Raw & Unfiltered

An experimental film and an introspective by Seda Grigoryan where her experiences of covering the Daredevils of Sassoun saga merge with impressions and sentiments from a visit to Western Armenia.

Comedian and co-founder of ArmComedy Sergey Sargsyan offers some interesting advice about what to do when confronted with hateful comments on social media.

How does one navigate identities? Serving as the Deputy Chief of the Political/Economic Section at the U.S. Embassy in Yerevan, Ruben Harutunian writes that it was a unique opportunity to return to his hometown to support the effort of building ever-stronger ties between the United States and Armenia.

The story of Gayane Arevshatyan’s home-restaurant began twenty years ago, after a tragedy that radically changed her life. It was the Armenia of the 1990s - the cold and dark years. The country had survived a devastating earthquake, the Karabakh War, the disintegration of the Soviet Union, blockade, an energy crisis...In a matter of years, lives and narratives had turned upside down.

Nareg Seferian discusses his experiences dealing with ethno-national identity, the current situation with the Armenian identity around the world, and how it plays out vis-à-vis the Republic of Armenia.

Jag Bambir, one of Armenia’s most beloved musicians, is an early pioneer of the rock and roll movement in the former Soviet Union. In this piece, Raffi Meneshian reviews a recent concert Jag gave in Gyumri in April where he presented his latest creation – Treaton.

In the traditional Diaspora narrative, American-Armenian, Syrian-Armenian and many other options exist, but Russian-Armenian has never been on the list according to journalist Grigor Atanesian who was born and raised in Saint Petersburg. He says that you’re either Russian or Armenian. "Visiting Armenia, we were the Russian kids who found love in a hopeless place," he writes.

The voices of women writers occupy a small space in the Armenian literary canon. They are for the most part absent in literature textbooks in Armenia with the exception of a few women writers, mentioned only in passing. Contemporary women writers, translators and educators answer the question: Where have the women gone?

Domestic violence is a critical issue facing women globally, and women in Armenia are not immune from it. In this piece, Ani Jilozian of the Women's Support Center based in Yerevan highlights the current situation in Armenia and the importance of passing legislation on domestic violence.

Every year the Foundation for the Preservation of Wildlife and Cultural Assets organizes the collection of flowers laid at the Genocide Memorial on April 24. The flowers are then recycled into handmade paper.