WASHINGTON, DC – A Centennial Symposium to Memorialize & Illuminate the 1922 Asia Minor Catastrophe was held on September 17 at Georgetown University in Washington, DC. Prof. Ismini Lamb, Director of the University’s Modern Greek Studies Program, and the Hellenic Association, organized the event.
The symposium featured a panel discussion on the topic, “What Really Happened in Asia Minor?” with insights from Dr. Rouben P. AdaIian, Armenian National Institute Director; Dr. Christopher Lamb, co- author with Prof. Ismini Lamb, of The Gentle American: George Horton’s Odyssey and His True Account of the Smyrna Catastrophe; and American Hellenic Institute (AHI) President Nick Larigakis.
EMBCA President Lou Katsos introduced and moderated the panel discussion which included serious insights on what really happened at Smyrna a century ago and why it still matters.
Dr. Christopher Lamb presented the “10 Surprising and Popular Misconceptions about Smyrna and the Asia Minor Catastrophe”; Dr. Reuben P. Adalian spoke about the “American Witnesses in Peacetime and Wartime” and Nick Larigakis presented on the topic, “Atrocities from History: Do We Learn?”
Following the discussion, a screening of the award winning film “Smyrna My Beloved”, starring Mimi Denissi, Rupert Graves, and Burak Hakki, was also held, co-sponsored by AHI, the Armenian National Institute, and the Embassy of Greece.
Ambassador of Greece to the U.S. Alexandra Papadopoulou delivered an introduction prior to the film’s viewing.
