21 April 2009 / TODAY'S ZAMAN WITH WIRES, İSTANBUL
Advance celebrations have been held in New York City to mark Turkey's April 23, National Sovereignty and Children's Day, hosted by the Federation of Turkish American Associations (FTAA) and Atatürk School.
At a celebratory program organized on Sunday at New York's National Museum of the American Indian, Turkish Consul General in New York Mehmet Samsar said the holiday was a gift from Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, the founder of the Republic of Turkey, to Turkish children. He said it was difficult for minority communities to maintain a sense of unity and togetherness in a country like America and that while children of Turkish descent living in the United States became integrated into US society, the task fell upon their parents to prevent them from becoming distanced from Turkish culture, religion, language, traditions and customs.FTAA President Kaya Boztepe also spoke at the event, expressing pride at seeing Turkish children from all over the world come together under the umbrella of April 23 celebrations. After the speeches, children from Turkish associations throughout the New York area performed traditional folk dances.
