The Armenian community since 1915 has experienced genocide, the Soviet Union’s domination, wars and displacement. USC’s Institute of Armenian Studies hosted a symposium on November 2 called “Artsakh Uprooted: Aftermaths of Displacement” to reflect on the blockade of the Lachin Corridor that led to over 100,000 ethnic Armenians fleeing the region to Armenia in October 2023.
Artsakh, or Nagorno-Karabakh, was populated by a majority of ethnic Armenians over centuries and is internationally recognized as part of Azerbaijan. In September 2020, after Azerbaijan launched an attack on the region, a war broke out for 44 days and ended with Azerbaijan taking over one-third of the area.
The event was valuable to many participants, including Anna Papikian, who recently moved to Los Angeles from Prague.
“This is the first time that I feel close to my Armenian being,” she said. Papikian said she enjoyed the diversity of people and how the challenges of the displacement were illustrated in various ways.
Nina Shahverdyan, who is from Artsakh, was one of the panelists at last Saturday’s symposium. She spoke about her memories of the war and the nearly year-long blockade. She recalled seeing a family of seven at the Stepanakert Republic Square practically without proper clothing on and how she felt the weight of the word “անտիրություն,” which translates to abandonment in English. Shahverdyan said that as people of a nation, you expect your government to take care of you, not abandon you and they failed because that family was left alone.
Shahverdyan has a prominent social media presence where she shares her daily life with her now more than 25,000 followers. During the 44-day war and the blockade, she informed and updated everyone through her content. However, as the war and the blockade continued she felt like the impact of social media had diminished.
“First I thought that the power of social media is enough to bring change, but even though it’s important to raise awareness, I don’t think it necessarily influences any decisions,” she said. “Because all those decisions are made around political tables.” She also reflected on the 2020 War of Artsakh and how living in a war environment affected her life and perspectives on Armenia and the world.
Later, in December 2022, Azerbaijan blocked the Lachin Corridor, the only road connecting Artsakh to Armenia, depriving people of food, medical essentials, and everyday supplies for almost one year until September 2023. Families were forced to leave their homes, and diplomatic efforts failed to ease the conflict and open the road. Eventually, ethnic Armenians left for Armenia despite Azerbaijan’s claims of protection after the region’s takeover.
The Arstaskh uprooted event aimed to raise awareness and open discussions on the continuous wars, conflicts, displacement, and history of the region and celebrate the Armenian culture and community. The event included panel discussions, lectures, film screenings, and a rap music performance for the attendees.
Maral Tavitian, the managing director of the Institute of Armenian Studies, spoke about the objectives of the event.
“Our goal with this event is not only to call attention to the ethnic cleansing of the Armenian people of Artsakh but to advance the global conversation on displacement and cultural erasures,” she said.
Tavitian emphasized the value of combining academic panel discussions and artistic performances with interactive activities to provide an educational and cultural experience.
Mane Berikyan, a senior at USC studying International Relations and Russian and a student worker at the institute, talked about the role of students in organizing the event.
“There’s a lot of student volunteers and workers here today assisting participants and… a huge student body population at the event,” Berikian said. She also praised the institute for providing resources that allow people to be vocal about the issues concerning the Armenian community.
“This wasn’t an event designed only for the Armenian community, it was with everyone in mind,” Tavitian said. She hopes to insert the Armenian story into broader discussions about dispossession and cultural erasure to bring light to these topics.