-cial Officer and Deputy Execu-tive Director at Lenox Hill Hos-pital noted that he has attended15 or so HMSNY events atLenox Hill and when he heardthat Dr. Theodoulou would bethe honoree and speaker, hemade sure to attend. Costalasobserved that Theodoulou “is anamazing woman” who hassaved many lives and continuessaving lives and of people heknows personally. He said, “I amproud to know you and blessedto know you… Congratula-tions.”

Theodoulou’s presentationwas entitled Hormone SensitiveBreast Cancer: Centuries ofStanding, Walking, Running,Leaping and Moving Forward.Before she began her lecture,she expressed the hope of every-one for a cure to the terrible dis-ease, saying, “I think we haveto take a leap of faith right nowand really, truly believe in thebottom of our hearts that oneday I will be out of work be-cause there won’t be a need forsomeone like me.” Dr.Theodoulou noted that 35 yearsago, she was a recipient of agrant from HMS that helped herafford an education and gavethanks to the nominating com-mittee for the award, “it’s morethan you could ever imagine.”

Athens, receives such an award. Dangas, MD, PhD, is Profes-

sor of Medicine at the MountSinai School of Medicine andDirector of Cardiovascular Inno-vation at the Zena and MichaelA. Weiner Cardiovascular Insti-tute of the Mount Sinai MedicalCenter in New York City.

He is a leading authority inthe performance of nonsurgicalcardiac and vascular interven-tions (e.g. stent, angioplasty,atherectomy) using both estab-lished and novel techniques andin preventing and dissolvingthrombosis in the coronary andperipheral arteries. He is Chairof the American College of Car-diology Interventional ScientificCouncil and has been a Trusteeof the Society for CardiovascularAngiography & Interventions(SCAI). He has been a co-di-rector of the annual conferencesTranscatheter CardiovascularTherapeutics and InterventionalFellows’ Courses in the USA andEurope for many years and keyfaculty and program committeemember for multiple interna-tional conferences including theACCi2 Summit, ACCIS, andSCAI. He is also the Director ofAcademic Affairs at the Cardio-vascular Research Foundation.

Dangas completed medicaland postgraduate studies at theNational Kapodistrian Univer-

sity of Athens, Greece. He ful-filled his internship and resi-dency in internal medicine atMiriam Hospital and BrownUniversity in Providence, RI. Hecompleted his cardiovasculardisease and interventional car-diology fellowships at MountSinai Hospital, New York City.Before joining the faculty of

Mount Sinai, he was AssociateProfessor and Program Directorof Interventional Cardiology atColumbia University MedicalCenter, NYC and Associate Clin-ical Professor at NYU School ofMedicine and Lenox Hill Hospi-tal.

He has been certified by theAmerican Board of Internal

Medicine in Cardiovascular Dis-ease and Interventional Cardi-ology, by the American Board ofVascular Medicine in both En-dovascular and Vascular Medi-cine, and has been elected Fel-low of seven national andinternational professional soci-eties (AHA, ACC, ACCP, ESC,SCAI, ACP-ASIM, SVM).

Dr. Dangas Receives Distinguished Teacher AwardContinued from page 1

Prominent cardiologist and professor Dr. George Dangas, standing at right, was honored as theDistinguished Teacher of Cardiology in Washington, DC.

Dr. Theodoulou: The Female Physician of the Year

Byzantine Music Concertin Cherry Hill, NJ

The Greek Orthodox ByzantineChoir of the Metropolis of NewJersey under the direction ofProtopsaltis and ChoirmasterApostolos Combitsis took placeat St. Thomas Greek OrthodoxChurch in Cherry Hill, NJ. HisEminence MetropolitanEvangelos of New Jersey warmlywelcomed and thanked all whoattended the event, noting thatthe church hymns aremasterpieces of poetry,reflection, and the Greeklanguage. A reception followedthe concert in the DanielleKousoulis Greek Cultural Center.

Continued from page 1

ABOVE: Dr.Stella Lymberis,honoree Dr.MariaTheodoulou, Ka-terina DinasRaptis, Dr. MariaGeorgiadisSfakianos, Dr.Lorraine Chriso-malis Valasiadis,Dr. HelenGouzoulis Kout-sos, Dr. GeorgeLiakeas, and Dr.George Tsioulias.LEFT: Dr. MariaTheodoulou.

Tnh/coSTAS BeJ

By Eleni Sakellis

During Lent there are severaldifferent sweets to enjoy whilefasting. A classic Greek recipe iskoulourakia me portokali, or-ange juice cookies made witholive oil. American Lisa Radi-novsky, an English professorturned writer and photographerwho lives in Crete, submittedthe following recipe, updatedwith the help of her Cretanneighbor. She notes about therecipe, “This is a revision of atraditional Greek olive oil andorange juice cookie with lesssugar, more whole wheat flour,more orange zest, and morespices than the original. Verytasty, it is appropriate for certaintypes of fasting as well as forvegans, those seeking to lowertheir cholesterol, and health-conscious eaters who enjoy aslightly sweet treat.”

Greek Orange JuiceCookies, Koulourakiame Portokali

Makes 70 to 100 cookies,depending on sizeIngredients:• 2 cups Greek olive oil,

preferably extra virgin• 1 cup sugar (or 1 ½ cups for

sweeter cookies)• 2 cups fresh squeezed orange

juice (or bottled, but fresh isbetter!)

• Juice of 1 lemon• 3 teaspoons baking soda• Zest of 2 oranges• Zest of 1 lemon• 4 teaspoons cinnamon (or

less if you prefer a less spicycookie)

• 1 teaspoon cloves (optional)• Pinch of salt• 4 cups whole wheat flour

(more or less, as needed)• 5 cups unbleached flour

(more or less, as needed)• 1 cup raisins (optional, but

nice for natural added

sweetness; use smallerraisins rather than largerones to make the dougheasier to work with)

Directions:In a very large bowl, beat the

olive oil with the sugar untilwell blended. Then add the or-ange juice. In a small bowl, mixthe baking soda with the lemonjuice so it froths up. Add to theoil mixture and stir. Add thelemon zest, orange zest, cinna-mon, cloves, and salt. Mix well.

Gradually add the flour tothe wet mixture, mixing it inwith your clean hands each timeyou add more.

Add extra flour if necessary,so the dough doesn’t stick toyour hands. Mix in the raisinsin at the end.

Let the dough sit for up tohalf an hour, and preheat theoven to 360-365 degrees F or

185 degrees C.Use your hands to roll a

small amount of dough on a flatsurface until you have a cylinderabout ½ inch thick and approx-imately 4 inches long. You canleave the dough in that cylin-drical form and bake it that way,or shape the cylinders into smallcircles by pinching the ends to-gether.

(Try to keep all the cookiesyou put on one tray about thesame size and thickness, so theyget done at the same time.)

Place cookies on a cookiesheet covered with parchmentpaper, leaving about a half inchto an inch of space between thecookies. (They do not expandmuch during baking.) Bake forapproximately 30 minutes, untilgolden brown. (Check earlier,since baking times will vary.)

Radinovsky along with Dim-itris Doukas, a Princeton-edu-cated computer scientist, andhis team created the websitegreekliquidgold.com to help theGreek economy by promotingthe use of Greek olive oils aspart of a healthy diet.

Orange Juice Cookies Madewith Greek Olive Oil

GREEK GASTRONOMYOUR EVERYDAY GREEK

By Dr. Dimitra Pontoporou

Χρώμα means color in Greek. The wordmay be familiar to you from two Englishwords. Chromotheraphy >χρωμοθεραπεία(color+therapy). The word therapy, η θε-ραπεία, is the second compound of the wordpsychotherapy > ψυχοθεραπεία. Chromo-some >χρωμόσωμα (color+body) is an-other English word composed from theGreek χρώμα. The word σώμα, the secondcompound of χρωμόσωμα =chromosome,exists in English in the word somatic andpsychosomatic.

WORD CLUSTERSGreek word Pronunciation MeaningΤο χρώμα TO HROma colorΗ θεραπεία EE theraPEEa therapyΗ ψυχοθεραπεία EE psihotheraPEEa psychotherapyΗ χρωμοθεραπεία EE hromotheraPEEa chromotherapyΤο σώμα TO Soma bodyΤο χρωμόσωμα TO hroMOsoma chromosomeΟ σωματικός O somatiKOS somaticΟ ψυχοσωματικός O psihosomatiKOSpsychosomatic

VOCABULARYGreek word Pronunciation MeaningΟ πράσιν-ος O PRAsinos greenΟ κόκκιν-ος O KOkinos redΟ κίτριν-ος O KEEtrinos yellowΟ μαύρ-ος O MAvros blackΟ λευκ-ός O lefKOS whiteΟ άσπρ-ος O Aspros whiteΟ γαλαν-ός O yalaNOS light blueΟ γαλάζι-ος O yaLAzios light blueΟ ουρανός O ooraNOS sky

Just as all forms of the article and thenoun have gender, number and case, so dothe forms of the adjective. Adjectives havethree grammatical genders in Greek, likethe nouns.

Adjectives presented here are three-end-ing with separate sets of endings for eachof the three genders. Three-ending adjec-tives end in -ος for the masculine grammat-ical gender and in -ο for the neuter. Whenthe stem ends in a consonant the feminineadjective ends in -η: ο γαλαν-ός, η γαλαν-ή. When the stem ends in a vowel, i.e. ε, ι,the feminine adjective ends in -α: ο γαλάζι-ος, η γαλάζι-α.

Masculine Feminine NeuterΟ πράσιν-ος η πράσιν-η το πράσιν-οΟ κόκκιν-ος η κόκκιν-η το κόκκιν-οΟ κίτριν-ος η κίτριν-η το κίτριν-οΟ μαύρ-ος η μαύρ-η το μαύρ-οΟ λευκ-ός η λευκ-ή το λευκ-όΟ άσπρ-ος η άσπρ-η το άσπρ-οΟ γαλαν-ός η γαλαν-ή το γαλαν-όΟ γαλάζι-ος η γαλάζι-α το γαλάζι-ο

This is how we write the three endingadjectives: ο πράσινος, -η, -ο meaning οπράσινος, η πράσινη, το πράσινο. Ο μαύρος,-η, -ο meaning ο μαύρος, η μαύρη, τομαύρο.

Like the article, the adjective agrees ingender, number and case with the noun itmodifies, regardless of any external differ-ence in the form of the endings: Ο γαλάζιοςουρανός, η κόκκινη ζακέτα, το μαύρο πα-ντελόνι.

EXERCISE1. Τι χρώμα είναι; What color is it? Com-

plete the sentences like in the given exam-ples.

Ο ουρανός είναι γαλάζιος (light blue).Η ζακέτα είναι κίτρινη (yellow).Το φόρεμα είναι κόκκινο (red).

1.1.Η φούστα είναι …… (green).1.2.Η μπλούζα είναι …… (yellow)1.3.Το παντελόνι είναι ….. (black)1.4. Το μπουφάν είναι ….. (red)1.5. Το παλτό είναι …… (black)

1.6. Το σακάκι είναι …… (light blue)1.7. Το πουκάμισο είναι ….. (white)1.8. Η φόρμα είναι …… (red)1.9. Tο σορτς είναι …… (green)1.10. Tο κουστούμι είναι …… (black)

Note that the indefinite article in Greekhas three grammatical genders too. Ένας isthe masculine (ένας γαλάζιος ουρανός), μίαis the feminine (μία κόκκινη φούστα) andένα is the neuter (ένα μαύρο παντελόνι)

2. Τι φοράει; What does he wear? Trans-late the sentences in Greek like in the givenexample.

Maria wears a red skirt= Η Μαρία φο-ράει μία κόκκινη φούστα.

2.1. Helen wears a yellow skirt=2.2. Dad wears a black coat=2.3. Petros wears a light blue shirt=2.4. I wear green pants=2.5. George wears white shorts=2.6. Mom wears a red dress=2.7. Grandfather wears a black suit=2.8. Maria wears a green coat=2.9. Dimitra wears yellow shorts=2.10. Thomas wears a light blue jacket=

PRONUNCIATION KEYi (i-diom), ee (n-ee-dle), e (e-nergy), o

(o-rganism), oo (b-oo-t), y (y-es), h (h-elium), th (th-eory), d (th-e), gh (w-olf).The capitalized syllables are accented.

Τι Χρώμα Είναι ο Ουρανός; What is the Color of the Sky?

By Phyllis (Kiki) SembosSpecial to The National Herald

After the stillness of the win-ter, the long nights and drearydays, the eye tires of seeing barebranches and the garden devoidof color, empty flower beds andinvincible weeds that insists onsprouting. It seemed that thiswinter was shorter than otheryears. This year, a few days ofspring-like weather fooled thosebare branches into believingspring had come. Now I worrythat a drift of frost may comeand bring shafts of icy windsthat will wither the fat buds thatformed so early this year. Thismorning I saw yellow and pur-ple crocus peeking up throughthe cold, bare soil.

Long symbolic of Easter, thedogwood tree heralds the arrivalof the season with blush-tintedwhite blossoms, each petaltouched with a brown/pinknotch that is supposed to re-mind us of the crucifixion. Afterthe blossoms fade, brown, nail-

shaped pieces of wood, abouttwo inches long, fall to theground. They represent the nailsused in the crucifixion. After-wards, green leaves fill thebranches for the entire springand summer season. Fourwooden, colorful bird houseshang from branches just outsidemy kitchen door. I like to watchbirds, usually sparrows androbins, stuff the inside of thehouses with twigs, yarn, feath-ers and newspaper strips to linethe place where their eggs willlay. I help out by placing yarnand fluff from pillow stuffing onthe bushes where they can findthem.

One year a grackle resided inone of the bigger houses. Theywere aggressive when my cat,Lily, wandered close by. They’dswoop and threaten Lily who, bythen, was too old to care wherethey decided to live or howmany eggs they hatched. Thisyear they won’t have Lily toworry about. Lily died in lateFebruary after fifteen years of

entertainment and love. But, justlike humans, she had healthtroubles, too. Although she neverate sweets or smoked, she wasplagued with Diabetes, thyroidproblems, and heart trouble. Wesent her to a crematory wherethose very kind women took careof all the details. Lily returnedto us in a small, mahogany boxwith a small locket and key andher name on the cover in brass.

A replica of her paw prints inplaster and a packet of ‘Forget-me-not seeds accompanied thebox. It was our first experiencewith such a ceremony. I’m notone for elaborate doings. I don’tlike long, drawn out processions.But, after the surprising experi-ence, I doubt I’d get so muchfanfare. I don’t think I’d like myfamily to receive my paw prints,either. In keeping with my be-

liefs, I may decide not to attendmy demise. But, happily, I stillhave Penelope, the cat that ap-peared in my backyard last year.She’s a pretty cat with nice man-ners and no interest for the out-doors, thank goodness. Mydaughter, Sophia, took her to avet for a identifying microchip,in case she was lost. There wasnone. No one claimed her miss-ing, either.

Spring comes like a silentfriend who always surprises mewith its arrival, the air still cold,crisp and clean. Suddenly, Iwant to dig and loosen the earthand plant more roses to replacethose that have withered anddied with the years. This year Iintend to plant blueberry bushesfor my grandson, Aleko, andone more lilac bush that neverfail to reward.

Our garden has four fig treesthat my husband insisted onplanting years ago. They are alot of trouble; needing to bewrapped each year to protectfrom the snows and icy rains,

pad the roots to keep them asdry and warm as possible. And,each year the blossoms arefewer and fewer. Last year wegot five figs in late October justbefore the first frost. That wasthe sum total for all our efforts.I told my husband that thosetrees want to be deported toGreece. And, I wish I couldarrange it. Maybe I’ll write a let-ter to Trump.

After the crocuses come thetulips and hyacinths and then,the daffodils. But, they, too,grow fewer due to the years. Ilearned only recently that theylast about four or five years.

What a delight to enjoy thefirst sunny afternoon that’swarm enough to serve the firstlunch outside on the patio. It’sideal! There are no bugs yet, thetelephone can’t be heard andthe traffic din along the wideavenue cannot invade our ears.In a way, there are two feasts;the food served that feeds ourappetite and the sunny gardenthat feeds our souls.

GREEK AMERICAN STORIES

Spring Ahead

COMMUNITYTHE NATIONAL HERALD, MARCH 25-31, 2017 7

By Eleni Sakellis

For Greek Independence Day,Greeks around the world will cel-ebrate with church services, pa-rades, and events to honor thefreedom of the homeland. In thisbusy season, setting aside timeto read Greek authors is a greatway to celebrate Greek Indepen-dence and reminds us of thetremendous literary traditionfrom ancient times to the pre-sent. Here are a few books toread in honor of Greek Indepen-dence Day.

The Memoirs of GeneralMakriyannis, 1797-1864 trans-lated into English by H.A. Lid-derdale was published by the Ox-ford University Press in 1966. Ahero of the Greek War of Inde-pendence, Yannis Makriyannisrose to the rank of general andled his men to many victories.His real name was Ioannis Tri-antaphyllos, but because of hisheight, he was known by hisnickname. He wrote his memoirsin the years before some of themost dramatic events of his laterlife including his incarceration,death sentence, and then par-don, occurred, though even bythe end of 1850, when he com-pleted his Memoirs, he had agreat deal to share about his lifeand times.

The book is an extraordinaryachievement not only for re-counting an incredible life storybut also because Makriyanniswrote the original in DemoticGreek, giving readers the chanceto experience the language as it

was spoken at the time. It wasfirst published in Greece in 1907,and garnered little attention untilan article appeared aboutMakriyannis during the Germanoccupation in World War II. Afterthat, Makriyannis’ popularity asa historical figure, writer, andhero of the War of Independencegrew. Nobel laureate Giorgos Se-feris called Makriyannis one ofthe greatest masters of ModernGreek prose.

Austerity Measure: The NewGreek Poetry edited by KarenVan Dyck is required reading forpoetry fans and those interestedin the toll of the economic crisison the Greek people, and theabundant inspiration it is provid-ing for artists and poets in par-

ticular. If we believe that greatart requires suffering, thenGreece is truly poised for a re-naissance in all artistic endeav-ors. Some scholars suggest thatthe cultural renaissance began in2008 at the start of the economic

crisis. Poetry seems to be especially

potent amid the crisis, with poetssomehow able to capture thespirit of the time in their writing,the verses rapidly and vividlytelling the individual stories ofstruggle. Austerity Measures cap-tures that spirit in its pages, someof the poems translated for thefirst time into English. The sixsections of the book group thepoets into emerging schools ofpoetry, a positive sign for thestate of Modern Greek poetry.This unique view of the real-life

experiences in Greece is framedin the lyrical and often brutalwords of the poets. Poems by na-tive Greeks, immigrants, andrefugees are presented in thisvolume reflecting the changingdemographics of the nation aseveryone struggles to come toterms with the crisis. Poetry iseverywhere in Greece now as italways has been, but the poemsappearing in graffiti, on blogs, inliterary magazines, and in publicreadings wherever people gatherto protest and be heard, hastaken on an urgency in these des-perate times.

In her poem Heads, ElenaPenga writes poignantly, “I re-member caresses, kisses, touch-ing each other's hair. We had nosense that anything else existed.”

Stamatis Polenakis' Elegy isheartbreaking. He writes, “Noth-ing, not even the drowning of achild, Stops the perpetual motionof the world.” The images of therefugees are now a part of theglobal consciousness, but Pole-nakis' line cuts through to theheart of the matter. The death ofa child is the death of hope, andyet, the earth keeps turning.

On Tuesday, March 21, editorVan Dyck and poets Maria Mar-garonis, Hiva Panahi, GazmendKapllani, Stephanos Papadopou-los, and Yusef Komunyakaa ap-peared at McNally Jackson, theindependent bookstore in NewYork’s SoHo for a discussion andreadings from the soon-to-be re-leased collection of poetry. Moreinformation on the book is avail-able at mcnallyjackson.com.

LITERARY REVIEW

Prose and Poetry to Celebrate Greek Independence Day

Yannis Makriyannis

OBITUARIES • CLASSIFIEDS • GREECE8 THE NATIONAL HERALD, MARCH 25-31, 2017

DEATH NOTICES

n ANTJAS, PETER J.MARION, OH (from the MarionStar, published on Mar. 8) – Pe-ter J. Antjas age 78 of Marion,Ohio passed away Monday,March 6, 2017 at his residence.He was born April 30, 1938 inStemnitsa, Greece to the lateJohn R. and Sophia (Synadinos)Antjas. On February 14, 1971 inMarion, Ohio he marriedStavroula “Voula” (Vrettos). Pe-ter was employed at TecumsehProducts for 20 years and alsoworked hard in many other vo-cations. He was a member ofSaints Constantine & Helen

Greek Orthodox Church inMansfield, Ohio. He was a loverof a good debate. One of his fa-vorite pastimes was fixing carsand anything else that was bro-ken. His greatest joy howeverwas playing, cooking and laugh-ing with his grandchildren. Hisnieces and nephews will foreverremember their Uncle Pete andhis money tree. He is loved andwill be missed by his wife,Stavroula " Voula" Antjas of Mar-ion, his children, Sophia (Craig)Morton of Columbus, Oh., Kanto(Chad) Ries of Niles, Oh., John(Joanna) Antjas of Columbus,Oh., five grandchildren, Max,Cora, Jasper, Athan and Abel,his brother, Anthony Antjas ofMarion, two sisters, GeorgiaSkevos of Marion, Oh., Thespina(Edward) Hollinger of Warren,Oh. and numerous nieces,nephews and great nieces andnephews. The family requestmemorial contributions are sentto Saints Constantine & HelenGreek Orthodox Church, 265 W.3rd St. Mansfield, Ohio 44903.

n AUGOUSTINIATOS, ANASTASIA

JERSEY CITY, NJ (from the Jer-sey Journal, published on Mar.16) – Anastasia Augoustiniatos,80, of Jersey City, died Friday,March 10, 2017 after a long andhard-fought battle with illness.She was born in Palia Kokkinia,Greece. As a child, she survivedthe German occupation ofGreece during WWII, and theGreek civil war which followed.She was a witness to nightlybombings by the Allies at thePort of Piraeus, and Germanraids and roundups. She en-dured through fear, poverty, andseparation of family, later tograduate from Emporiki of Pi-raeus business school with abackground in accounting andfinance. She married, gave birthto two children, and came toAmerica with her family in thelate 60's. She has lived in JerseyCity ever since. She worked forthe Sears Fashion Center inNorth Bergen for 15 years untilits closing. She later worked for

The Jersey City Free Public Li-brary - Heights Branch, as a Se-nior Assistant Librarian for closeto 15 years. She took pride inher work, especially her time atthe library, where numerouspeople years later would stop byjust to thank her for her helpand guidance. She adored allchildren, loved music and dance,knew a great many religious pas-sages and psalms and attendedmass whenever she could. Herhome was filled with the aromasof her cuisine on a daily basis,and especially during holidayswhen she would bake traditionalcakes, pastries, and treats. Eventhrough life's demands, raisinga family and working full time,she always managed to maintainan air of happiness and opti-mism about her. Each day herfamily always came first andlast. Always with a smile on herface, she radiated beauty andkindness. She leaves behind heronly valued treasures, her hus-band Dimitrios and her childrenEvagelia and Christos.

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IRAM CLEANING SERVICES LLC. Art. of Org. filed w/ SSNY 8/31/16. Office in NY Co. SSNY designated for service of process and shall mail to: 1150 Tiffany St. Apt 6H.Bronx, NY 10459. Purpose: Any lawful activity.

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MEDMALUSA LLC. Art. of Org. filed withthe SSNY on 01/17/17. Office: KingsCounty. SSNY designated as agent of theLLC upon whom process against it may beserved. SSNY shall mail copy of process tothe LLC, 332 88th Street, Brooklyn, NY11209. Purpose: Any lawful purpose.

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Notice of formation of MAZARAKISCONSULTING LLC Articles of Organizationfiled with the Secretary of State of New York(SSNY) on 02/10/2017. Office location:Nassau County. SSNY has been designated for service of process. SSNY shall mail copy ofany process served against the LLC to:MAZARAKIS CONSULTING LLC, 175 HighFarms Road, Glen Head, NY 11545. Purpose: Any lawful purpose.

275637/20286

Notice of formation of 300SN LLC Arts. of Org.filed with the Sect'y of State of NY (SSNY) on2/11/2013. Office location, County of Kings.SSNY has been designated as agent of the LLCupon whom process against it may be served.SSNY shall mail process to: 500 4th Ave., #3,Brooklyn NY 11215 now to 38 S. Station Plaza,Great Neck NY 11021. Purpose: any lawful act.

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146 HALSEY LLC Articles of Org. filed NY Sec.of State (SSNY) 1/18/2017. Office in Kings Co. SSNY desig. agent of LLC upon whomprocess may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to 146 Halsey St., Brooklyn, NY11216. Purpose: Any lawful purpose.Principal business location: 64 WashingtonAve., Brooklyn, NY 11205.

275631/10801

NOTICE OF FORMATION OF LIMITED LIABIL-ITY COMPANY. NAME: GEMSSD REALTY, LLC.Articles of Organization were filed with theSecretary of State of New York (SSNY) on01/26/2017. Office location Nassau County.SSNY has been designated as agent of the LLCupon whom process against it may be served.SSNY shall mail a copy of the process to theLLC, 165 Chestnut Drive, East Hills, NY11576. Purpose: For any lawful purpose.

275638/20229

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back to Athens from a trip toCrete and while we were at thePort of Piraeus, we saw Syrianrefugees coming into the Port andthis was actually before the mediastarted covering the whole issue,and we were shocked,” he toldTNH. “It hurt our hearts becauseI saw whole families coming intothe Port and they were confused,they were lost, they didn’t knowwhat to do. My school gave methe opportunity to do whatever Iwanted to do for my service hoursand I thought it was the perfectopportunity to go to Athens tohelp the families and the childrenin need.”

He said “I went to Greece withmy father. I would have gone bymyself but I am not of legal ageand I needed a parent or aguardian to go; I had to be 23 inorder to volunteer with Caritason my own.”

Describing his work, Xanthossaid “when I arrived, I talked tothe head of the building who or-dered me to go down and workinside in the cafeteria, and actu-ally what I did was give out thefood and clothes to the families.”

Xanthos described the experi-ence as “very rewarding, becauseevery day there were approxi-mately 500 refugees and familiescoming in to get food. Familiesjust like us, four or five people ineach family, and these familieswere hurt by the war. Many ofthem were at a loss for words. Itried speaking to some of thembut they seemed focused only ontheir survival. I gave them foodand warm smile.”

Caritas Director of Operationsin Athens Filippos Salimpaswrote in a March 10 letter that“Spero has worked very hardwith us, often under difficult cir-cumstances, showing compe-tence, sympathy, and the abilityto communicate with peoplefrom all over the world, both

refugees and volunteers. He wasalways polite and respectful. Wefound him responsible and trust-worthy in his work and his quietcharm and dedication made himeasy to work with.”

Xanthos says the experiencechanged him as a person “verymuch so. I would say it maturedme. It was an experience that Iwill never forget. It is hard to ex-plain, but I am very appreciativeof what I was able to do and Iwas very happy to work withthose refuges and somehow togive back.”

He would definitely do itagain if he had the chance, hetold TNH. “I let the representa-tives of my school know aboutthe organization, so probably theField School can partner withCaritas so that other students cancome along and experience whatthey have to offer.”

Before contacting Caritas,Xanthos contacted the Interna-tional Orthodox Christian Chari-ties (IOCC), but “they weren’t re-sponsive in getting back to us, as

Caritas did, which was ready togo and they took me on board.”

Xanthos is not yet sure aboutwhat course of study and careerpath he will pursue, but he is con-sidering architecture and envi-ronmental studies.

His message to his fellow

young Greek-Americans is: “keepyour mind open and always beready to give back to the com-munity and give to the peoplewho seek your help, because wecan’t just take everything forgranted. There are people whoare in need of help.”

16-Year-Old Xanthos Spent Spring Break to Aid RefugeesContinued from page 1

ABOVE: Spero Xanthos working as a volunteer at the Caritas Ceter in Athens. RIGHT: Sperowith his father John in Athens early this month.

TNH Staff

ATHENS – Despite bogged-downausterity negotiations that couldgo on into the summer, Greece’sruling Radical Left SYRIZA coali-tion is continuing to crow that adeal is at hand and significantprogress is being made with itsEuropean creditors.

Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras’team came away from a March20 meeting of Eurogroup financechiefs in Brussels with nothingbut they said they were doingwell and kept up their drumbeatof optimism as the talks drag onfor nearly 20 months now.

Tsipras, reneging on anti-aus-terity promises, sought and ac-cepted in July, 2015 a thirdbailout for the country, this onefor 86 billion euros ($92.83 bil-lion) that came with more of thecrushing conditions put on work-ers, pensioners and the poor thathe swore he would stop.

After that deal saw his popu-larity plummet he’s been tryingfeverishly to backtrack, tellingcreditors he would impose moreausterity while resisting terms,and telling Greeks he opposeswhat he’s doing but that since hehas no choice that it’s not hisfault.

There was such a standoff inthe March 20 meeting that en-voys from the Troika of the Eu-ropean Union-European CentralBank-European Stability Mecha-nism (EU-ECB-ESM) aren’t ex-pected to return to Athens soonto resume talks, the newspaperKathimerini said.

Finance Minister EuclidTsakalotos met with EurogroupPresident Jeroen Dijsselbloemahead of the Eurogroup meetingbut they refused to say what theytalked about although it’s taxpay-ers money that’s at stake.

The business newspaper

Naftemporiki said the Greekteam will nevertheless stay inBrussels, hanging around andlooking for some progress al-though the two sides are report-edly far apart on key issues, suchas taking workers rights awayand letting companies to goahead with mass firings withoutconsulting the government, andmore pension cuts..

European Economic and Mon-etary Affairs Commissioner PierreMoscovici said the delays arekeeping investors away and saidthat the International MonetaryFund (IMF) which took part i twofirst rescue packages of 240 bil-lion euros ($259.06 billion) start-ing in 2010 should join the third.

The DC-based agency is stay-ing out of it for now until Greeceimposes more tough measures

even though it also support debtrelief from the European partnerswhile demanding it be paid infull first.

The next “unofficial deadline”for concluding the second reviewof the third bailout is now April7 although the government hasmissed a series of earlier dead-lines it had set while concurrentlysaying it was doing well anyway.

In a later press conference,mostly to Greek reporters,Tsakalotos gave another positivespin but didn’t explain how thatcould be with the major issuesstill unresolved.

He repeated that “progresswas recorded in negotiations,”and that all sides agree that moreprogress can be achieved in thenext few days – given the deci-sion to keep the Greek ministers

in Brussels.The Greek team told the

Athens News Agency (ANA) it ex-pects to wrap up talks by March30 but the major opposition NewDemocracy said the deadlockshowed the talks are a debacle.

“On February 20, the govern-ment and its propaganda ma-chine rushed to announce a dealwhich supposedly brought ‘anend to austerity. Today, it wasproven that it was another at-tempt to deceive the people, asthere has been nor is any dealand we don’t know if and onwhat conditions there will everbe one,” the Conservatives saidsaid.

“All this is happening at a timewhen the economy is destabilizedand the country is again in un-certainty,” the statement added.

Greece, Troika Austerity, Reform Talks Stall Again

Greek Finance Minister Euclid Tsakalotos, left, speaks with Dutch Finance Minister Jeroen Di-jsselbloem, right, and European Commissioner for Economic and Financial Affairs PierreMoscovici during a meeting of eurogroup finance ministers in Brussels on Monday, March 20.

AP PhoTo/VirGiniA mAyo

tary elections, his spokesmanMichel Reijns confirmed. Dijssel-bloem heads the eurogroup, themeetings of the 19 finance min-isters of European countries thatshare the euro currency.

Monday's discovery came af-ter letter bombs were sent in re-cent days to the German FinanceMinistry and the Paris office ofthe International Monetary Fund,where a small explosion injuredone person.

Police said the devices con-

tained small amounts of explo-sives that were not capable ofcausing significant damage.

A Greek militant group, Con-spiracy Cells of Fire, claimed re-sponsibility for the German at-tack, describing it as part of acampaign of violence by interna-tional anarchist groups. Thegroup had been behind a 2010spate of parcel bomb attacks inwhich they had sent devices tothe offices of European politi-cians, including German Chan-cellor Angela Merkel, as well asforeign embassies in Athens.

Greek Police Contacting TargetsContinued from page 1

By Andy DabilisTNH Staff

ATHENS – A college studentwho can get discount fares,Haris Moumtzelis, 19, said heunderstands why Greece’sMetro system has given up usingpaper tickets and walk-throughentries in favor of coming elec-tronic cards and turnstiles.

He also said he understandswhy many people won’t pay andthat many can’t pay the fares onthe subway, trains, buses andtrams through Greece’s capitalduring a seven-year-long eco-nomic crisis, and even why an-archists smash ticket machinesin rage against austerity.

“It’s not right to break thembut it’s right not to pay the gov-ernment,” he told The NationalHerald as he stood outside oneof the still-gleaming fresh Metrostations on a system that openedin 2000 to great fanfare.

Anger against big pay cuts,tax hikes, slashed pensions, andworker firings on orders of in-ternational creditors has fueledan upsurge in fare evasion, aproblem made easy by thehonor system that’s been inplace where riders are supposedto buy and validate paper ticketsbut where so many people don’t

that it’s brought huge losses.The turnstiles on the Metro

have been installed in staggeredwork for several months and aredue to go into operation on June1.

“They’ve done it to getmoney because so many people

aren’t paying but other peopledon’t have money,” saidMoumtzelis.

Nearby, Dimitra Terezaki, 27,was handing out flyers advertis-ing help for people with debts,seeing a flood of people pass byon their way to the Metro and

said she’s glad there’s a switchto turnstiles.

“I’m satisfied with it,” shetold The National Herald.“There’s a lot of people whodon’t buy tickets and aren’t get-ting caught,” she added.

Indeed. So many aren’t pay-ing the 1.40 euros for ticketsgood for 90 minutes that STASY,the company that operates thecapital’s metro, electric railwayand tram systems, had losses in2015 of 78.2 million euros($100.7 million) from 36.4 mil-lion euros ($39.07 million) theyear before Kathimerini re-ported.

The application of the elec-tronic ticket…as well as thetelematics on buses and trolleysthat have been in effect sincelast April, are two works ofmodernization and of strategicimportance that mark a new erain Athen’s urban means of trans-portation and in serving passen-gers,” Nikos Perperas,spokesman for the Athens UrbanTransport Organisation (OASA)project of installation of elec-tronic ticket on public transporttold TNH.

He said the e-ticket will offermany advantages and can becharged up at automatic ma-chines, the Internet, through

credit and debit cards as well.“In the second stage, after

the e-ticket system is fully func-tioning, passengers will becharged depending on the dis-tance covered. Therefore, fareswill be far more fair,” he added.

Noting the vandalism on thepublic transport system, includ-ing smashing of validation ma-chines by self-styled anarchists,Fondas, a 20-year-old man whodidn’t want to give his lastname, told TNH that moreshould be expected, which hedidn’t condone and that it wasunfair for so many fare dodgersto get free rides.

“We shouldn’t pay for otherpeople,” he said before buyinghis ticket at a Metro stop in anAthens suburb.

“It’s very good they made itelectronic,” he added. “Theywon’t be able to keep it upthough because people willbreak it. They want it the easyway,” he said.

Until now, inspectors on thesubway and on trams and buseshave randomly stopped ridersand asked to see their validatedtickets, which has led to argu-ments and in one case in 2013,the death of an 18-year-old manwho tried to get off a bus andfell and hit his head on the pave-

ment, sparking further outrage. In a country where tax eva-

sion is a national sport, duckingfares isn’t far behind, whetheron the Metro, tram, train oreven going through toll boothson the national road and AttikiOdos, the major road to the air-port.

The We Won’t Pay movement,people infuriated by austeritymeasures that haven’t touchedthe rich, politicians or privilegedwho are still thriving, have en-couraged use of roads and trans-portation without paying.

The Metro is being expandedto reach Athens neighborhoodsbut has been hurt by workers’anti-austerity strikes and mas-sive fare evasion with manywilling to risk fines and as theruling Radical Left SYRIZA wasreportedly discouraging inspec-tors from checking tickets, fear-ful of another backlash afterreneging on anti-austeritypromises.

The full electronic system isdesigned to end fare dodgingbut Moumtzelis doesn’t think at-titudes will change and thatfreeloaders will try to find someother way to avoid buying elec-tronic cards. “There are thosewho have the money,” he said.“They just don’t want to pay.”

GREECE CYPRUSTHE NATIONAL HERALD, MARCH 25-31, 2017 9

No Honor: Greece’s Metro, Transport Turn to Turnstiles to Stop Fare

TNH Staff

JERUSALEM – The tomb of Je-sus has been resurrected to itsformer glory.

Just in time for Easter, aGreek restoration team has com-pleted a historic renovation ofthe Edicule, the shrine that tra-dition says houses the cavewhere Jesus was entombed andresurrected, the AssociatedPress reported.

The unsightly iron cage builtaround the shrine by British au-thorities in 1947 to shore up thewalls and the black soot on theshrine's stone façade fromdecades of pilgrims lighting can-dles have been removed. Fearsabout the stability of the oldshrine, which hadn't been re-stored in more than 200 years,are gone, too.

"If this intervention hadn'thappened now, there is a verygreat risk that there could havebeen a collapse," Bonnie Burn-ham of the World MonumentsFund said Monday, March 20,as the AP reported. "This is acomplete transformation of themonument."

The fund provided an initial$1.4 million for the $4 millionrestoration, thanks to a donationby Mica Ertegun, the widow ofa co-founder of Atlantic Records.Jordan's King Abdullah II andPalestinian President MahmoudAbbas also chipped in about150,000 euros each, along withother private and church dona-tions, Burnham said.

The limestone and marblestructure stands at the center ofthe Church of the Holy Sepul-cher in Jerusalem, one of theworld's oldest churches – a 12th-century building standing on4th-century remains. The shrineneeded urgent attention afteryears of exposure to environ-mental factors like water, hu-midity and candle smoke.

Three main Christian denom-inations jealously guard sepa-

rate sections of the church, butthey put aside their longstand-ing religious rivalries to givetheir blessing for the restoration.In 2015, Israeli police brieflyshut down the building after Is-rael's Antiquities Authoritydeemed it unsafe, and repairsbegan in June.

A restoration team from theNational Technical University ofAthens stripped the stone slabsfrom the shrine's façade andpatched up the internal masonryof the shrine, injecting it withtubes of grout for reinforce-ment. Each stone slab wascleaned of candle soot and pi-geon droppings, then put backin place. Titanium bolts were in-serted into the structure for re-inforcement, and frescos andthe shrine's painted dome weregiven a face-lift.

During the restoration pro-ject, the restorers also revealedsome new discoveries about the

tomb. On Oct. 26, the team en-tered the inner sanctum of theshrine, the burial chamber of Je-sus, and temporarily slid openan old marble layer covering thebedrock where Jesus' body issaid to have been placed.

Below the outer marble layerwas a white rose marble slabengraved with a cross, whichthe team dated to the late Cru-sader period of the 14th century.Beneath that marble slab wasan even older, grey marble slabprotecting the bedrock, andmortar on the slab dates to the4th century, when Roman Em-peror Constantine ordered theChurch of the Holy Sepulcherbuilt.

The restorers have cut asmall window from the shrine'smarble walls for pilgrims to see– for the first time – the barestone of the ancient burial cave.

"It seems we are in front oflevels of history that are vali-

dated," said Antonia Mo-ropoulou, who supervised therenovation.

The team is dismantling itsworksite ahead of a March 22ceremony to mark the comple-tion of the renovation, in thepresence of two representativesof dueling Christian denomina-tions – Ecumenical PatriarchBartholomew, who is the spiri-tual leader of the world's Ortho-dox Christians, and a represen-tative of Pope Francis, the leaderof the Catholic Church.

Concern for the church's sta-bility has brought Christian de-nominations together, and Mo-ropoulou hopes it ushers in a"new era" of cooperation. Shehopes the communities willmake some changes in long-standing customs inside thechurch, like pilgrims smashingtheir lit candles onto theEdicule's stone wall, so thestructure is not compromised.

Now, money is being raisedfor another round of restora-tions – consolidating drainageand sewage pipes underground,

around the tomb, to stabilize itsfoundations – so renovationswon't be needed for years tocome.

"Here is a monument thathas been worshipped throughthe centuries, and will be wor-shipped forever," said Mo-ropoulou, as the AP reported.

Born in Rhodes, Dr. Mo-ropoulou is currently the ViceRector of Academic Affairs ofthe National Technical Univer-sity of Athens (NTUA). She is aChemical Engineer and Profes-sor at the NTUA School ofChemical Engineering, Sectionof Materials Science and Engi-neering. She has been a VisitingProfessor at the Universities ofAntwerp, Rome, Venice, andPrinceton and is the Studies' Di-rector of the NTUA Inter-Depart-mental Graduate Program forthe "Protection of Monuments"- Direction "Materials and Con-servation Interventions" and theHead of Laboratory of MaterialsScience and Engineering in theNTUA School of Chemical Engi-neering.

(Material from the AssociatedPress was used in this report)

In Time for Easter, the Tomb of Jesus is Resurrected in Jerusalem

Athens Metro riders pass through the turnstiles that will gointo operation on June 1 with electronic cards.

TNH Staff

NEW YORK - Cyprus' Presidentsaid he and United Nations Sec-retary-General Antonio Guterresshare the view that progress inefforts to reunify the ethnicallydivided island is unlikely beforenext month's referendum inTurkey on expanding presidentialpowers.

President Nicos Anastasiadessaid after talks with Guterres thatpeace negotiations which stalledamid a dispute over Cyprus' tu-multuous history could resumesoon despite their collapse afterTurkish-Cypriot Mustafa Akinciwalked away, angry over aCypriot Parliament vote to com-memorate a 1950 referendumseeking Enosis, or unity, withGreece and with Turkish de-mands to keep an army on theisland and the right to invadewhen it wants.

Turkish President RecepTayyip Erdogan is seeking near-dictatorial powers in the wake ofa failed July, 2016 coup againsthim, followed by a crackdown ashe sought the death penalty forconspirators, anathema to theEuropean Union which Turkey isseeking to join.

Anastasiades said because ofthe referendum, "it may not betime" for Turkish and TurkishCypriot officials to "make thosenecessary decisions" that wouldmove the process forward on keyissues preventing an accord.

Cyprus was split in 1974when Turkey unlawfully invadedafter a coup by supporters ofunion with Greece.

“We did not in any way en-gage in apportioning blame, butwe entered the substance of im-portant issues that remain out-standing [in the Cyprus problemtalks] and a solution must befound so that questions or de-mands raised are answered, ifthere is to be hope for a settle-ment of the Cyprus problem,”Anastasiades told reporters afterthe meeting.

He and Akinci have been talk-ing on-and-off for more than 22

months in a bid to find a solutionto a dilemma that has foiled twodozen envoys, politicians, andpower brokers over the decadesand left the island on the vergeof permanent partition.

UN Special Envoy Espen BarthEide has been constantly repeat-ing an answer was at hand eventhough there isn’t and that sig-nificant progress was being madeeven though it wasn’t, and re-cently said even he is losing hope– only to immediately reboundand again predict a deal coming.

Erdogan’s power grab hasbeen both a catalyst and divisivefactor even as he refuses to rec-ognize Cyprus and bars its shipsand planes and has been steppingup a Turkish military presence inthe Aegean and around the islandin what critics said was deliberatebellicose behavior to stake aclaim.

In New York, Anastasiadeswas trying to find some way tokick-start the talks while blamingTurkey for the breakdown – andtrying not to blame Turkey so asnot to rile Erdogan and Akincianew.

Asked what Guterres might doto restart the talks, Anastasiadesreferred to a “shared expectationthat the dialogue could restartsoon, but also mutual agreementthat the period until the (April16) constitutional referendum inTurkey is probably not right forthose on whom progress dependsto make the necessary decisions,”the Cyprus Mail reported.

Turkey is also demanding thatany solution include the so-calledFour Freedoms in which the mi-nority Turkish citizens have allthe same rights as Cypriots andas Akinci wants a Turkish leaderto be the country’s Presidentevery other term.

Cypriots are citizens of the Eu-ropean Union but Turks in theoccupied northern third are notand Anastasiades said, “The viewthat a way must be found to ad-dress the concerns of GreekCypriots, as well as the Euro-peans, was clear,” but didn’t saywhat it was.

Compiled byEraklis Diamataris

MARCH 23: On this day in 1821 the city of Kalamata becomes thefirst city in Greece liberated from Ottoman rule in the Greek Warof Independence. Greek commanders Theodoros Kolokotronis,Christos Papageorgiou and Grigorios Dikaios (Papaflessas) wereinciting revolutionary sentiment and rousing the population of theareas surrounding Kalamata in the Mani Peninsula. The Bey ofMani, Petros Mavromichalis was reluctant to commit and resourcesand manpower as he thought the revolution was a lost cause tobegin with. Greeks in Smyrna however sent a ship carrying warmaterials to a port outside Kalamata and upon hearing thisMavromichalis mobilized his forces. The Ottoman Pasha of thearea learned of a shipment being disembarked by armed Greeksand was suspicious. After enquiring as to why the men were armedmembers of the Greek resistance told him that due to elevatedlocal crime rates this particular shipment of olive oil had to be pro-tected at all costs. The Pasha sent for help in curtailing the crimeso that shipments like this didn’t need such heavy protection so heturned to local warlord Petros Mavromichalis who happily obligedand sent 150 Maniates to Kalamata under the command of his sonElia. Once there Elia ingeniously told the Pasa that more troopswere needed to secure the city and was given the green light to getmore forces. Under this guise the Greek commanders that had sur-rounded the city with a force of 2,500 strong came out of hidingrode into the city and liberated Kalamata. Petros Mavromichalisnow as the leader of the fledgeling Greek resistance accepted theofficial surrender of Pasa Arnaoutoglou and on the 23rd of Marcha great celebration was held following a moving ceremony in frontof the Church of the Holy Apostles where the Greek revolutionwas blessed by the clergy and the struggle for independence wastruly underway following the liberation of Kalamata.

MARCH 24: On this day in 1979, Greek track and field star PeriklisIakovakis was born in Patra. Iakovakis competed in a wide rangeof athletic competitions but he is most best remembered for hiscourses in the 400 meter hurdles. Since 2006 Iakovakis is the soleowner of the Greek record holder in the 400 meter hurdles with atime of 47.82. In addition to this record time, he has won the na-tional Greek Championships 16 times with an impressive 15 ofthose times coming consecutively from 1998-2013. Iakovakis par-ticipated in all four Olympics from 2000-2012 but did not medal.Amongst his international winner’s medals is gold at 2001 Tunis

Mediterranean Games and the 2006 Goteborg European Champi-onships both for the 400 meter hurdles. Periklis Iakovakis retiredon July 26, 2016 where fittingly his last race was a victory in the400 meter hurdles giving him 16 total Greek championships.

MARCH 25: On this day in 1821 legend has it that the Greek Warof Independence officially began in Kalavryta, Greece. The war,according to the legend, began in earnest when Bishop Palaion Pa-tron Germanos, in front of the revolutionaries raised the Greekrevolutionary banner at the Agia Lavrias monastery in Kalavryta.The revolutionaries on hand included Theodoros Kolokotronis whodays earlier helped to facilitate the liberation of Kalamata. As eachrevolutionary lined up by the newly created banner, they weremade to kneel and make an oath. The oath was the now famousrallying cry “ἐλευθερία ἢ θάνατος”, “freedom or death”. The eventwith Bishop Germanos was taught as historical fact in Greek schoolsuntil 1982. Since then the day has been marked as a national hol-iday in Greece and Greek communities around the world as a com-memoration of Greek Independence from the Ottoman Turks. Ζητωη Ελλαδα! Long Live Greece!

This Week in Greek History

Faithful visit the renovated Edicule in the Church of the HolySepulchre, traditionally believed to be the site of the crucifixion

of Jesus Christ, in Jerusalem's old city Monday, Mar. 20, 2017.RIGHT: A Greek priest stands inside the renovated Edicule.

Anastasiades SaysErdogan’s Power VoteBlocking Cyprus Unity

PhoToS: AP PhoTo/SeBASTiAn Scheiner

Tnh STAFF PhoTo

EDITORIALS LETTERS10 THE NATIONAL HERALD, MARCH 25-31, 2017

Turkey is a Bully ThatOnly Understands Force

To the Editor:I am writing about the recent

threats that Turkey has made.The Turkish president said theLausanne Treaty of 1923 wasfalse and the Greek islands be-long to Turkey. He believes heis a modern-day Sultan, andmaybe he wants to revive theOttoman Empire. And whathave the United States, UN, andEU done about it? Nothing, asusual.

Turkey is a bully and the onlything a bully understands isforce.

Andy LamprosDanvers, MA

Disappointment withAnalysis: Archon ChallengesKalmoukos To Meet withExecutive Committee

To the Editor:I was disheartened to read

Theodore Kalmoukos’ "analysis"of "What Does The Sunday ofOrthodoxy Mean Today?" (Mar.11). His contempt of the Ar-chons of the Ecumenical Patri-

archate displays a complete lackof knowledge on how one isawarded the honor of being anarchon and what is required todo so.

The vast majority of archonshave given decades of theirtime, talent, and treasure totheir local church, their diocese,and the Archdiocese. The ar-chons, who are very active inthe Order of Saint Andrew, alsospend much time in supportingand promoting our patriarchand the Patriarchate.

To read the ridicule of Mr.Kalmoukos by citing theatricalfolklore and golden crosses(they are silver) is a dishonorto these men.

I do not know what churchMr. Kalmoukos attends, but inmy church the archons onlywear the cross and the patch onthe Sunday of Orthodoxy, whichis significant, and whenever abishop or the archbishop attendstheir parish. The entire church– adults and children – are in-vited to participate in the Sun-day of Orthodoxy Processionand Proclamation of Faith (acopy is provided to everyone).

This past Sunday of Ortho-doxy (a frigid day), our SundaySchool Student and about 80%

of our parishioners participatedin an outdoor (abbreviated) pro-cession. The Proclamation wasread inside the church with allthe Sunday School studentsstanding on the Soleas withtheir icons.

The procession is not onethat is dominated by archons;most parishes have just a hand-ful of Archons: there are approx-imately 700 Archons spread outover 400-plus parishes, soplease do your homework, Mr.Kalmoukos. Our churches facethe same problems as any othermainstream Christian religion inthe United States; having a fewmen wear a cross, a pin and anoffikon is not exacerbating theproblems.

I challenge you to meet withthe Executive Committee of the

Archons of the Ecumenical Pa-triarchate and to publish an ar-ticle in The National Herald onthe good works that these mendo. Your contempt for thechurch and the clergy is evident,for you look at every opportu-nity to write negatively aboutthem. There are issues andproblems with all occupationsand organizations. No one onearth is perfect. Perhaps, if youwere openminded, you mightfind some good things to writeabout the church and clergy.

I anticipate you accepting mychallenge.

George K. LavasRockville Centre, NY

George K. Lavas is an ArchonDepoutatos of the Order of St.Andrew.

Parade’s Home Stretch andthe Words of Makriyannis

Although wintry weather is still impacting the Northeast,we have entered the week of the Annunciation and the 196thanniversary of Greece's national regeneration.

This period is one of the most beautiful and evocative timesof the year.

Thus, on Sunday March 26th, with hopes that the weatherwill also cooperate, our communities, schools, organizations,and the Evzones of the Greek Presidential Guard will paradeon the possibly most famous avenue in the world, New YorkCity’s Fifth Avenue, in front of thousands of Greek-Americans,in a celebration that reminds us that nothing is impossible, nomatter how bleak the situation, so long as Greeks make the bigdecision to say that enough is enough: “Liberty or Death.”

Of course, it has not always been an easy road. We usuallyhave to find ourselves teetering on the edge – just as we didduring the Revolution of 1821 – in order to awaken. And therewill always be opportunists.

As written by the ever-relevant General Yannis Makriyannisin his classic book Memoirs:

“Such a people want to become rich when it is not time forriches, but it is time to fight, and then the riches and glory willcome together. We tie our companions and saddle them withstones, and the Turks come to unburden them. We kill ourhonest and good friends… we allow ourselves to be stolenfrom, and then fed … we allow falsehoods and praises to writ-ten. And of course the country was endangered and will be en-dangered by the flatterers and thieves and crooks... There isnothing sweeter than the homeland and religion. When manhas a clear conscience, and works honestly and worships, he isthe most happy and most wealthy.”

Christofias’ Painful Book: HowNecessity Becomes History

I have been closely following one of Hellenism’s major na-tional concerns, the Cyprus issue, out of love, interest, and asense of duty.

I have followed it since I was a child. Ever since ArchbishopMakarios visited my native island of Lemnos. (Yes, the onethat was recently excluded from the NATO exercise due toTurkey's veto.)

So I considered it my duty to read the book written byformer Cypriot President Demetris Christofias, titled How Ne-cessity Becomes History (Printco Manufacturing and Trading)to get a firsthand account of the Cyprus issue during the periodin which he managed it.

I wish I hadn’t read it. That’s how much it saddened me.But mostly I wondered – over and over again – how it was pos-sible for this man to be elected president of Cyprus, a countrythat was facing – and continues to face – an existential crisis?

Our Greek Cypriot brothers are neither the first nor the lastto elect the wrong person to govern them. We expect morefrom them, given the fact that they are, on average, intelligent,educated, and cosmopolitan, and the dramatic memories ofthe invasion are still fresh. Perhaps the explanation is that theircriteria in choosing a president are more political than anythingelse?

In conclusion, Christofias was totally unprepared to under-take a position of that magnitude, and the results are well-known.

Based on his education and experience, it was humanly im-possible for Christofias to grasp the complexity of the issues,both in solving the Cyprus problem and the economy and inmaking the right decisions.

Of course, it is to his credit that, as a poor child, he made itas far as he did, thanks to his diligence and intelligence (aboutwhich he boasts).

Yet he didn’t follow the path, both in his education as wellas his career, that would enrich his knowledge and experiencesand that would enable him to successfully execute his mandateas president.

He simply could not understand the maze of crosscurrents,the constantly changing global situations, the deeper aspectsof the economy, and hence the consequences of his decisions.

Christofias writes (p. 51): “The partisan college [which heattended] was organized by the Communist Party of the SovietUnion. Professors taught Philosophy, Political Economy, Historyof International Labor and the Communist Movement, Historyof the Soviet Communist Party. Meanwhile, the Russian lan-guage was also taught.”

So that is where Christofias studied. These are what deter-mined his life course.

When he returned to Cyprus, he continued to be active inCyprus’ communist party AKEL (Progressive Party of WorkingPeople). He later became the party’s general secretary andeventually president of Cyprus.

And he proudly declares that he was – even as president – a“disciplined communist” (pg. 207).

He adds that he deems it necessary to clarify that “as aparty, we never relinquished our ultimate aim of the socialisttransformation of society. It was and remains our view that atruly just society can only be built within the framework of so-cialism.”

And naturally, according to the former president, the “traitorsand henchmen in NATO and the Anglo-American imperialismwhich presents itself as the country’s savior from the communistonslaught” are responsible for the Cyprus problem.

If Christofias was simply a communist somewhere in theworld, there certainly would be no problem. That’s his prerog-ative. But that fact that he was the president of Cyprus andheld its fate in his hands for five years is agonizing.

It is also distressing to be informed from someone who ex-perienced the events firsthand that partisan calculations, andnot the national issue, formulated the political developments,including who would be the island-nation’s president.

I express my hope that this book will constitute the beginningfor the righting of wrongs on Cyprus, otherwise I fear that itwill be a very long time before salvation comes – if it comes –to my beloved Cyprus.

In this sense, Christofias has inadvertently performed a ser-vice for Hellenism.

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

COMMENTARY

Historians who rank U.S.presidents for a living recom-mend waiting a full twentyyears until a chief executive hasleft office before assessing hisperformance. By that standard,not only is it far too early toevaluate the presidency ofBarack Obama, but also thoseof George W. Bush and Bill Clin-ton.

There are two reasons for thesuggested long wait: first, it al-lows time for the consequencesof policies set by the particularpresident to come to light morefully and apparently, and sec-ond, there is ample time foremotion to give way to objectiveanalysis.

Take Gerald Ford, for in-stance, who was vilified bymuch of the electorate for hav-ing pardoned Richard Nixon forWatergate, which Ford was al-most certain at the time wouldcost him his political career (hewas right; it did). It was morethan three decades later that noless a critic than Ted Kennedyacknowledged in hindsight thatFord had done the right thingfor the good of the country.

Accordingly, any attempts toevaluate Donald Trump’s presi-dency at this extremely earlystage would be beyond ridicu-lous. My only claim to havingno regrets thus far in voting forhim is a direct response to thesocial media memes that featurea clownish image of Trump ac-companied by the words: “AreYou Sorry Yet?” meaning, areyou sorry you voted for him?

Umm, actually no, I’m not.Not at all.

Please take note of the dis-tinction: no regrets does notmean no criticism. In otherwords, I do not agree with 100percent of what President

Trump has done tothis point, nor do Iexpect not to dis-agree with him inthe future.

Those who ask“are you sorry yet?”apparently remainoblivious to theessence of Trump’sappeal. They thinkthat just becausethey find Trumpevery bit as revolt-ing – if not more so– in the Oval Officeas they did on thecampaign trail, thatsuddenly the tens of millionswho voted for him have shiftedpriorities.

Trump supporters are not amonolith, and there is aplethora of reasons why he ap-pealed to those who cast a ballotfor him. For me, the two wordsthat as much as any epitomizewhy any alternative to Trump(from the available pool of can-didates) would have been un-thinkable, are: sanctuary cities.

The outrage, as I see it, is notthat the United States elected apresident who once publiclyfeuded with Rosie O’Donnell,calling her a “fat pig,” whobragged (albeit thinking he washaving a private conversation)about how his celebrity statuscauses women to let him grabthem by the privates, or eventhat he censored the likes of theNew York Times and Washing-ton Post from his press confer-ences. (By the way, I think the2017 versions of those two pub-lications are poor excuses forjournalism, but censorship is notthe answer.)

Nor is the outrage that just acouple of weeks ago he sent thecountry into a frenzy via an

early morningtweeting tirade,during which heaccused his prede-cessor of wiretap-ping him, and re-ferring to Obamaas “a bad (or sick)guy.”

Again, these arenot steps I wouldhave advised himto take. But theypale in comparisonto the outrage thatmayors of largecities and judgeswho sit on federal

courts appear to be indifferentat best about enforcing the im-migration laws that have existedfor decades.

First and foremost, illegalaliens are not “immigrants” asdefined by the U.S. Code.

Second, all American law en-forcement officers are brothersin arms, fighting crime andkeeping peace and safety. Ac-cordingly, it is unconscionablethat police departments of U.S.cities would “stay out of it”when it comes to attempting toidentify illegal aliens because “itis a federal matter.”

It is astounding that whenstudents are enrolled in schools– from Kindergarten to highschool to college to master’s anddoctoral programs – that proofof citizenship and/or immigra-tion status is not demanded.And in the case of students whohave not reached the age of ma-jority, that the same proof is notdemanded of their parents.

Just as mind-boggling is that20 state universities provide in-state tuition to illegal aliensphysically present in that state,whereas legal aliens and U.S.citizens from out of state are

charged considerably higherrates.

If you were born and raisedin Kansas, for example, but al-ways had your heart set on en-rolling at the University ofTexas, you’d pay $17,593 persemester (according to UT’swebsite). The guy sitting nextto you, who lists “Texas” as hisstate of residence but who snuckin across the border fromCanada or Mexico, was a crew-man on a Norwegian cruise linerand jumped ship upon dockingin New York Harbor, or flew infive years ago from Iceland ona 90-day visitor’s visa to attendhis cousin’s wedding but neverleft, is paying $5,055.

And we haven’t even gottenaround to the sheer insanity ofdisplacing people from theircountries rather than providingthem with demilitarized zones– aka real safe havens (not thekind you see on Ivy League cam-puses).

Mass deportation of every il-legal alien currently in theUnited States is not the answer,and least of all those who werebrought here as infants or tod-dlers, or those who are very oldor very ill.

But as long as sanctuarycities exist – including my home-town of New York – with open-border-sympathizing mayorsrunning them, a law and orderpresident like Donald Trumphasn’t even begun to do any-thing that would cause me toregret having voted for him lastNovember 8.

Constantinos E. Scaros' latestbook, Grumpy Old Party (aboutthe 2016 presidential election),is available for purchase onamazon.com and in bookstoresnationwide.

After Two Months of President Trump, No Regrets as Yet

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(ΕΘΝΙΚΟΣ ΚΗΡΥΞ),reporting the news and addressing the issues of paramount interest to the Greek-American community of the United States of America.

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Assistant Executive Editor Eleni SakellisReligion Editor Theodore Kalmoukos

Contributing Editor Constantinos E. Scaros

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by CONSTANTINOS E.SCAROS

Special to The National Herald

their will, and installed dictators,in the Arab lands since the endof World War I. The West, hesaid, thinks it has a right and aduty to do so. But these are notour people,” Fisk said : “theyhave a different history and cul-ture from the West, and we haveno business intervening.”

Her Excellency CatherineBoura, who is Greece’s perma-nent representative to the UnitedNations, framed her analysis byoffering data and proposing so-lutions for the crisis.

Amb. Boura underscored thecrisis when she told the audiencethat “at the end of 2015 morethan 65 million people wereforcibly displaced worldwide;21.3 million were refugees. Themajority were children andwomen.” She reminded the au-dience that “In 2015, Greece re-ceived more than 800,000

refugees…I cannot emphasizeenough the solidarity shown bylocal communities especially inthe Greek frontline islands,where people put tremendousefforts and financial resourcesto rescue people in need and toreceive them in a humane wayat a time of very serious financialconstraints.”

Boura also warned of thecomplexities of the refugee cri-sis, such as the human traffickerswho have amassed billions ofdollars. “These criminal groupsare likely to smuggle arms, totraffic people, women and girlsto slavery, or sponsor terrorismbecause they thrive from it.” Sheconcluded: “Efficient relocationand resettlement mechanismsmust be put in place to secureorderly and legal means ofmovement and provide oppor-tunities for resettlement ofrefugees, combating traffickingand smuggling networks.”

Finally, Nelofer Pazira offeredthe perspective of the refugee.Pazira is an award-winningAfghan-Canadian director, ac-tress, journalist, and author. Shegrew up in Kabul, Afghanistan,where she lived through tenyears of Soviet occupation be-fore escaping with her family toPakistan, before immigrating toCanada. In 1996 she returned toTaliban-controlled Afghanistanin search of a childhood friend.That journey became the basisfor the critically-acclaimed filmKandahar, in which she starred.

As a refugee her poignantstory and that of her familyspoke to the hearts of all whoattended the event. Her narra-tive put a face on the ubiquitousrefugee. Walking fromAfghanistan to Pakistan with herfamily is a testament to theplight of refugees.

Her father had been a pedia-trician in Kabul and found him-

self unable to practice medicinewhen he arrived in Canada.Throughout his refugee trek hecarried a suit, which was care-fully tucked away that repre-sented who he had been in hishomeland. While in Canada, hekept the ritual of preserving thatsuit and pulling it out as a re-minder of his previous life. Thismessage was not lost on his cre-ative daughter Nelofer, whofounded the Dyana AfghanWomen’s fund, which provideseducation and skills training forwomen in Afghanistan.

The humanitarian crisis ofrefugees is dire. The evening ofengaging with Fisk, Boura, andPazira was disturbing as well asenlightening.

The dynamic among thespeakers provided three uniqueinsights into the refugee crisisand gave the audience an edu-cational and memorable experi-ence.

Three Perspectives on the Refugee CrisisContinued from page 1

The Celebration at GracieMansion that Was Not

For a number of years the Mayor of NewYork, invites members of our community tocelebrate March 25th at Gracie Mansion.

However, things got of control at the re-ception Mayor Bill de Blasio gave this week.

It lost its purpose - and seriousness. First of all, he honored Ernie Anastos

and declared March 21st “Ernie AnastosDay in New York.”

How is one event related to the other?

I hasten to add that Ernie deserves everyhonor and recognition for his long serve tothe people of New York as one of the mostadmired TV anchors.

Would it not though be more appropriateif he were honored at either the mayoralresidence at another time or at City Hall?

Furthermore, I was surprised to see thatthe representatives of Greece at the UN andNew York who were in attendance, wereabsent from the official stand.

Was it not their country that was hon-ored?

I saw however his Eminence, Archbishop

Demetrios at the official stand, who alsospoke, as he should, and I must add, helooked rather upset about something.

I wonder, though, how come he did notthink of inviting them himself to join himon the stand?

In any event, it looks as if the Mayorthinks he is doing us a favor. That probablyexplains why he was more than one hourlate.

Frankly, the whole thing was an insultto us all.

If that is how he feels, he should not doit next year.

Observations By Antonis H. Diamataris

VIEWPOINTSTHE NATIONAL HERALD, MARCH 25-31, 2017 11

The same people who runthe United States and Russiaand England and essentiallyevery country, with the excep-tion of a couple of crazies likeNorth Korea and Venezuela(two Communist role models forGreek Prime Minister Alexis“Che” Tsipras, who prefers otherpeople stand in line for bread)are the rich, aided by their suck-up wannabe-rich friends, thepoliticians in their pockets.

They are the dread enemy ofCommunists, anarchists, anti-Capitalists, Leninists, Stalinists,and Maoists, that motley collec-tion of café beret philosopherswho like to plot world revolu-tion around a cappuccino butwon’t tip the waitress well at all.

So you’d think that Greece’sLooney Left SYRIZA, made upof that ragtag collection of fakereformers who talk a good gamebut fold up faster than a cheaptent when confronted with theirenemies, would be a good betto finally break that cruel inter-connection of the rich andsybaritic politicians who controlthe country.

Sigh, it’s been said that theonly way to be happy is to leada life of non-interference withthe politicians and rich becausethey always win, always haveand always will and that’s justthe way it is and it takes somepeople too long to realize it be-fore they too get steamrolled.

Tsipras, who came to powerin January, 2015 with hispromise to reverse austerity and“Crush the oligarchy!” andspread a Leftist revolutionthroughout Europe, surrenderedto them and the country’s cred-itors faster than the French

army in World WarII, reneging on hispromises to restorewages and pensionbenefits, stop firingsand halt privatiza-tions.

He did none ofthat, of course, andeven upped the anteby putting anavalanche of taxhikes on workers,pensioners and thepoor and agreeingto just about everydemand from theTroika of the Euro-pean Union-European CentralBank-European Stability Mech-anism (EU-ECB-ESM).

That was in return for a thirdbailout of 86 billion euros hesaid he would never seek noraccept but did both, includingafter reneging on his own calledreferendum asking Greeks tosupport his phony war on theoligarchy and the lenders.

A month after taking office,Tsipras declared he would go af-ter the oligarchs he said ran TVstations and would end “crony”bank loans for the politically-connected, nationalize bankboards, halt the sale of state as-sets at fire sale prices and go af-ter tax cheats and those hidingincomes in foreign bank ac-counts.

"We have made the decisionto clash with a regime of politi-cal and economic power thatplunged our country into the cri-sis and is responsible of Greece’sdepreciation on an internationallevel," Tsipras told Parliament.He’s been 0-for-Everything sincethen.

The real radi-cals in the RadicalLeft, people likeYanis Varoufakis,who becameTsipras’ FinanceMinister, and Pani-giotis Lafazanis,head of the party’sLeft faction – ad-dled as they are –fell on their swordsinstead of submit-ting: both wereousted, Varoufakisafter refusing toroll over for theTroika, Lafazanis

for bitterly criticizing his leader.At the time, Lafazanis – who

formed his own marginal partylater – said the governmentwould seek to scrap the plansto develop the old Hellenikonairport on Athens’ southerncoast, what he called a “scan-dalous purchase” by a companybeing probed for unlawful con-struction of the Athens Mall, runby Greece’s richest businessman.

Instead, craving to hang onto power, Tsipras systematicallysold out his party, his principles,Greeks and anyone else whochallenged him for breaking hispromises, all so he could keephis empire of deceit, the sell-outhypocritical Champagne Com-munist that he is.

When he was in Cuba ex-tolling and eulogizing Fidel Cas-tro, why didn’t he go by thesugar cane fields and do somecutting with his comrades?

But don’t take it just fromme. He’s been disavowed evenby radical sites such as Roarmagazine, which promotes itselfas subversive.

In December, 2015, threemonths after Tsipras won a sec-ond snap election and just afterhe begged the Capitalist lendersfor a third bailout of 86 billioneuros ($92.48 billion), sociolo-gist Theodoros Karyotis wrotein Roar about SYRIZA’s plan:

“Its negotiation tactic …mere force of argument to tryto convince the hardened ideo-logues of the EU and the IMFthat austerity in Greece has notonly created recession and mis-ery, but has also failed to makethe sovereign debt any moremanageable, has utterly failed.”

Tsipras, who’s just a duplici-tous phony liar, has punishedworkers, pensioners, and thepoor, even piling on 60 percentadd-on surcharges to electricbills at the same time he’s beentelling people they don’t haveto pay them.

It’s so much easier to hikecoffee a dollar in supermarkets,cut benefits for people in wheel-chairs, hospitals, the homelessand the powerless than confrontthe powerful who will just makeyou grovel. Tsipras has pushedpeople off the high wire withouteven a social net.

Two years before takingpower he told WashingtonMonthly magazine in an inter-view that, “In Greece we aregoverned by the triangle of sin.One side is a bankrupt politicalsystem. The second side is thebanks. On the third side, youhave the mass media.”

It’s really a quadrangle ofevil, and on the fourth is thesmug, smiling face of who it re-ally is: Tsipras.

adabilis@thenationalherald.com

Continuing the themetouched upon in the previouscolumn, that “symbolism speakslouder than rhetoric” – to bor-row a phrase from legendary lit-erary great Alexandros Papadia-mantis – it is worth applying thisaxiom to the manner in whichcommunity organizers treat theall-important issue of HellenicEducation; especially within thecontext of the annual celebra-tions for Greek IndependenceDay now taking place. If thisyear’s events, culminating in theparades celebrated across U.S.metropolises featuring a highconcentration of Hellenes, fol-low the typical pattern of previ-ous years, Hellenic Paideia, em-bodied primarily through ourschools, will once again betreated as the ugly stepchild ofthe Community. Sadly, contraryto the usual spiel about the im-portant role of Greek schools inthe Community and the impor-tance of keeping the languagealive, the actions of the organiz-ers tell a very different story.

Although the closure of fiveGreek-American day parochialschools in the New York Cityarea over the past decade (alongwith problems that afternoonschools may be experiencing,such as switching from daily orat least semi-weekly schedulesto weekly ones) represents aclear indicator of crisis and dis-tress, not only has no direct ac-tion been taken to address thistroubling trend (formation ofad-hoc committees and publicforums discussing the underly-ing problem and proposing so-lutions or viable alternatives,appeals to untapped sources offunding, necessary systemic re-forms), but equally disconcert-ing, no symbolic steps have evenbeen taken to show solidaritywith these educational pro-grams, which have long been ig-nored and left to fend for them-selves by tertiary regional andnational organizations.

In terms of sym-bolism, what moreimportant state-ment could havebeen given by pa-rade organizersthan to affordGreek schools – atthe very least, thoseoperating on adaily basis – thehonor and privilegeof marching at thefront of the parade,right after theGreek PresidentialGuard (the show-case of the Parade), as a re-sounding message to marchersand spectators that schools rep-resent the future of the HellenicCommunity and that withoutformal maintenance of its lan-guage, faith, and culture, theCommunity will face a majoridentity crisis that will ulti-mately lead to complete assimi-lation and loss of any “culturalcapital” – the unique cultural“otherness” that allows us to dy-namically contribute to societyas an entity that can commandrespect, admiration, and socialstanding.

Schools meet all the logicalrequirements that would allowthem to command a permanentspot leading the first battalionof parade participants: uniformdress code (something sorelylacking among other marchers,who can be seen wearing every-thing from their favorite soccerjerseys to face-paint, Greek flagsdistastefully draped aroundtheir backs, and ridiculous blueand white Dr. Seuss hats ren-dering them hopeless fashionvictims), a band, and the capa-bility of marching in an orderlymanner. Instead of seizing thisgolden opportunity, organizersstubbornly resist the need forreform and prefer to leave theirfate to the “luck of the draw,”often resulting in their marchingdead last, with hardly anyone

but the pigeons leftto cheer them on.

The argumentoften made by or-ganizers that allow-ing schools tomarch first wouldweaken the paradebecause studentswould leave rightafterwards, andalso not allowyoung people to ad-mire the othermarchers, is hardlyconvincing. First ofall, anyone who fre-

quents the parade knows thatmarchers don’t get to watch it,because they are stuck waitingon the side streets. Since the waitcan last hours, most schools optto delay their arrival, indirectlyassuring that students don’t geta chance to see anything or any-one else at the parade. Secondly,the problem of schools departingafter their march could be solvedif they were subsequently givenspace in the grandstands (evenon an alternating basis) or at theend of the parade route. Mostschools would be happy to stayfor the extra hour or two in ex-change for the long overduehonor of leading the first battal-ion.

Of course, it is not just thecommunity organizers who areguilty here. It’s school leader-ship as well, which has notcrossed the borders of their ownparish communities to form asingle unified bloc and demandthe obvious. With students be-ing shortchanged in such a man-ner year after year, parade or-ganizers should look no furtherthan this sleight and failure toempower the youth when theylament gradually dwindling at-tendance figures and warn ofthe future loss of central paraderoutes as a result. Once again,our adherence to outdated poli-cies and failure to adapt and re-act to the problems confronting

us today will only exacerbatematters in the future.

However, symbolicallystrengthening a community’scultural hierarchy of needs hasmore venues that just the pa-rade. The remarkable festivalsfeaturing dance competitionsand other aspects of folklore or-ganized by Archdiocesan Me-tropolises all across America arecertainly praiseworthy. They areeven grand enough to warrantthe presence of the Archbishopin the same location for severaldays – not an easy task, consid-ering his incredibly busy sched-ule. However, amid all these cel-ebrations, could a Greeklanguage component not havebeen added? Could the St. JohnChrysostom Oratorical Festival,which is conducted nationally,not include categories in bothlanguages? Could an Interna-tional Festival of Greek Lan-guage and Culture (a HellenicOlympiad) not also be orga-nized? After all, there is enoughmoney earmarked to organizedGOYA and JOY DistrictOlympics… Surely, the funds forlanguage and culture Olympiadscould just as easily be found.

Think it’s impossible? TheTurkish Community led byFethullah Gülen, who has set upover 1,000 schools internation-ally(!), has been organizing aTurkish language and cultureOlympiad since 2003, with over2,000 students from 140 coun-tries participating. (Just to de-lineate what is possible andwhat is not…).

Along with the many AncientGreek proverbs that will be re-cited in the coming days, com-munity leaders would do wellto remember Socrates’ pupil, thephilosopher Antisthenes, whoreminds us that “to unlearnone’s bad habits” is the mostnecessary kind of learning.

Follow me on Twitter@CTripoulas

Celebrating Greek Independence: Embrace Symbolism

LETTER FROM ATHENS

How “Crush the Oligarchy” Became “Crush the Poor”

by ANDYDABILIS

Special to The National Herald

By Dimitra Pontoporou

Laskarina Bouboulina wasstanding at the balcony of herfirst husband’s house shoutingat Christodoulos Koutsis and hisarmed men. It was late spring,May 22nd. Her son GeorgiosYiannouzas and Koutsis’ daugh-ter had eloped in the night.

Armed, her father and mem-bers of the family arrived at thehouse seeking for the daughter.Fearless and furious in the faceof the armed men, the motherappeared at the balcony to con-front them. A shot was heard.The heroine was hit in the fore-head and killed instantly.

That day of the year 1825Laskarina Bouboulina was 54years old. She is known as aGreek Naval Commander andan Admiral of the Imperial Russ-ian Navy – until recently theonly female Admiral in WorldNaval history – who had sacri-ficed everything she owned forthe liberation of Greece.

Her father, Stavrianos Pinot-sis, was also a captain, from theGreek island of Hydra and arebel, who in 1769-1770 joinedwith his ships the Russian ad-miral Orlov in the failed OrlovRevolt. He was imprisoned inConstantinople. Laskarina wasconceived, when her mother,Skevo, visited him in jail andwas born in the prison on May11 1771. Four years after herfather’s death in prison her wid-owed mother married Lazarou-Orlof, a captain living in the is-land of Spetses.

Her name Bouboulina comesfrom her second husband’s lastname, Dimitrios Bouboulis, awealthy shipowner. As a bravepatriot and skilled captain hefought on the side of the Rus-sians and against the Ottomansin the Turko-Russian wars.Bouboulina was 40 years old,when he lost his life in a seabattle in Spain, fighting againstAlgerian pirates. Both her hus-bands were lost in sea battlesand she was left with nine chil-dren.

Laskarina not only expandedBouboulis’ trading business, butin five years succeeded in grow-ing his fleet, now hers, with fourmore vessels. When the Ot-tomans tried to confiscate herwealth arguing that her hus-band had fought against theTurks, she sailed to Constantino-ple seeking protection. She metSultan Mahmud’s II mother andthe Philhellene Russian Ambas-sador, who sent her to the safetyof Crimea.

Finally Valide Sultana, im-pressed by Bouboulina’s charac-ter, convinced the Sultan to al-low her total control on herproperty. After three monthsBouboulina returned home.

In Constantinople she hadjoined the secret organizationFiliki Etaireia, which was

preparing the Greek Revolution.Being one the few women in theFiliki Etaireia, she secretlybrought to Spetses arms andammunition and finished theconstruction of the first andlargest fighting ship of theGreeks, Agamemnon. By bribingthe Ottoman inspectors, shebuilt a corvette to be armed with18 heavy cannons. In 1820, ayear before the outbreak of theIndependence War, she wasready to join the war with herown fleet and armed sailors andtroops from Spetses islanders.

The day she raised her ownGreek flag on Agamemnon’smast, March 13, 1821, and herfleet sailed under her commandto join forces with ships fromother islands against the Ot-tomans, she was prepared tosacrifice everything she had forthe liberation of the Greek peo-ple. The inevitable happenedsooner than she could imagine.While she triumphantly tookpart in the naval blockade andcapture of the Peloponnesusharbours, Nafplion, Monemva-sia, and Pylos, her son from herfirst husband, Yiannis Yian-nouzas, lost his life during a bat-tle at Argos in May. The Inde-pendence War had just begun.

Theodoros Kolokotroniscalled to arms farmers and fight-ers to take over the main capitalof the Turks in Peloponnesus,Tripolis. Bouboulina’s troopsjoined Kolokotronis. After thefall of Tripolis, on September11, 1821, and the defeat of theOttoman garrison, Bouboulina

saved most female members ofthe harem, as she had oncepromised to Sultan’s mother.Her younger daughter from hersecond husband, EleniBoubouli, married Kolokotronis’son, Panos. Due to this familyconnection to Kolokotronis shewas arrested during the civilwar in 1824. Kolokotronis wasimprisoned, government sol-diers murdered her son-in-law,Panos, and she was exiled backto Spetses.

She was poor. Within thesefive years she had exhausted herfortune to support the Indepen-dence War, to provide the sailorsand soldiers under her com-mand food and ammunition andto arm her ships.

When Emperor Alexander Iof Russia learned ofBouboulina’s death granted herthe honorary rank of the Russ-ian Navy Admiral. Her warshipAgamemnon was burned by An-dreas Miaoulis during the Civilwar of 1831 along with otherfrigates and corvettes at thenaval base of Poros.Bouboulina’s house, a 300 yearsold mansion at Spetses Island,is now Bouboulina’s Museum toremind us the bravery and thevirtue of a woman who sacri-ficed everything she had for theLiberation of Greece.

Bouboulina, the FearlessFemale Naval Commander

ANALYSIS

By Theodore Kalmoukos

We are in the middle of Holyand Great Lent. On March 19we celebrated the Feast of theveneration of the cross. It was asacred and great day. Why,though? What does the Sundayof the Veneration of the Crossmean for us Greek-OrthodoxChristians of 21st century Amer-ica?

Let us start with the basic po-sition that the cross and the res-urrection are the very founda-tions of our faith. They are thehope of our life both the presentone and the one that is to come:the permanent and eternal.

The cross is the blood-dyedbanner of the Church. The al-phabet of her leader andfounder, Christ, who is ourfriend and our God; our saviorand our brother; our whole life.The cross is the symbol of truthand life. It is the landmark ofthe purpose of our life. It is thesignaling of a cruciform course

taken freely and willingly, obe-dient to Crist’s invitation “who-ever wants to follow me.” Wehave decided to march withHim knowing that it is a journeyfilled with loneliness and dere-liction.

“Whoever wants to followme”! This phrase includes thejoy of choice or option, but atthe same time the responsibilityof our freedom. Our choices arebased on our freedom, includingour paradise or our damnation.Both the paradise and thedamnation could start from nowand here. The thoughtful Dos-toevsky said so wisely that “manis condemned to be free.”

In Orthodoxy, which is theauthentic and unchanged formand expression of Christianity,all are free and they live, act,and walk freely. The journey offreedom is cruciform but it leads

to freedom of resurrection, lib-eration, and salvation. We arenot talking here about a theo-retical freedom, but about asalvific freedom from corruptionand death. We shouldn’t forgetthat death is the extremetragedy of our historic existence.It is a freedom for which GodHimself fought and he became“the suffering God” in order toembrace the suffering man andliberate him (or her) from theenigma and tragedy of death.Here we are talking about ajourney of an entire life, whichis a relationship of truth andlove with God, who is the sourceof life and truth.

The cross is the ladder onwhich God stepped and de-scended to earth and man (hu-man beings) step on it in orderto ascend to heaven. It is actu-ally a two-way street of journey

and encounter on the cross withChrist the Savior.

We shouldn’t forget that thecross is the meter of the lovingpassion of God for mankind.That is the reason that theChurch in her effort to definethis measure uses the phrase“The Passion of the Lord.” Thisis exactly the cross of Christ, themanifestation of the His passionout of love for our love. In a fewdays, during Holy Week, Christwill come “as a Bridegroom inthe middle of the night,” be-cause he passionately loves HisChurch, which means us, be-cause we are the Church.

Through the martyrdom ofthe cross Christ manifested hislove for us. It is a love withoutterms and boundaries, whichdares to love even the enemies.It is a love that knows to giveeverything and to expect noth-

ing in return.The cross is a way of a total

self-offering of Christ becauseHe loved us very much. And hewho loves with “passion” givesup his entire self. He himself be-comes a sacrifice.

He becomes “a cross” with-out terms. Love cannot be con-tained in terms and boundaries.Love is unidimensional and withno ending. That is why it dareseverything, even the cross andthe death.

This daring cruciform love isthe “silliness” of the cross aboutwhich St. Paul spoke so clearly.The cross is a “scandal” incon-ceivable to our limited brain,which it cannot even conceive.

The cross is love and love iscross. Because these days wehear so many things about sal-vation, allow me to say that sal-vation is not our good deeds or

good intentions, but God is oursalvation as He was revealed onthe cross, suffering and rejoic-ing, emerging from the tomb.He Who is the Life was loweredin the dark grave from which hepulled up the life.

The divinized life liberatedfrom corruption and death. Andthus faith assumes a differentdimension not intellectual ortheoretical, connected withsome religious axioms, values,and doctrines, but faith as a freeand willing self-giving into thehands of God, in order that HisWill be done, because theneverything can be done.

I would like also to remindthat in Orthodox Theology wedo not speak unilaterally aboutthe cross. We do not run out onan endless “crossology” but wespeak about the cross and theresurrection. The resurrection ofChrist is total victory on the verydeath, which was transformedinto life, and more into the“abundance of life.”

by ChristopherTRIPOULAS

Special to The National Herald

Laskarina Bouboulina

The Cross: the Measure of God’s Love

VIEWPOINTS12 THE NATIONAL HERALD, MARCH 25-31, 2017

Congressional proposals re-garding health care reform havebegun to circulate. An expose inthe Chicago Tribune (Dec. 15)offers insights into the complexdetails effective health reformsmust confront. The Tribune’s in-vestigative reporters focused onhow pharmacies react whengiven prescriptions involving adangerous combination ofdrugs.

Many drugs that are rela-tively safe when used indepen-dently are dangerous whencombined. An example of per-ilous combinations is the pairingof clarithromycin, an anti-bioticdrug, with simvastatin, a cho-lesterol-lowering drug. If bothare taken, muscular tissue is de-stroyed and kidney failure andeven death may result.

The Tribune reporters pre-sented some dangerous pre-scriptions simultaneously andothers a few days apart. Thefindings were horrific. Morethan half of all pharmaciesfailed to alert patients about thedangers of incompatible pre-scriptions. The failure rate forCVS, the nation’s largest chainwas the highest: 63%. Costcoand Kmart tied for second with60% each. Walmart had a 40%failure rate and Walgreen’s 30%,a percentage that looks goodonly in comparison to its com-petitors.

Pharmacies technically fulfilltheir legal obligation to informtheir customers of the dangersof dangerous interactions ofdrugs with the printed insertsthey include with each prescrip-tion. Many state courts haveruled such warnings are insuffi-cient as patients are unlikely tounderstand them, if they evenread them.

Computers at pharmacies areprogrammed to catch dangerouscombos before they are filled.Pharmacists, however, note thatthe system often reports everyconceivable bad interaction,however remote. This rendersthem virtually meaningless.They are often ignored. Makingmatters worse is that companiesdo not allow sufficient time forpharmacists to study the data.The New Hampshire Board ofPharmacies reports that its phar-macies spend an average of 80seconds on safety checks.

The business model of phar-maceutical chains treats pre-scriptions like fast food whichmeans an emphasis on speedrather than quality. Walmartprescriptions are often filled intwo minutes, not much time todo more than count pills andpack. CVS gives each of its out-lets a monthly score on how fastthey have filled orders com-pared to other CVS local, re-gional, and national outlets. Re-

wards go to thosewho have workedthe fastest.

Unionized phar-macies have strug-gled to establishenough staffingand time for safetychecks. They alsopoint out that thechains allow timeto pitch companypromotions whilelimiting the timefor safety alerts.The National Asso-ciation of Boards ofPharmacy with itsemphasis on professional stan-dards has similar goals.

Pharmacies are the final de-fense against errors. The actualprescription originates in aphysician’s office. Any compe-tent doctor will be sure to re-view the drugs being taken bypatients at each appointment.This is especially pertinent forpatients having different doctorsfor different conditions. The pa-tient needs to be sure each ofthe doctors knows what theother is prescribing.

National studies show that50% of all patients do not taketheir drugs as prescribed but as-sure their doctor they do. Pa-tients also rarely report on vita-mins, herbs, and over-thecounter medicine they take reg-

ularly, all of whichcan interact dan-gerously with pre-scription drugs oreach other. Patientswho report falsedata are riskingtheir well-being asa doctor may in-crease doses todangerous levels orreduce them to in-effective levels.

D e t e r m i n i n gproper drug dosesand combinationstakes time. Manymedical organiza-

tions pressure doctors to spendjust 15-30 minutes per patientwhich greatly limits the qualityof the examination and discour-ages timid patients from askingmany questions. The rationalefor this time frame is linked toprofits rather than diagnosticand treatment concerns.

These dosage problems re-veal a basic problem in our gen-eral health care model. Ratherthan being focused on out-comes, it often emphasizesspeed and “efficient use oftime,” usually defined in mone-tary, not health terms. One re-sult is that although the UnitedStates has the highest per per-son medical costs in the world,its outcomes are inferior toother advanced nations. That

doesn’t mean our system isthird-rate, but it is not even acontender for the top ten.

Regulation has become adirty word in Washington. Theexample of the pharmacy folliesjust outlined indicates whyhealth care providers cannot begiven a free hand. We are alsoleft to question what other eth-ical and procedural shortcutsare being taken by health-careinstitutions.

When we consider healthcare reforms, strictly enforcedregulations with severe penal-ties for what is virtual malprac-tice needs to be at the forefrontof our concern. Numerous stateshave laws that require pharma-cies to contact doctors regardingdubious combinations beforefilling them. Unfortunately notmuch effort is made to enforcethose regulations and penaltiesfor failure to report are rare.

The quality of health carerises and costs are lowered bysafety checks that prevent easilyavoidable dangerous combina-tions that result in costly emer-gency room services, hospital-ization, and permanent injury.Five or more prescribed drugsare taken by more than 10% ofall Americans, making them atrisk for taking dangerous drugcombinations. That number in-cludes about 100,000 to150,000 Greek-Americans. Bet-

tering the system of how pre-scriptions are determined andfulfilled does not involve sub-jective ideological speculations,just common sense.

Prof. Georgakas is Director ofthe Greek American StudiesProject at Queens College –CUNY and Consulting Editor ofCINEASTE magazine.

Pharmaceuticals: Faster Is Not Better to Catch Dangerous Drug Interactions

By Leonidas Petrakis

Presenting the Greek view-point to the American publicand securing U.S. governmentpolicies that are fair towardGreece has a long and tortuoushistory.

At the time of the Greek Warof Independence, Thomas Jef-ferson wrote to his friendAdamantios Koraes, physicianfrom Chios, patriot, and classi-cal scholar, of his enthusiasticsupport for the “Greek Cause.”But even Jefferson, in retire-ment, proved unable to influ-ence American foreign policy to-ward the establishment of theModern Greek state. JohnQuincy Adams, Secretary ofState (1817-1825), remainedfocused on the Ottoman Em-pire. The American pro-Turkeystance has been essentially con-stant with one notable excep-tion.

The stellar Greek-Americanachievement in seeking to influ-ence American foreign policy re-garding Greek interests was Eu-gene Rossides and his associatesat the time convincing Congressto uphold U.S. law and imposean arms embargo on Turkey fol-lowing the 1974 Turkish inva-sion and occupation of Cyprus.But big challenges continue fes-tering unresolved, includingTurkey’s occupation of part ofCyprus, Turkey’s violation ofGreece’s maritime borders and

airspace, Turkey’s challengingthe Treaty of Lausanne, Turkey’srefusal to allow the reopeningof the Chalki Theological Semi-nary, and the Former YugoslavRepublic of Macedonia (FY-ROM) not negotiating in goodfaith to resolve its name contro-versy.

American policies have ledto indifference and even inimi-cal attitudes by the mass mediaand the public at large, chippingaway at our nation’s Hellenicheritage, and further hinderingefforts to influence official pol-icy. Black Athena and extremeAfro-Centrist notions, the crassclaims of the Skopje nationalistsabout Macedonia and Alexan-der the Great, the banalities ofthe former President of TurkeyTurgut Ozal in his book LaTurquie en Europe, and absurdinaccuracies in leading Ameri-can newspapers (St Nicholas ofCappadocia was a “Turkishbishop”) have gained traction.

Sadly, Greek and Greek-American responses have beenmuted and unsuccessful, whilenon-Greeks, such as the distin-guished classicists MaryLefkowitz and Stephen Miller,have been in the forefront chal-lenging such absurdities.

At the 2016 Olympics open-ing ceremony in Brazil, whenthe FYROM team entered thestadium carrying the Interna-tional Olympic Committee-sanc-tioned banner “Team FYROM,”

the NBC sports commentators(which included Bob Costas, aGreek American) told the hun-dreds of millions of spectatorsfrom all over the world that itwas the “Team of Macedonia.”Bob Costas remained silent.

The recent financial difficul-ties of Greece and Cyprus haveexacerbated a bad situation.The invective in the Germanpress demonizing the wholeGreek nation at times has beenpicked up by U.S. media andsome politicians. Greeks have

become an easy target forstereotyping and ridicule inpopular American televisionprograms. Being Greek is not“cool” anymore.

The Greek-American com-munity as a whole has been un-able to stem the attacks and in-fluence American policy. Thisunderperformance is puzzlinggiven the amazing achieve-ments (in politics, film, theater,music, literature, medicine, thesciences, major corporations,high finance and real estate) of

the Greek-Americans as individ-uals. Their financial and intel-lectual resources are more thansufficient to enable the commu-nity to significantly increase itsability to defend and advanceHellenic heritage and interests,including the interests of Greeceand Cyprus. Fairness in U.S.policies would strengthen thetwo countries, a developmentvery much in America’s interest,which needs to have stable andthriving allies in that otherwisevery troubled but geopoliticallycrucial region of the world.

Greece and Cyprus, signifi-cantly weakened in the recentpast by serious external and in-ternal (some would say existen-tial) threats, are in need of helpfrom the Diaspora, which in theUnited States is uniquely quali-fied to play a key role on behalfof Hellenism at large and alsoof Greece and Cyprus in partic-ular. Bold and far-reaching ini-tiatives that go beyond good in-tentions, photo-opportunities,and testimonials are needed,but they are very much withinthe capabilities of the GreekAmerican community. This isnot true given the minimal bud-get available or the incrediblysmall staff of the American Hel-lenic Institute (AHI). All mem-bers of the U.S. Diaspora – theChurch, regional and profes-sional organizations, universityModern Greek Studies pro-grams, and individuals – need

to take concrete steps necessaryto bring this about.

A major first step involves aserious and systematic effort toidentify and document the spe-cific successful Greek-Americanindividuals in universities, theprofessions, the arts, finance,and business, who can poten-tially contribute to specific pur-suits. Such an undertakingwould additionally be an inspi-ration by documenting therange and magnitude of the po-tential prowess of Greek-Amer-icans. One often hears Greekpoliticians speak glowinglyabout the Greek Diaspora, butdo little than bemoan their in-ability to tap this resource.

A second is to facilitate thecreation of a “network of truthsquads” that will monitor majormass media and opinion cre-ators re misinformation aboutGreece, Cyprus, and Hellenic af-fairs, and combat distortion anduntruths by responding quicklyand effectively. Such an effortshould be built by taking advan-tage of the power of social me-dia.

Greek-Americans as individ-uals and organizations have aresponsibility to become betterinformed and involved in suchan undertaking; and the manyfraternal, regional, and profes-sional organizations shouldmake timely and assertive inter-ventions on behalf of truth andfairness part of their mission.Drawing on the reservoir ofnames of the highly successfulGreek Americans in the variousdisciplines would allow effectiveresponses.

Finally, Greek-Americansmust establish a well-endowedprofessional think tank to dealwith background and funda-mental issues of importance toHellenic interests. Such an in-stitution should have the mis-sion and the necessary re-sources to undertake on asustained basis scholarly, in-depth research that can become,inter alia, the foundation offirst-rate advocacy. There aremany issues that need this kindof serious attention. Amongthese are the right of sea bor-ders and application of the Lawof the Seas, contraband and il-legal trading of antiquities, uni-lateral abrogation of treaties,and venture capital for eco-nomic development based oninnovative scientific research.The Greek-American commu-nity has the intellectual re-sources and financial clout toundertake such an ambitious ef-fort modeled after the highlysuccessful think tanks now op-erating in the United States.Modern Greek studies in uni-versities, classics, and the manyother disciplines where Greekshave proven extraordinarily suc-cessful provide excellent basesto build upon. What is neededat this stage is the political de-cision along with the commit-ment of financial resources toproceed with such a project.

This essay originally appearedin the American Hellenic Insti-tute Social Policy Journal, Vol-ume 8, (Spring, 2017).

Leonidas Petrakis holds a PhDin physical chemistry from theUniversity of California, Berke-ley, was Chairman and SeniorScientist of the Department ofApplied Sciences at BrookhavenNational Laboratory, has taughtat various universities in theUS, France, and Greece, did re-search in the private sector, andis the author of several books

Defending and Advancing Hellenic Values and Interests

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By Dimitris Avramopoulos

Today we find ourselves at ahistoric moment, ahead of deepglobal changes, where the pros-perity and stability of importantdemocracies are at stake, fueledby the rise of xenophobia, pop-ulism, and nationalism. And yet,the stability and prosperity ofdemocracies is the result of in-ternational and transatlantic re-lations and cooperation – notisolationist actions.

In this historic pendulum,the two greatest political stake-holders are the United Statesand the European Union.

The year 2017 announced it-self with a major political tran-sition in the United States, withthe UK preparing to leave theEuropean Union, and with im-portant elections in Europe onthe horizon. Right now, theglobal scene needs a stable EUand a stable U.S. – and a stableand strong transatlantic part-nership.

This is precisely why I wasthe first EU senior official tovisit the new U.S. administra-tion and lay the foundations tofurther strengthen and deepenthe longstanding transatlanticfriendship and alliance.

We celebrate 60 years ofpeace and stability in Europethis month, thanks to our Amer-ican brothers, who helped re-build Europe from the ashes af-ter the Second World War.

As Vice President Mike Pencesaid aptly at the Munich Secu-rity Conference: "the fates of theUnited States and Europe areintertwined." Both know thatour struggles and challenges,our past and our future are andwill continue to be shared.

Today, as the world becomesmore connected, more global-ized, and more mobile, citizenson both sides of the Atlantic areall the more concerned aboutthe safety and stability of theircommunities. Migration and ter-rorism continue to be the toptwo issues about which Ameri-can and European citizens mostworry.

With more than 200 millionpeople on the move around theglobe and more than 60 millionforcibly displaced, migration isa global responsibility thatshould be shouldered globally.

At the same time, opennesstoward those in need shouldnever come at the expense ofour citizens' security. Europeanand American citizens want toknow who crosses their borders,and both our continents are in-vesting in better and smarterborder management systems.

But with several terrorist at-tacks on both sides of the At-lantic and a growing threat ofhome-grown radicalization, thebattleground against terrorismis increasingly shifting online.We need to work jointly acrossborders and continents, but alsoacross different arenas, includ-ing the Internet.

In an increasingly changingworld, we must safeguard andprotect the fundamental free-doms on which our democraciesare built.

The acquired stability andstrength of our democraciesshould never be taken forgranted. The shadows of thepast that threatened our democ-racies back then are hauntingus again today. Looking at thepast, we are reminded what fu-ture is at stake. If we want tomaintain our jointly hard-wonprosperity and stability, we mustunite our forces even more.

Now is the moment to furtherstrengthen and deepen the long-standing EU-U.S. partnership, tojointly fight terrorism, to bettermanage mobility and migration,in order to build a more stableand prosperous world for all.

Dimitris Avramopoulos is Euro-pean Commissioner for Migra-tion, Home Affairs, and Citizen-ship.

by PROF. DANGEORGAKAS

Special to The National Herald

Bold and far-reachinginitiatives that go beyondgood intentions, photo-opportunities, andtestimonials are neededfrom the Greek-Americancommunity.

The Time isNow toStrengthenthe EU-USAlliance

Migration and terrorismare the top two issuesworrying US & EU citizens.