May 22, 2008, Washington, DC - ATAA successfully held its 28th Annual Convention at the Sheraton National Hotel in Arlington, Virginia over the weekend.
With the generous support of the Presenting Sponsor, the Turkish Coalition of America, alongside other sponsors including TC-USA PAC, Turkish Airlines, PNC Bank, Saltzman & Evinch, PC , ATA-DC, and Mezun.com, ATAA was able to offer a one-of-a-kind convention of panels and activities geared toward educating and networking the Turkish American community. The convention was also an opportunity for ATAA to present its Activities Report, a booklet that included detailed descriptions of ATAA's activities over the past one and a half years, in pictures and writing.
The convention kicked off on Thursday, May 15 with Advocacy Day, ATAA President Nurten Ural gave opening remarks to an enthusiastic crowd, thanking them for their engagement in ATAA's advocacy efforts thus far, and encouraging the crowd to take advantage of the opportunities from the day's panels, luncheon on Capitol Hill and Congressional meetings, to further educate key audiences on the concerns of the Turkish American community. President Ural and Advocacy Director Allison Block then gave their presentation on advocacy for Turkish American causes, which was included as part of ATAA's nationwide tour titled "Turkish Americans Gaining Power through Grassroots." Following the presentation, the group traveled to Capitol Hill, where they had lunch alongside four current congressmen: Congresswoman Virginia Foxx (R-NC), Congressman Ed Whitfield (R-KY), Congresswoman Jean Schmidt (R-OH) and Congressman Howard Coble (R-NC). The congressmen addressed the attendees, articulating their extensive knowledge and appreciation for the strength of the Turkey-US relationship and the valuable role that Turkish Americans have played in this process. The Congressional Luncheon keynote speaker was former Member of Congress Mr. George Hochbrueckner (D-NY), who has a deep understanding and regard for Turkish American relations, recognized Turkish Americans for the impact that they have started to have through advocacy efforts and gave tips for how to be even better civically engaged citizens. After the Congressional Luncheon, participants took a brief Capitol Hill tour, followed by scheduled meetings with their respective Congressional offices.
"I really appreciated being able to hear the advocacy presentation in the morning, followed by the meeting with my congressman's office," said one participant. "It was so helpful to understand the processes and better grasp the issues before the meeting." Participants also received ATAA's "Advocacy Guide" as part of their registration package to further carry out advocacy upon returning to their hometowns.
On Thursday evening, participants mingled with the Turkish American community of Washington, DC as part of ATAA Component Association ATA-DC's Bar Night, which served as a fundraiser for ATA-DC's annual Turkish Festival in the fall.
The second day of the convention again opened with remarks by President Ural, followed by a brief presentation by ATAA President Elect, Gunay Evinch, on the significance of May 19, Commemoration of Atatürk, Youth and Sports Day. The first panel on Friday titled, "Turkey, a Key Country; Turkish Americans, a Key Heritage Community," gave a broad overview of the transatlantic relationship from two panelists. Mr. Matthew Burrows, Counselor at the National Intelligence Council spoke on "Mapping the Global Future," and Hon. Suat Kiniklioglu, Member of the Turkish Parliament of the ruling AK Party and Spokesman of the Foreign Affairs Committee, spoke on the "Ankara Perspective: Turkish American Relations, Navigating Through Choppy Waters."
Friday's second panel was an excellent presentation by a very good friend of Turkey, Mrs. Rochelle Sobel, founder of the Association for Safe International Road Travel (ASIRT). Mrs. Sobel shared her very personal story of losing her son in a traffic accident in Turkey. From this tragedy, Mrs. Sobel took positive action to ensure that others wouldn't have to face such losses, by founding ASIRT, an organization which advocates for greater safety, around the globe, particularly in Turkey. She shared statistics on road safety and highlighted successes that the organization has achieved in pursuing its objectives.
Convention participants were honored to listen to keynote speaker, H.E. Nabi Sensoy, Turkish Ambassador to the United States at the Ambassador's Luncheon on Friday. After the Ambassador's Luncheon, awards were given to leaders in the Turkish American Community. Recipients were as follows: President's Special Award, Feriha Istar; Component Association Award, Demet Cabbar, President of ATA-DC; Young Leaders Award: Ms. Esra Alemdar, George Washington University Turkish Student Association Undergraduate President, Ms. Deniz Ozkan, George Washington University Turkish Student Association Graduate President and Yurter Ozcan, President of ARI Foundation US.
Friday afternoon's first panel covered a topic that has gained a significant amount of coverage in recent months: PKK Terrorism and Iraq. Distinguished panelists included Mr. Ali Koknar, Consultant at AMK Risk Management speaking on "PKK Modus Operandi and Counter Operations"; Mr. Sami Teymur, Director of Turkish Institute of Police Studies and General Coordinator of the Turkish National Police in the United States, speaking on "PKK Financial Support"; and Daveed Gartenstein-Ross, Vice President of Research at the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies, speaking on "PKK Challenges Ahead".
The second panel on Friday afternoon educated the audience on a critical issue that is always on the mind of Turkish Americans: The Armenian Allegations on the events of 1915. The audience heard from experts on the subject including Mr. David Saltzman, from the Turkish American Legal Defense Fund speaking on the Legal Developments; Ms. Lydia Borland of Caspian Consulting, speaking on the Executive and Legislative Policy; and Mr. Suleyman Gokce, First Counselor at the Embassy of the Republic of Turkey, speaking on Diplomacy efforts.
On Friday evening, H.E. Ambassador Nabi Sensoy generously opened the Embassy of Turkey to the Turkish American community in celebration of May 19, the Commemoration of Atatürk, Youth and Sports Day.
The final day of the convention began with opening remarks from President Ural. The first presentation was a very informative lecture by President Elect Evinch titled "US-Turkey Relations: Opportunities and Challenges Ahead." President Elect Evinch's slide-show and lecture educated convention participants on the wide range of issues that surround the Turkish-American relationship, based on his research as a Fulbright Scholar.
Saturday's second panel titled "US-Turkey Relations: A Dual Perspective" gave attendees perspectives from both sides of the transatlantic relationship with presentations by Mr. Akin Unver, Dr. Marcia Robins-Wilf Young Scholar at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, with the Turkish perspective and Mr. Jason Epstein, Founder of Southfive Strategies with the US Perspective.
During the Saturday Luncheon, awards were presented to the following leaders in the Turkish American community: President's Special Award to Mr. and Mrs. Naimi and Naila Amiraliyev; Distinguished Service Award to Mr. David Saltzman and Mr. Bruce Fein; Meritorious Service Award to Mr. and Mrs. Ali and Fevziye Manizade; and Young Leaders Award to Ms. Sonay Kanber, President of Georgetown Turkish Initiative. After the awards presentations, attendees were treated with a special folkdance presentation by the TACA Youth Folkdance Group. The group raised their own funds to be able to participate in the convention, and while in Washington, had the opportunity to tour the US Congress, thanks to the offices of Congresswoman Virginia Foxx (R-NC) and visit the Smithsonian Institutions and monuments on the National Mall.
Saturday afternoon, convention participants heard from representatives from other diaspora communities in the Washington, DC area, many with whom ATAA has worked with on various projects and activities. The panelists shared general information on the mission statements and purposes of their respective organizations, as well as the challenges they have faced internally and externally, as well as successes they have achieved in each association's advocacy efforts. Panelists included: Mr. Meto Koloski of the United Macedonian Diaspora, Mr. Admir Serifovic of the Bosniak American Advisory Council for Bosnia and Herzegovina, Mr. Bedir Memmedli of the US Azeris Network, Mr. Javid Huseyinov of the Azerbaijani American Council, and Mr. Dolkun Kamberi of the Uyghur Service of Radio Free Asia.
The final panel of Saturday afternoon was a Turkish American Community Interactive, Moderated by ATAA Board of Trustees Member, Ms. Bonnie Joy Kaslan. This was an opportunity for participants to have their voices heard on suggestions and feedback on ATAA, the convention, and community concerns in general.
Saturday evening was the major social event of the convention, gathering a room filled with Turkish Americans and friends of Turkey from around the country, and honored guests including H.E. Ambassador Nabi Sensoy and Madame Sensoy, Mr. Burak Akcapar, First Counselor at the Embassy of the Republic of Turkey and Mrs. Akcapar, and Mr. Erdeniz Sen, First Secretary at the Embassy of the Republic of Turkey. Guests were entertained by the talented musical group, Atlanta-based Turkish Delight band, dancing and singing into the morning hours. After a delicious dinner, the TACA Youth Folkdance Group gave an excellent performance for the crowd that had the audience on their feet and clapping along. In a beautiful traditional costume Ms. Sema Muslu from Washington, DC then performed a solo folk dance that captivated the audience. A few lucky attendees won prizes that were raffled off at the end of the night, including 2 round trip tickets to Turkey.
ATAA Executive Board and Staff sincerely thanks all participants, panelists and volunteers for making its 28th Annual Convention a success.
