www.aanf.org
Established 1933
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
August 28, 2015
Contact: Martin Youmaran, [email protected], (847) 707-0293
Assyrians head to Chicago for 82nd Annual Convention Sept 3rd to 7th at Downtown
Hilton 720 S. Michigan, Ave Chicago IL 60605
CHICAGO—Assyrians from all over the world will be arriving in Chicago for the 82 nd
Assyrian American National Federation’s Annual Convention. This year’s convention will
be held at Chicago Hilton 720 S. Michigan Ave Chicago, IL 60605.
The Annual convention brings together Assyrians from around the world. It provides a
way for all to come together, share ideas and network while helping build a better
Assyrian Nation; to try and maintain, promote and preserve the Assyrian Language and
culture by participating in day and evening programs that focus on current issues facing
our nation. Additionally, it introduces ways to promote our language and culture, and
highlight some of the projects needed to lead our nation from our current dark period to
a brighter future.
Today, the Assyrians are a nation without a homeland, scattered around the world. Over
ninety percent of today’s Assyrian population resides in the Diaspora. The last one
hundred years have been a continuous genocide of the Assyrian People. Two thirds of
our population was massacred in 1915, by the Ottoman Empire. Over three thousand
Assyrians were massacred by the Iraqi Army in 1933 in Semele, Iraq, and today ISIS is
the new oppressor who has taken over three hundred Assyrians hostages. ISIS has
forced hundreds of thousands to flee their ancestral lands. In northern Iraq, many have
sought refuge in camps near Erbil and Dohuk, while others fled to neighboring countries
and are living in refugee camps there. The horrific stories told by each family are too
familiar to us, as we all have faced some form of religious and ethnic persecution. From
1915 to 2015, our history has repeated itself.
There is no one nation willing to stand and help our people, and that is why we as
Assyrians continue to do everything we can to come together and try to work on finding
a long term solution that will end our plight and help protect, preserve the Assyrian
People and the Assyrian Identity. The Assyrian American National Federation also
helps by providing monetary contributions to our Assyrian people in our homeland and
will once again donate a portion of this year’s convention proceeds to Assyrian
humanitarian organizations. Please visit www.aanf.org to learn more.
Respectfully,
Martin Youmaran
AANF, A Non-Profit Tax Exempt – IRS Code 501(c)(3) Tax Id 13-3201808
8324 N. Lincoln Ave Skokie, IL 60077
Phone : 630-400-5162