Photos from "There is Only the Earth: Images from the Armenian Diaspora Project," by Scout Tufankjian, published April 2015.
DO NOT TAKE -- EMBARGOED!!!
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"There is a small area of land in Asia Minor that is called Armenia, but it is not so. It is not Armenia. It is a place. There are only Armenians, and they inhabit the earth, not Armenia, since there is no Armenia. There is no America and there is no England, and no France, and no Italy. There is only the earth." -William Saroyan in The Armenian and The Armenian Catedral Apostólica Armênia São Jorge - São Paulo, Brazil
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Anoush Gasparyan watches her five year old sleeping daughter Anahid in their home in the village of Myasnikyan. The family, which is struggling after a series of accidents and health issues including snake bite and lightning strikes, receives help from the diaspora-based Children of Armenia Fund (COAF). COAF was founded by Istanbul-born, American-based Armenian Dr. Garo Armen, who was struck by the depths of poverty in the Aramir region of Armenia and resolved to do something about it. The organization, which is largely supported by Diasporan Armenians, mostly funds schools, but also assists in providing a more comprehensive social care to the families of the village children.
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I feel like the Armenian side of my heritage was really kept from me, so it's intriguing—I sometimes wonder if I'll ever go to Armenia, and if I did, would I connect with it like a "real" Armenian? -Ariane Khachatourians (Saskatchewan, Canada) First Republic Day, Freedom Square - Yerevan, Republic of Armenia
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"I still feel kind of like an outsider here. And I'm an outsider in Armenia. So to me I don't know if I'll truly be comfortable somewhere." -Anon (Refugee from Baku pogroms, now living in the USA) Syrian Refugees - Berdzor, Nagorno-Karabakh