Anna Astvatsaturian Turcotte

Last updated
Anna Astvatsaturian Turcotte
Anna Turcotte.jpg
BornAnna Norikovna Astvatsaturova
(1978-03-14) March 14, 1978 (age 46)
Baku, Azerbaijan SSR, Soviet Union
NationalityAmerican
Notable worksNowhere, a Story of Exile
Notable awardsThe Medal of Mkhitar Gosh, NKR “Gratitude” medal
Website
astvatsaturian.org//

Anna Astvatsaturian Turcotte (born Anna Norikovna Astvatsaturova; March 14, 1978) is an Armenian-American writer, lecturer, [1] [2] philanthropist [3] [4] [5] and human rights advocate. She wrote Nowhere, a Story of Exile (2012). She has lectured extensively about the plight of Armenians in Azerbaijan in the context of human rights and international law, as well as defending the political rights of Armenians to establish autonomy in Nagorno-Karabakh. She was instrumental in gaining passage by the legislature of the State of Maine of a 2013 resolution recognizing the independence of the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic. In 2015, she was elected member of the Westbrook, Maine City Council. [6] She was elected president of the council in 2021 and reelected as president in 2022, becoming Westbrook’s first immigrant and first female president of the city council. [7]

Contents

Early life

Anna Astvatsaturian Turcotte in Hin Khndzoresk. Anna Astvatsatowryan T`erk`ot`e Hin Khndzoreskowm.jpg
Anna Astvatsaturian Turcotte in Hin Khndzoresk.

Turcotte was born in Baku, Azerbaijan, the daughter of two artists, [8] Norik Astvatsaturov [9] [10] and Irina Astvatsaturova. [11] She fled with her family due to anti-Armenian attacks in Baku in 1989. [12] [13] [14] [15] They spent three years in Armenia as refugees before immigrating to the United States in 1992. [16] Her family was placed in Wahpeton, North Dakota, where she became a naturalized U.S. citizen in 1997. [17]

Education

She studied at the University of North Dakota and received degrees in English & Literature and Philosophy & Religion, along with a minor in Russian Language and Literature. She received her Juris Doctor degree from the University of Maine School of Law in Portland, Maine in 2003. [17] [18] After graduating from law school, she worked as a clerk at the International Criminal Court in The Hague, Netherlands. [19]

Career

Turcotte has written and lectured extensively about Armenian issues across the United States, including on Capitol Hill. [20] She has also spoken to the European Parliament on issues of human rights, international law, and anti-Armenianism.

She advocated and worked to support the State of Maine's 2013 resolution recognizing the independence of the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic. [21] She has discussed Azerbaijani policy regarding the independence of Nagorno-Karabakh with members of the Congress and the European Parliament. Astvatsaturian Turcotte is an advisory board member of the non-governmental organization Americans for Artsakh.[ citation needed ]

In 2015, Astvatsaturian Turcotte spoke at TedX Grand Forks about her experiences as a refugee and human rights activists. [22] On November 3, 2015, Anna Turcotte won the election to Ward 3 of the Westbrook, Maine City Council. She received 64% of the total vote, unseating incumbent Paul Emery. [23] [24]

In 2018 Astvatsaturian Turcotte was re-elected to Westbrook City Council, Representing Ward 3. She ran unopposed. Astvatsaturian Turcotte has a successful career in banking regulatory risk and compliance. [25]

Turcotte was elected vice president of the council on December 3, 2018. [26]

Turcotte was elected president of the council on December 6, 2021, to become the council's first refugee and first female leader. [27]

Publications

In 2012, she published her first book, Nowhere, a Story of Exile. [28] It was based on a childhood diary she kept while her family faced the ethnic violence in Baku during the First Nagorno-Karabakh War. [29] She began translating the entries into English at the age of 14. She described their lives as refugees in Armenia after they escaped Baku. Her book was a first-person account of the anti-Armenianism in Azerbaijan and the Baku pogrom against Armenians. The book was translated into Russian in 2017 and into Armenian in 2022. [30] [31]

Philanthropy

Turcotte spearheaded various humanitarian projects to benefit the vulnerable population in Armenia and Artsakh Republic, such as supporting Baku Armenian refugees in both Armenia and Artsakh and initiatives supporting the children of Artsakh. She sponsored eyecare surgeries, screenings, and provided eyeglasses for two villages in Syunik province of Armenia, where her paternal grandparents originated. [32]

In the last few years Anna has gathered and sent over 300 lb of ballet clothing to Artsakh Ballet College in Stepanakert. [33]

Some notable projects were inspired by the memory of the 30th anniversary of the Baku Pogroms. To honor this anniversary Anna launched several projects. 2019-2020 Anna and Armenia Tree Project planted a forest in memory of survivors, victims of the Baku Pogroms against Armenians and to honor the community of Baku Armenians that spread around the world as refugees. She made possible the Armath Lab – a computer lab with a 3D printer for children in School #8 in Stepanakert, Artsakh. She has been a vocal supporter of the wounded Armenian soldiers and their families and has donated and fundraised for these efforts to heal the wounded soldiers, provided, a kitchen and a bath, and medical kits and solar panels to posts on the border of Artsakh with Azerbaijan. [34] [35] [36]

In early 2020 Turcotte launched Anna Astvatsaturian Foundation, a public charitable organization to continue and expand her philanthropic duties. [37] [38] One of the foundation's first initiatives was to conduct a full country post-war census of Artsakh Republic and its citizens, documenting their stories and losses. [39] In 2022 on International Children’s day Astvatsaturian Turcotte launched “Ser Artsakh” to provide baby essentials to every newborn in Artsakh. [40]

Awards

Anna Astvatsaturian Turcotte was awarded the Mkhitar Gosh Medal of Honor from President of Armenia Serzh Sargsyan [41] and the Nagorno-Karabakh Gratitude Medal from Nagorno-Karabakh Republic President Bako Sahakyan in 2013. In 2014, she was awarded Vahan Cardashian award by the Armenian National Committee of America - Western Region. [42]

In 2017, she was awarded an Activism Award by the Armenian National Committee of America - Eastern Region. [43]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nagorno-Karabakh</span> Geopolitical region in Azerbaijan

Nagorno-Karabakh is a region in Azerbaijan, covering the southeastern stretch of the Lesser Caucasus mountain range. Part of the greater region of Karabakh, it spans the area between Lower Karabakh and Syunik. Its terrain mostly consists of mountains and forestland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stepanakert</span> City in Karabakh, Azerbaijan

Stepanakert or Khankendi is a ghost city in the Nagorno-Karabakh region of Azerbaijan. The city was under the control and the capital city of the breakaway Republic of Artsakh prior to the 2023 Azerbaijani offensive in the region. The city is located in a valley on the eastern slopes of the Karabakh mountain range, on the left bank of the Qarqarçay (Karkar) river.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Republic of Artsakh</span> Former breakaway state in the South Caucasus (1991–2023)

Artsakh, officially the Republic of Artsakh or the Republic of Nagorno-Karabakh, was a breakaway state in the South Caucasus whose territory was internationally recognised as part of Azerbaijan. Between 1991 and 2023, Artsakh controlled parts of the former Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast of the Azerbaijani Soviet Socialist Republic, including its capital Stepanakert. It had been an enclave within Azerbaijan from the 2020 Nagorno-Karabakh war until the 2023 Azerbaijani offensive, when the Azerbaijani military took control over the remaining territory controlled by Artsakh. Its only overland access route to Armenia after the 2020 war was via the five kilometres (3.1 mi)–wide Lachin corridor, which was placed under the supervision of Russian peacekeeping forces.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Arkadi Ghukasyan</span> 2nd President of Artsakh

Arkadi Arshaviri Ghukasyan is an Armenian politician who served as the second President of the self-proclaimed Nagorno-Karabakh Republic. He was elected as the President on 8 September 1997 and re-elected in 2002, until his term ended on 7 September 2007 and was succeeded by Bako Sahakyan. He was detained by Azerbaijani forces after the 2023 Azerbaijani offensive in Nagorno-Karabakh and is currently facing criminal charges in Azerbaijan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Khojaly massacre</span> 1992 mass killing of Azerbaijanis during the First Nagorno-Karabakh War

The Khojaly massacre was the mass killing of Azerbaijani civilians by Armenian forces and the 366th CIS regiment in the town of Khojaly on 26 February 1992. The event became the largest single massacre throughout the entire Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Foreign relations of Artsakh</span>

The Republic of Artsakh was a republic with limited recognition in the South Caucasus region. The Republic of Artsakh controlled most of the territory of the former Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast. It was recognized only by three other non-UN member states, Abkhazia, South Ossetia and Transnistria. The rest of the international community recognized Artsakh as part of Azerbaijan. In November 2012, a member of Uruguay's foreign relations committee stated that his country could recognize Nagorno-Karabakh's independence. In 2012, Armenia and Tuvalu established diplomatic relations, which led to speculation of possible recognition of Artsakh by Tuvalu. In October 2012, the Australian state of New South Wales recognized Nagorno-Karabakh. In September 2014, the Basque Parliament in Spain adopted a motion supporting Artsakh's right to self-determination and in November 2014, the Parliament of Navarre, also in Spain, issued a statement supporting Artsakh's inclusion in taking part in settlement negotiations.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bako Sahakyan</span> 3rd President of Artsakh

Bako Sahaki Sahakyan is an Armenian politician who served as the third president of the de facto-independent Republic of Artsakh from 2007 to 2020. He is the longest-serving president of Artsakh.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Arayik Harutyunyan</span> President of Artsakh from 2020 to 2023 (born 1973)

Arayik Vladimiri Harutyunyan is an Armenian politician who served as the fourth president of the Republic of Artsakh from May 2020 to September 2023. Under his predecessor Bako Sahakyan, he served as the sixth and last Prime Minister from 2007 until the abolishment of that position in 2017 and as the first State Minister of the Republic of Artsakh from 2017 until his resignation in 2018. Harutyunyan led Artsakh through the 2020 Nagorno-Karabakh War with Azerbaijan, during which the republic lost most of the territory under its control. He resigned on 1 September 2023 in the midst of the Azerbaijani blockade of Nagorno-Karabakh.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Outline of the Republic of Artsakh</span> Overview of and topical guide to the Republic of Artsakh

The following outline is provided as an overview and topical guide of the Republic of Artsakh and Nagorno-Karabakh region:

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Zabukh</span> Place in Lachin, Azerbaijan

Zabukh or Aghavno is a village in the Lachin District of Azerbaijan. The village came under the control of the breakaway Republic of Artsakh after 1992 and was renamed Aghavno and settled by Armenians. Following the 2020 Nagorno-Karabakh war, Zabukh came under the control of the Russian peacekeeping forces in Nagorno-Karabakh. On 26 August 2022, Azerbaijan regained control of Zabukh along with other settlements located along the former route of the Lachin corridor, including Lachin and Sus.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stepanakert Airport</span> Airport in Azerbaijan

Stepanakert Airport or Khojaly Airport is an airport in the town of Khojaly, 10 kilometers north-east of Stepanakert, Azerbaijan. The airport, in the Nagorno-Karabakh region, had been under the control of the self-proclaimed Republic of Artsakh from 1992 to 2023. Flights ceased with the escalation of the First Nagorno-Karabakh War in 1990.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Artsakh University</span> Public university in Stepanakert, Republic of Artsakh

Artsakh State University was a university in Stepanakert, the oldest and largest university in the self-proclaimed Republic of Artsakh. Over the course of its 50-year history, Artsakh State University has produced over 20,000 graduates in 60 fields of study.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Siege of Stepanakert</span> Battle during the First Nagorno-Karabakh War

The siege of Stepanakert started in late 1991, during the First Nagorno-Karabakh War, in Stepanakert, the largest city in Nagorno-Karabakh, when the Azerbaijani forces circled the city. Until May 1992, the city and its Armenian population were the target of a months-long campaign of bombardment by Azerbaijan. The bombardment of Stepanakert and adjacent Armenian towns and villages, which took place under the conditions of total blockade by Azerbaijan, caused widespread destruction and many civilian deaths.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Flag of the Republic of Artsakh</span> National flag

On 2 June 1992, the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic (NKR), a former breakaway state in the South Caucasus region, adopted a flag derived from the flag of Armenia, to which a white, five-toothed, stepped carpet pattern is added, beginning at the two verges of the flag's fly and meeting at a point equal to one-third of the distance from that side. The NKR was renamed the Republic of Artsakh in 2017 after a referendum and retained the flag. Following an Azerbaijani offensive on 19 September 2023, Artsakh agreed to dissolve itself by 1 January 2024. However, Samvel Shahramanyan said that there was no official document stipulating the dissolution of government institutions, implying that the republic may continue as a government in exile. As of 21 July 2024, the government of Artsakh is currently in exile in Yerevan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Political status of Nagorno-Karabakh</span> Status of a disputed region in the Caucasus

The political status of Nagorno-Karabakh remained unresolved from its declaration of independence on 10 December 1991 to its September 2023 collapse. During Soviet times, it had been an ethnic Armenian autonomous oblast of the Azerbaijan Soviet Socialist Republic. Following the dissolution of the Soviet Union, a conflict arose between local Armenians who sought to have Nagorno-Karabakh join Armenia and local Azerbaijanis who opposed this.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Karabakh movement</span> 1988–1991 mass movement in Armenia

The Karabakh movement, also known as the Artsakh movement, was a national mass movement in Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh from 1988 to 1991 that advocated for the transfer of the mainly Armenian-populated Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast of neighboring Azerbaijan to the jurisdiction of Armenia.

During its existence, the Republic of Artsakh and the United States did not have official diplomatic relations as the United States was among the vast majority of countries that did not recognize Artsakh as a sovereign nation and instead recognized the region of Artsakh, or Nagorno-Karabakh, as part of Azerbaijan. Despite no formal relations, the Republic of Artsakh had a representative office in Washington, D.C. since November 1997. It is not known whether the office still functions after the apparent dissolution of Artsakh.

This is a list of individuals and events related to Azerbaijan in 2023.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stepanakert in the Republic of Artsakh</span> City in Stepanakert, Artsakh

From the breakup of the Soviet Union in 1991 to the 2023 Azerbaijani offensive in Nagorno-Karabakh, the city of Stepanakert was the capital of the unrecognized breakaway Republic of Artsakh, while being internationally recognized as part of Azerbaijan.

References

  1. ↑ Hairenik (2 August 2012). "Eyewitness: An Interview with Baku Pogrom Survivor Anna Turcotte". Armenian Weekly. Retrieved 2015-11-03.
  2. ↑ "ARS Seminar Roadmap to Empowerment". Asbarez Armenian News, May 14, 2014
  3. ↑ "Anna Astvatsaturian Turcotte and ATP Team up for Forest Memorial to Baku Pogrom Victims". The Armenian Mirror-Spectator. 2019-04-18. Retrieved 2021-08-24.
  4. ↑ "One Creative Donor Stitches Her Way to Sponsoring Eye Screenings For Two Villages in Armenia". Armenian EyeCare Project. 2019-01-17. Retrieved 2021-08-24.
  5. ↑ Anna Astvatsaturian-Turcotte
  6. ↑ "Westbrook moratorium movement continues pushing for reforms to slow growth". Press-Herald, October 26, 2016. Megan Doyle
  7. ↑ "Turcotte makes history as Westbrook City Council president". www.pressherald.com. Portland Press Herald. December 15, 2021. Retrieved December 20, 2022.
  8. ↑ "An Interview with Baku Pogrom Survivor Anna Turcotte". Asbarez Armenian News, by ARA NERSSESSIAN, 7 August 2012
  9. ↑ "Norik Astvatsaturov". www.arts.gov. Retrieved 2021-08-24.
  10. ↑ Staff, Weekly (2017-06-20). "Armenian-American Artist Norik Astvatsaturov to Receive National Endowment for Arts Fellowship". The Armenian Weekly. Retrieved 2021-08-24.
  11. ↑ "Norik and Irina Astvatsaturov: From Baku with Art". Armenian Weekly, By Tom Vartabedian on June 8, 2015 i
  12. ↑ Thirty Years Later, We Create
  13. ↑ "ANNA ASTVATSATURIAN-TURCOTTE". Aurora Prize.
  14. ↑ Anna Astvatsaturian Turcotte Featured in Upcoming Francois Jacob Documentary “Under the Same Sun”
  15. ↑ Baku Pogrom Survivor Details Horrors of Massacres in Congress
  16. ↑ "Candidates off and running in Westbrook". Keep Me Current, September 29, 2016. By Andrew Rice
  17. 1 2 McDermott, Carrie (July 16, 2012). "Nowhere: A Story of Exile". Wahpeton Daily News.
  18. ↑ "Mainers at White House Summit on Women". Mirror-Spectator, Armenia, New England, Washington | June 9, 2016
  19. ↑ Emil Sanamyan, "Baku Armenian tells the story of exile", Reporter, 28 September 2012. Archived from the original.
  20. ↑ "Members of Congress Celebrate Artsakh Independence on Capitol Hill". Asbarez.com. 2012-12-06. Retrieved 2015-11-03.
  21. ↑ Hairenik (10 April 2013). "Maine Legislature Supports Artsakh Independence". Armenian Weekly. Retrieved 2015-11-03.
  22. ↑ Marie Monson, "Grand Forks holds second year of TedX". Dakota Student, February 24, 2015
  23. ↑ Portland Press Herald: Challengers win council, school board seats in Westbrook (November 3, 2015)
  24. ↑ American Journal: Newcomers Turcotte, Berry win seats in Westbrook [ permanent dead link ]
  25. ↑ "Westbrook City Council, School Committee candidates unopposed", pressherald.com. October 22, 2018.
  26. ↑ "Rairdon, Turcotte new leaders of City Council". Archived from the original on 2018-12-06. Retrieved 2018-12-10.
  27. ↑ Turcotte makes history as Westbrook City Council president
  28. ↑ "American Armenian public figure Anna Astvatsaturian-Turcotte visited Artsakh". Times.am, 12 / 09 / 2014.
  29. ↑ Hairenik (19 June 2012). "Hybooksonline Releases 'Nowhere, a Story of Exile' as E-Book". Armenian Weekly. Retrieved 2015-11-03.
  30. ↑ "Արտաքսում. Դեպի անհայտություն". Newmag. Retrieved 20 December 2022.
  31. ↑ "В Культурном центре "Вернатун" состоялась презентация книги Анны Аствацатурян-Теркотт "Изгнание. В никуда"". ААЦ. Retrieved December 20, 2022.
  32. ↑ "One Creative Donor Stitches Her Way to Sponsoring Eye Screenings for Two Villages in Armenia". January 17, 2019.
  33. ↑ "Tutus for Artsakh: How $25,000 Worth of Ballet Gear Came to be on Its Way to Stepanakert". November 2017.
  34. ↑ http://asbarez.com/179074/anna-astvatsaturian-turcotte-armenia-tree-project-will-create-a-memorial-forest-in-armenia/
  35. ↑ "Anna Astvatsaturian Turcotte and ATP Team up for Forest Memorial to Baku Pogrom Victims". April 18, 2019.
  36. ↑ "Armenia Tree Project - be an Ambassador".
  37. ↑ "Home". ANNA ASTVATSATURIAN FOUNDATION. Retrieved 2021-08-24.
  38. ↑ Contributor, Guest (2021-01-27). "Human rights advocate Anna Astvatsaturian Turcotte launches foundation to support community initiatives in Artsakh". The Armenian Weekly. Retrieved 2021-08-24.{{cite web}}: |last= has generic name (help)
  39. ↑ Staff, Weekly (2021-06-16). "Post-war census conducted by Anna Astvatsaturian Foundation Project nearing completion". The Armenian Weekly. Retrieved 2021-08-24.
  40. ↑ ""Սեր Արցախ" բարեգործական ծրագրի շրջանակներում նորածինների մայրերը նվեր-տուփեր են ստացել". Artsakh Press. Retrieved December 20, 2022.
  41. ↑ "Anna Astvatsaturian Turcotte Awarded Armenia’s ‘Mkhitar Gosh’ Medal". Asbarez Armenian News, October 2, 2013
  42. ↑ "Grassroots Stars to be Honored with Vahan Cardashian Awards at ANCA WR Annual Gala Banquet". Armenian National Committee of America, Western Region site. 2014-10-24. Retrieved 2015-11-03.
  43. ↑ Anna Astvatsaturian Turcotte to Receive ANCA-ER Activism Award
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.