By Azniv Nalbandian and Shushan Gabrielyan
Special to the Mirror-Spectator
WASHINGTON — The Armenian Law Students Association at the George Washington (GW) University Law School in Washington, D.C. was established in the spring of 2022 by Armenian students who were seeking both an affinity group and stronger representation on campus. Its establishment was supported by the GW Law Student Bar Association and Dean Aram A. Gavoor. The 2022-2023 school year marked the Association’s inaugural year as a fully-operating student organization.
In the fall, the Association hosted then-Foreign Minister of the Republic of Nagorno-Karabakh David Babayan. The event drew a diverse audience of students, faculty, and community members. Babayan highlighted the importance of analyzing armed conflict within a historical and geopolitical framework.
Later in the fall, and in partnership with the law school’s Student Bar Association, the Association passed a resolution condemning Azerbaijan’s unprovoked, premeditated, and offensive attacks on the Republic of Armenia. The Association contested the Lachs Moot Court Competition. Students worked with the GW Law’s administration to minimize the school’s participation in the Competition’s final round, which is set to take place in Baku, Azerbaijan, because of the discriminatory effect it would have on students of Armenian descent. The Association also collaborated extensively with the Armenian Bar Association’s D.C. Chapter (ABA) to host a mentorship program for all Armenian law students in the D.C. area.
In the spring, the Association and the D.C. ABA jointly hosted Dr. Levon Avdoyan and Dr. Khatchig Mouradian for an evening presentation entitled “The Library of Congress’s Armenia Reading Room.” The novel event drew a large audience, including members of the Armenian community, Father Hovsep Karapetyan of St. Mary Armenian Apostolic Church, Representative of the Nagorno Karabakh Republic in the United States Robert Avetisyan, Director of the Armenian National Institute Dr. Rouben Adalian, and undergraduate and graduate students. Avdoyan and Mouradian discussed the vast collection of Armenian illuminated manuscripts, books, and other rarities housed in the Library of Congress. In highlighting the importance of the Armenian Collection, Dr. Avdoyan astutely remarked that studying Armenian history and antiquities is the optimal path to dispelling disinformation concerning Armenian existence and self-determination.
