Anna Astvatsaturian Turcotte


Anna Astvatsaturian Turcotte is an Armenian-American writer, lecturer and activist. She wrote Nowhere, a Story of Exile. She has lectured extensively about the plight of Armenians in Azerbaijan in the context of human rights and international law, as well as defending the political rights of Armenians to establish autonomy in Nagorno-Karabakh. She was instrumental in gaining passage by the legislature of the State of Maine of a 2013 resolution recognizing the independence of the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic. In 2015, she was elected member of the Westbrook, Maine City Council.

Early life

Turcotte was born in Baku, Azerbaijan, the daughter of two artists. She fled with her family in 1989 due to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. They spent three years in Armenia as refugees before immigrating to the United States in 1992. Her family was placed in Wahpeton, North Dakota, where she became a naturalized U.S. citizen in 1997.

Education

She studied at the University of North Dakota and received degrees in English & Literature and Philosophy & Religion, along with a minor in Russian Language and Literature. She received her Juris Doctor degree from the University of Maine School of Law in Portland, Maine in 2003. After graduating from law school, she worked as a clerk at the International Criminal Court in The Hague, Netherlands.

Career

Astvatsaturian Turcotte has written and lectured extensively about Armenian issues across the United States, including on Capitol Hill. She has also spoken to the European Parliament on issues of human rights, international law, and anti-Armenianism.
She advocated and worked to support the State of Maine's 2013 resolution recognizing the independence of the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic. She has discussed Azerbaijani policy regarding the independence of Nagorno-Karabakh with members of the Congress and the European Parliament. Astvatsaturian Turcotte is an advisory board member of the non-governmental organization Americans for Artsakh.
In 2015, Astvatsaturian Turcotte spoke at TedX Grand Forks about her experiences as a refugee and human rights activists. On November 3, 2015, Anna Turcotte won the election to Ward 3 of the Westbrook, Maine City Council. She received 64% of the total vote, unseating incumbent Paul Emery.
In 2018 Astvatsaturian Turcotte was re-elected to Westbrook City Council, Representing Ward 3. She ran unopposed. Astvatsaturian Turcotte has a successful career in banking regulatory risk and compliance, most recently as Vice President at Androscoggin Bank.
Turcotte was elected Vice President of the Council on December 3, 2018.

Publications

In 2012 she published her first book, Nowhere, a Story of Exile. It was based on a childhood diary she kept while her family faced the ethnic violence in Baku during the Nagorno-Karabakh War. She began translating the entries into English at the age of 14. She also described their lives as refugees in Armenia after they escaped Baku. Her book was a first-person account of the anti-Armenianism in Azerbaijan and the Baku pogrom against Armenians.

Awards

Astvatsaturian Turcotte was awarded the Mkhitar Gosh Medal of Honor from President of Armenia Serzh Sargsyan and the Nagorno-Karabakh Gratitude Medal from Nagorno-Karabakh Republic President Bako Sahakyan in 2013. In 2014, she was awarded Vahan Cardashian award by the Armenian National Committee of America - Western Region.
In 2017, she was awarded an Activism Award by the Armenian National Committee of America - Eastern Region.