The counting’s almost over. Within less than a month, states will have certified their elections and the one runoff election impacting the federal level (Georgia’s Senate race) shall have become history.
The Democratic Party is poised to be in full control of the legislative and executive branches of the U.S. government. Ted Stevens the felon has been voted out of office. There is excitement in the air. There is a willingness to do the right things for the country, especially as manifested by what’s good for people, not “the economy”, “wall street”, “growth”, or other irrelevant intangibles.
None of this will happen if legislators and the president don’t get pushed in the right direction. This applies to Armenian issues as well.
We often forget that just electing the “right” people to office is not the end of the game, but only the first roll of the dice. It takes continuous contact, reminders, lobbying, encouragement, and whatever else you can think of to keep even the best-intentioned electeds on track. Is this because they’re evil or schemers or twofaced? No, it’s because they have so many issues to confront that the ones with the least attention from voters will get short shrift. Or, there may be special interests, motivated almost universally by money, that are advocating policies, actions, or legislation that are damaging to the people’s, or in this case Armenian, interests.
So hold your representatives’, at all levels of government, feet to the fire. Now, before the fire gets too big to manage. Particularly if you’ve got a new member of the House or Senate, write or call or meet with him/her. Convey your concerns. Insist on Genocide resolution passage. More importantly, advocate federal pressure on Turkey to sit down with representatives of the Armenian nation to discuss restitution for damages rising from the Genocide.
Creating this kind of relationship establishes you as a resource for the public official.
You can also create public pressure by writing letters to the editor. Mobilize others to do the same kinds of work.
This has to be done fast and furious, particularly if you believe this is a turning point in American history. If Armenian concerns become embedded into the political norm now, then they will become “natural” parts of the discourse of governance and policy for the foreseeable future. Your advocacy can accomplish this. The “other guy” is no more likely to act than you. Get busy.