05/10/1999
AANF Letter Addressed to the U.S. Census Bureau


May 10, 1999

Dear Mrs. McKenney:

I am writing you this letter regarding the verbal request that I made on behalf of the Assyrian American National Federation regarding the postponement of the implementation of your decision regarding the change of the Assyrian category for census 2000.

The reason for the request is that certain persons claiming to represent the Assyrian community are not authorized to act as such.  They are merely individuals that do not have the right to act on their own to make any changes to the Assyrian category.  Our Assyrian community feels that this decision has been imposed on us and we believe that we are being steered into this decision although we are living in a land of freedom and democracy where many voices should be heard before a decision such as this can be made.

Based on these important facts I am requesting you to delay the implementation of this process until we have made our decision at our emergency assembly on May 29 & 30, 1999 at our state convention in Modesto, California.

To conclude, I would like to remind you again that we are here to unite our people not to divide them.

Sincerely,
Carlo K. Ganjeh
Census Committee Chairperson
Assyrian American National Federation

CC:  Senator John Nimrod, General Secretary of Assyrian Universal Alliance
Mr. Sargon Lewie, Assyrian American National Federation [AANF]
Mrs. Anna Eshoo, United States Representative