Anatomy of Disappearance of a Community
Vahakn Keshishian
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How would a community disappear? Is it by the genocide? By the war? By the terror? Is it by the mistakes of the community members themselves? Is it by the pressure of a bigger community that eats the small community?
A theory of end of communities, explains how communities end under a variety of conditions, from external to internal reasons, but the theory says that the most important an vital condition for a community to end, is its belief that it has ended. The self perception of being dead is the point of no return for the community that will be dead.
Collapse of Institutions
For decades since the mid nineteenth century the Aleppo Armenian community entered to a process of institution-building. These included cultural-sports clubs in the first wave, and professional-vocational in the second. In the more systematic period that followed the post-1915 community, these institutions were transformed into more sophisticated unions among the community members, like scout-youth movements, cultural associations and co-patriotic unions. Although the school-church duo continued to be the focal point of the community life, but unlike other diaspora communities, in Aleppo the Armenian life was not limited to this traditional narrow public space, but its spill over was sensed in more political and social environments. The youth were encouraged to follow one of the as many as twenty-so cultural-scout movements, that next to weekly regular meetings, also had the upper hand in the social gatherings, the periodic excursions to destinations all over the country, the celebrations of Armenian, Syrian and international holidays, the funding and management of performances, from theater to corals, music groups, dance shows, etc. The pan-Armenian organizations, like the AGBU, the ARF Tashnag Party, the Hunchak Party, Ramgavar, The Armenian Catholic Church, the Armenian Evangelical Church, all had their youth branches, next to the independent movements. These organizations would meet with each other on several occasions during the year, April 24 being the most important event, but also during the important visits by for example a Catholichos or a president.
The aim here not being the detailed analysis of the Aleppo-Armenian community life, we should go on to explain that most of the mentioned life has collapsed during the Syrian Rebellion. The institutions proved unable to respond to the changing environment, although there has been the talk about preparations for emergency situations. It is hard to explain, but probably during the hostile environment of the early to middle twentieth century Syria, in which most of these organizations were formed, had been the idea of preparedness for the unknown, but apparently the coming generations forgot it, till reached to this day, bare-handed. The hardest to explain is how these institutions could be as weak as they were when the need for them was the highest. The executive boards of the institutions, that at the same time are the elite of the community, and somehow correspond to the social status, are absent from the community's sufferings, not only by not being in the city, which is the case for most of them, if not all, but also by handicapping the institutions that they used to manage. This is not to say that nothing is being done at all, but to specifically mention that community's belief in them has vanished, and that is the one most important factor for its collapse as we mentioned earlier.
Collapse of the Communal
The Aleppo Armenian community has been very active socially. The norm was that the fractions of the community would gather regularly on several settings. Apart from the heavily celebrated weddings, engagements, baptism celebrations, to the graduations and other events, used to give the community members the chance to gather, to show off wealth and power, to prove every time that the people are alive, usually accompanied with banquets, parties and celebrations that will not hold back any of the infamous gift exchanges. This was not true only for a certain high class, it would include everybody. Everybody would take loans or assistance from the family and friends to celebrate these events with utmost glamour. These events constituted a very important part of the social communal life. During these events most of the people meet, socialize and get updated on each other’s’ statuses.
During the summers, the above mentioned organizations would allocate a certain space in their belongings for café-type settings, that would serve for socials every afternoon that continues to the late nights, sometimes accompanied with live performances, comedy sketches, or important match viewings, that will fill the nights of the community and the pockets of the organizations.
Back then the community was bombarded not by mortars, but by the community members that come back on summers to Aleppo from their self-imposed exiles to the Gulf countries. Usually the male members would come back after a financial success endeavor to the city to get established, which means to get married. The girls would run for these for such candidates, because they are financially better off. This interaction, had its pivotal place in the communal life, it event spilled over from Aleppo to the neighboring communities, especially Kessab, the summer resort destination of most of the community, including the summer camps of the organizations. These means that the demise of Aleppo will have its inevitable economic effect on Kessab. There were several weeks in the August, that the community would invade Kessab, bringing with them the cars, the lifestyle and the socials, the 15th August traditional grape fest and the day of the Virgin Marry would turn to festival of Aleppo Armenians escaping the unbearable heat of the August of their city to the breeze of the mountains of Kessab.
The absence of all these for two years now, because of the security conditions and the lack of appetite of the community to celebrate, make the infamous Aleppo kebabs, prepare the huge tables that the food would greatly exceed the necessary amount, and the absence of the socials and gatherings of all types led the community members to be isolated from each other. The problem is that the rich community life did not transform itself into a solidarity movement, much needed in the times of crisis. Such solidarity would have supported the needy and strengthened the bonds among the different fractions of the community. The lack of stamina and maneuvering capacity of the social of the community led to its collapse on the face of the first threat. This means that the community was not really social, it was festive for sure, but not active.
Where Did the Community Disappear?
The Aleppo Armenian community is on the verge of disappearance. Not because everybody will leave the city, not because they will be deported or annihilated. The people might stay, but the community will disappear, the life and lifestyle of the community will vanish. Syria might go to any direction, taking with it the city, it might become a democracy, a federation, it might go back to what it was, but the community cannot go back to where it was. First and foremost, because it already has disappeared by the absence of its main chords.
A final note and advice for the other communities. Aleppo Armenian community failed because at the times of rest did not prepare for the worst. While in rest it was able to talk and brag about how well organized it is, how it constitutes a part of the wider Syrian community and how they are important for this country. In times of rest the community was not thinking about the community, families were being destroyed by rivalries between brothers and sisters, the fractions were too much separated from each other, and nobody thought of savings that would save the community in times such these. Well, this is not a biblical divine wrath come on the heads of the sinful community, but the ultimate reality is that no community member, those who are still in Aleppo, see their future in Syria, none of them see a future for the community. This is how a community disappears.
Şapgir'de bu hafta
