On this day of great National honor the Hellenic League of America HLA Hails Metaxas. When face to face with the enemy on October 28th, 1940 the leader, statesman and GREAT HELLENE IOANNIS METAXAS followed in the footsteps of King Leonidas of Sparta and in a resounding moment of Hellenic defiance proclaimed OXI “NO” to the surrender of Hellas, in true testament to the glory of our epic Hellenic people. The HLA would like to take this opportunity to also announce the development of our new homepage, please check in from time to time as the site is still being modified.
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The website is entirely made possible by self-less Hellenic American activist Ioannis Fidanakis, who today shares his personal story of Hellenic duty. Ioannis Fidanakis has said his own “NO” to the tragic malaise of apathy and unpatriotic miasma that infests the Greek-American community that together with the homeland is misruled by a corrupt political oligarchy of sycophants bowing to foreign interests. Ioannis Fidanakis’ sacrifice gives us a glimmer of hope that some Greeks in America will not succumb to the “white genocide” of assimilation, that maybe our beleaguered people will all together rise up and break the shackles imposed on them by “cosmopolitan” forces and revert the homeland back to a Nation of Heroes , not a Nation of Slaves.
HAIL IOANNIS METAXAS! (To learn more about Ioannis Metaxas please visit this website maintained by the Metaxas family: http://ioannismetaxas.gr/)
On this holiest of Holy Days, October 28th, the entire Greek nation rejoices and remembers the day that the Greek flame of bravery burned brightest. Inside Greece, parades are held across the country. In the Diaspora we speak proudly of our brethren who laid down their lives for freedom. It was the Greek people that won the first battles of the War and it was Greece that was the first country to liberate lands under Fascist occupation. It was these unbelievable feats of glory that gave the Allies renewed courage to fight against the enemies of Democracy, and led to Winston Churchill proclaiming, ‘Hence we will not say that Greeks fight like heroes, but that heroes fight like Greeks’. Today many historians argue that if it wasn’t for Greece the outcome of the Second World War may have been entirely different. It was thanks to our stubbornness to lay down our guns that forced Germany to postpone Operation Barbarossa, all because the Greek people would not give into Mussolini’s outrageous demands.
But what of the man, the visionary who today is forgotten in our history books and even cursed by some within our society? We know his name, and we know it was he would answer Mussolini so defiantly. How could we have been prepared militarily and mentally for such an overwhelming task, if not for him? It was he who prepared us, inspired us, and even after his death remained a thorn in the side of our enemies thanks to the fortifications he constructed that delayed the German advance. Within our society today, they will tell you to remember the idea, that the nation responded to the call, but the truth is it was just a man. He who restored order when there was chaos, stabilized the drachma when there was inflation, and introduced minimum wage when there was none. They will tell you today that his regime was oppressive. That the four years in which he ruled was an unbearable tyranny, but these are exaggerations. He committed no mass killings, no political murders unlike so-called democratic governments of our nations past; in fact opponents to his rule were merely banished, and in fewer numbers than previous governments.
I remember the man, our Giannaki. An inspiration even till this day, that has led me a 27 year old Greek American of mixed descent to travel to the motherland to fulfill my military obligation to the country of my father’s ancestors. A decision that I’ve come to alone, not because I want to join the army, but because it’s my duty and responsibility as a Hellene to serve my motherland, even if I’d rather not. Since I’ve come to Greece I’ve been ridiculed for the decision by just about everyone that I’ve come across. They ask why a young man such as myself would sacrifice even a day in service of Greece. To these people I respond simply by saying it is my honor to wear the uniform of a Greek soldier and to sacrifice my time in service of my nation. My father served, my cousins served and as a Hellene I think it unforgivable that I may not serve as well.
It was not an easy process; it took me over three years to finally be able to serve in the Greek Army. A long and hard struggle that made me realize certain things about Greek America and Greece itself. You would think that with so many Greeks trying to scam their way out of serving that someone like me would find it easy to be accepted, even praised for my decision to serve, but this is not the case. Around every corner a new obstacle appeared, attempting to prevent me from fulfilling my duty to the motherland. As time went on I began to question myself, why even bother to serve a country that doesn’t want me? Why volunteer my time in a community that doesn’t care? Through it all I held on to my beliefs, allowed my patriotism to guide me when there was doubt.
On the day I received my papers confirming that I would finally be able to serve in the Greek Army, there were only two us waiting to speak with the Military attaché at the Consulate, myself and another young man. I asked him what he was there for and he replied simply that he wanted to go to Greece for vacation and had to fill out the necessary papers to make sure he didn’t have to serve in the army. When asked if I was there for the same reason, I told him no, that I had come to get my papers so I could serve. It’s when I saw the look of confusion on his face that I realized that there were two kinds of Greeks. Those who viewed Greece as a vacation destination, who only cared about partying and chasing girls, going to ‘Greek Nights’ at the club, totally indifferent to our motherland’s suffering, and those like me.
It is this lack of discipline and self sacrifice to the nation that has allowed Greece to fall victim to the current crisis that affects every aspect of Greek society. No longer do we think of the good of the nation first, put Hellenism before our own self interests. Instead, like Greek Politicians we look out for our own pockets; allow our allegiances to foreign ideologies to come before Hellenism. It was he who said, ‘We must subordinate our appetites, our passions and our egoism to the wholeness of the National interest. This way we will be a really free people, otherwise anarchy and indiscipline will reign over us under the false mask of freedom’, wise words which have proven true in Greece today for we are not truly free. As long as selfishness and indiscipline reign over our people we will always remain a satellite state to foreign powers and interests.
In the end, I’m proud to say I’m not like the others. I don’t care about ‘Greek Nights’ at the club. I sacrifice myself, like Metaxas preached, because I care for my nation and hope to see my people truly free one day. As Metaxas once said, ‘I’m ready for every sacrifice for the honor of Greece’. The old mentality of looking out for one’s own pocket first must stop now. It has proven to be a self-destructive worldview, which has created a generation of arrogant and selfish Greeks that show no interests in our cultural traditions or our National Issues. We must replace it with a mentality that promotes Hellenism before our own selfish needs. It is only through this type of reprogramming that a new generation of self-sacrificing patriots can be born, willing to do what is best for Greece and its people. So Greek America, continue to honor those who do nothing for our National Issues as our future leaders. Keep asking why there is no youth in our syllogi and how come the United States sides with our enemies on issues like Cyprus and Macedonia. Perhaps when it’s too late, we will finally open our eyes and understand the true meaning of October 28th.
Ioannis Fidanakis ( oarchangelos@aol.com)
October 28, 2010
Thrace, GREECE
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Hellenic League of America, HLA
The Hellenic League of America (HLA) is a cooperative and collective effort by Hellenes, Phil-Hellenes and Hellenic enthusiasts who come together for the Hellenic Cause. A register 501c nonprofit organization the Hellenic League of America, HLA works to spread awareness on Hellenic National Issues, as well as our ethnic traditions and culture. Founded in 2008 the HLA has been involved in organizing lectures, protests, rallies and commemoration across the tri-state area.
The Hellenic League of America, HLA’s name was inspired by the many different ancient confederations of Hellenic City-states which banded together in ‘leagues’. Such famous Hellenic Leagues were the Ionian League, the Italiote League, the Arcadian League, the Achaean League, the Peloponnesian League, the Chalkidian League, the Boeotian League, the Cretan League and the Delian League. However, our main inspiration is found in the League of Corinth, commonly referred to as the Hellenic League. Originally created under Philip II of Macedon, the Hellenic League was led by Megas Alexandros in his great campaign against the Persian Empire. It is in this spirit of brotherhood and unity that the HLA takes its name.
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