A few years ago when I told people was writing a book on the history of the Order of AHEPA I used to get mixed reactions. Some showed interest, others shrugged. Mentions of AHEPA tend to elicit a range of reactions among Greek-Americans. But whatever one thinks of AHEPA, one should commend the organization for holding its annual convention in Cyprus this year, the fiftieth anniversary of the failed coup and the Turkish invasion and occupation of the northern part of the island.

To my knowledge, this is the first major Greek-American conference being held on Cyprus which makes this even more of a historic occasion.

Not many people know that Cyprus has played a very important role in AHEPA’s history since the 1950s, which witnessed the outbreak of the struggle for union with Greece that led instead to the creation of the independent Republic of Cyprus in 1960. The Greeks from Cyprus have always been a small percentage of the Greek-American community, even when their numbers increased thanks to the immigration reform of 1965. Significantly, in 1980 there were about 9,000 persons born in Cyprus in the United States and among them were several who became very active in promoting the Greek Cypriot cause.

AHEPA did not need much prompting to become involved in the troubled situation the island has experienced for almost a century. It formed a Justice for Cyprus Committee in 1955 to support the right of Cypriot self-determination. There were resolutions in favor of the Greek Cypriot cause in almost all AHEPA Conventions throughout the 1960s. One could point out resolutions are cheap and don’t do much practically. That may be true, but at least the resolutions kept the Cyprus issue on AHEPA’s agenda. This was also achieved by including Cyprus in the annual visit to Greece in 1960. The November 1964 issue of The Ahepan Magazine was almost entirely devoted to the Cyprus Question and was chock full of information. It was mailed to every newspaper, library, and government official in the United States, as well as to city and state officials.

AHEPA’s pronouncements on Cyprus were somewhat more muted during 1967-74 when the Order made the very unfortunate decision to support the military junta that suspended democracy and ruled Greece as a dictatorship. It seemed as if it was taking its cues from the regime which initially displayed a cautiousness and then would suddenly go overboard in terms of its attitude towards Cyprus.

The Turkish invasion that came in the wake of the Greek junta’s failed attempt to topple the government in Cyprus and install an ultra-Greek nationalist in power became a wonderful opportunity for AHEPA to atone for its past sins by mobilizing on the side of the victimized Greek Cypriots.

The first thing AHEPA’s Supreme President WilliamTsaffaras did was call a meeting of the presidents of major Community organizations in Washington, DC, where they met on July 23 and 24 and formed the ‘Congress of American Organizations’ for the purpose of grouping together all Greek-American associations to join in supporting Cyprus. Funds were to be raised for national newspaper advertising, for releases to the members of Congress, and the press and other initiatives, including relief for the refugees. Ultimately, rather than create an umbrella group, Greek-Americans either stuck to where they already belonged, such as AHEPA or the Church, or they formed new organizations, all of which undertook a range of tasks from out and out lobbying to galvanizing the community and informing the American public.

Luckily for AHEPA this was an era when it held its conventions in August rather than earlier in the summer, so it avoided the ignominy of hosting the junta’s ambassador on what would have been the eve of the regime’s collapse.

The 1974 convention opened in Boston on August 18^th, after the second phase of the Turkish invasion and following an AHEPA delegation meeting with Greek prime minister Constantinos Karamanlis, who was leading the restoration of democracy in Greece. The convention was one of the most representative and important Greek American assemblies in the history of the Greek presence in the United States. It was addressed, among others, by the Greek-American congressmen, Archbishop Iakovos, and Jack Kubisch the newly-appointed U.S. ambassador to Greece and several Greek American leaders. Unlike convention speeches during more peaceful times, which slide into clichés and platitudes about how wonderful Greek-Americans are, this time round the speakers were focused on the practical ways the community could best support Cyprus. There was even a rally about the Cyprus crisis outside the convention hall, something that would be unheard of in the present era of conventions held at Walt Disney World in Florida or Las Vegas. It was an occasion that placed AHEPA at the center of what would become a historic and successful nation-wide Greek-American mobilization over the next few years.