The Armenian Youth Association
The Near East Relief clubhouse in Beirut (CPA, Collection of Michel Paboudjian).
The Near East Relief clubhouse in Beirut
(CPA, Collection of Michel Paboudjian).
THE ORIGINS OF THE AYA
Before we can trace the origins of the Armenian Youth Association, we need to take a fresh look at the history of Armenian orphans in the late 1920s and early 1930s. Many Armenian orphans reached adulthood in this period, and were therefore getting ready to leave the orphanages in which they had grown up. Finding these young people a place in society had become one of the major priorities of the people running these institutions. They decided to provide guidance counseling for their former wards in order to smooth their way into society. Thus, beginning in 1924, in Syria, Lebanon, and Palestine, Near East Relief (NER) founded centers in which the graduates of its American orphan-ages could come together. These Near East League Clubs, as they were called, helped the NER stay in touch with its orphans even after they had reached adult-hood. The Near East League Clubs offered evening courses as well. Here the orphans learned foreign languages or took part in cultural or athletic activities. Other young Armenians, from Armenian schools or Beirut’s American Uni¬ver¬sity, also spent time in these clubs, in both Beirut and Aleppo.1
NER did not, however, honor its commitment to such programs for long. By the early 1930s, ... Read all