OCTOBER 14 • 2021 | 11
ARMENIAN POPULATION
Around 4% of Lebanon’s
population is ethnic
Armenian, the descendants
of refugees who fled the 1915
genocide. Through a chance
encounter, I befriended a
31-year-old Lebanese graphic
designer of Armenian ori-
gin. One evening he took
me to Bourj Hammoud,
Beirut’s Armenian neigh-
borhood. Armenian flags
and anti-Azerbaijan slogans
brandished the buildings.
Arabic was nowhere to be
seen or heard, exuding the
Caucasus much more than
the Middle East.
Unlike non-haredi dias-
pora Jews, who for the most
part did not pass on Yiddish
to subsequent generations,
the Armenians in Lebanon
have kept their language
alive for more than 100
years.
Armenians in Lebanon
go to school in Armenian,
speak Armenian with each
other and regularly visit
their ancestral homeland.
Like diaspora Jews, the
Armenians in Lebanon are
a distinct, highly successful
minority population, living
both apart from and forming
an inseparable part of their
adoptive homeland.
On the last night of the
trip, I confided to my new
Lebanese friend that I am
Jewish. To my astonishment,
he said that his main issue
with Israel is that it refuses
to recognize the Armenian
Genocide. Not the answer I
expected.
I now respond to those
critical of my travels as fol-
lows: “I travel to forbidden
countries because I wish
to experience firsthand the
humanity of ordinary people
from societies I am taught
to fear.
“These ordinary citizens
are the biggest victims of
their own governments,
which in many cases they
did not have a fair say in
electing. I am all the richer
for having met them.”
Dan Brotman is the executive direc-
tor of the Windsor Jewish Federation
& Community Centre in Windsor,
Ontario. He writes in his personal
capacity.
“I travel to forbidden countries
because I wish to experience
firsthand the humanity of
ordinary people.”
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1-248-945-1111
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Southfield, MI 48034
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1-248-945-1111
What Is
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24725 West 12 Mile – Ste. 110
Southfield, MI 48034
1-248-945-1111
24725 West 12 Mile – Ste. 110
Southfield, MI 48034
1-248-945-1111
24725 West 12 Mile – Ste. 110
Southfield, MI 48034
1-248-945-1111
24725 West 12 Mile – Ste. 110
Southfield, MI 48034
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24725 West 12 Mile – Ste. 110
Southfield, MI 48034
1-248-945-1111
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1-248-945-1111
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michprobate.com
24725 West 12 Mile – Ste. 110
Southfield, MI 48034
1-248-945-1111
24725 West 12 Mile – Ste. 110
Southfield, MI 48034
1-248-945-1111
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Southfield, MI 48034
1-248-945-1111
What Is
Your Plan?.....
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We focus on Probate Litigation
and Administration. Administering
estates where everyone is on the same
page. Protecting you from self-dealing
parties appointed by will, trust or the
court. Protecting you from family
members who always want more.
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