Even before I came to the United States on November 19, 2025, I had participated in two webinars in August and September through Zoom held in Phoenix when I was in Melbourne. During those webinars, the discussions focussed on the teaching of the Assyrian Genocide in the Arizona public education system. I had the pleasure of examining the curriculum to be taught in Arizona and I even sent Australian press articles to them that might be included in the curriculum. The Assyrians got approval from the Arizona Department of Education to have their Genocide taught to the Arizona school students. It should be noted that State Legislature of Arizona approved the teaching of the Assyrian Genocide, while the Arizona Turks protested in their customary denial. It is noteworthy that they were unable to block its inclusion.
Related: The Assyrian Genocide
During the webinars, I raised the issue of the Greek Genocide which took place at the same time and with similar results as the Assyrian one. It was Ramina Jajoo, who runs the Seyfo Chapter in Arizona, who put me into contact with the Greeks of Phoenix. Without Ramina, I don't think I would have established links with the local Greek community. She coordinated my trip with local Greeks from the community which opened new contacts in Phoenix.
I travelled from Seattle via San Francisco to Phoenix on December 19. However, delays in Seattle made me miss my reconnection in San Francisco, where I stayed overnight at a nearby hotel near the airport. On December 20, I finally left Frisco and arrived in Phoenix, where my hosts were waiting to take me to my hotel. The accommodation was very good and not far from where I was to give my lecture the next day.
Later in the afternoon, I met Fr. Alexander Eliades with Anastasia Psomiadi and Christina Bakavelou at Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church to discuss the flow of the lecture. Christina and Anastasia did an excellent job in producing an attractive and informative flyer for publicizing the lecture and their coordination made this a memorable event. During our conversation, Fr. Alexander displayed a good knowledge of history and human rights, which he had studied in college. He told us that he had relatives who escaped from Asia Minor and came to America. His ancestors ultimately decided settle in Massachusetts.
Christina took me to the church hall where we had coffee and watched the children engage in a gingerbread house competition. The children produced some wonderful holiday gingerbread houses. I don't remember who won, but the children loved their involvement in this event. It is interesting that some of the parents were non-Greek, being converts to the Orthodox faith. I think our Orthodox Church in Phoenix is in good hands with Fathers Alexander and Apostolos Hill at the helm. The community is vibrant and impressive and promotes Hellenic values.
December 21 was the big day of my lecture titled: 'From Paris to Smyrna and Beyond' which was designed to give a comprehensive overview of the period and the complex issues involved. I gave my talk using a power point with photos, newspaper articles, and information presented in bullet form using primary sources drawn from contemporary documents. I provided an overview of the Greek military campaign in Asia Minor and our genocide at the hands of the Kemalists. I also covered the Smyrna fire and the Lausanne Conference. One thing that captured the audience's attention was a short Youtube video of the Smyrna fire filmed in September 1922. This showed the dramatic and terrible devastation that took place.
At the end of my talk, Fr. Alexander added some comments concerning the suffering and martyr's death of Metropolitan Chrysostomos of Smyrna at the hands of a Turkish mob. The Metropolitan was canonized as a saint in the Greek Orthodox Church.
Anastasia briefly spoke with great passion about the Pontian Genocide. She said that some of her more fortunate ancestors ended up as refugees in Greece. Finally, Christina spoke with emotion about her grandparents who escaped from Smyrna.
I was surprised at the large turnout who came to hear my lecture. Some sixty people attended, which exceeded my expectation that only about twenty would attend. There was a lively question-and-answer session which made it a fulfilling afternoon. There were Ahepans and a representative of the Cypriot community in attendance. Some attendees stated that some of their ancestors had died at the hands of the Kemalists. I was not surprised at these comments since so many Greek-Americans have roots from Asia Minor. The feedback from the audience was very positive. I am glad I made the trip to Arizona and would do so again if invited.
At one point during the Q&A I raised the issue that our Greek community should follow the example of the Assyrians and introduce the teaching of our Genocide into the Arizona school system. I urged them to be bold and approach their local Arizona state representatives and education department to make this a reality. I mentioned that I am prepared to relocate to Phoenix to see our Genocide material integrated into the school system. I have written widely about the Greek, Assyrian, and Armenian Genocides to make this possible. I have a large collection of documents and newspaper articles and other materials that could be used to develop a suitable curriculum. I received a warn round of applause regarding the teaching of our Genocide. We can make this happen, if the local Greek organizations and the Church work together. I know this is achievable, and I am ready to work towards this goal.
In conclusion, my trip to Phoenix proved successful and opened up new opportunities for the future. I would love to relocate to Phoenix to make this happen. This will be my legacy for our Greek-American community.
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