Benis Brothers
Why We Gave Our Children Greek Citizenship
Written By: Penelope Conomos Benis
I’ll admit that at first, the little voice in my head was screaming “Όχι!” when my husband suggested we obtain our children their Greek citizenship. At the time, my three sons were aged seven, eight and nine. Internally, I went back and forth with myself about the possible benefits and risks. Externally, we began to initiate the process.
My father, who was a first generation Greek-American originating from Kythira, strongly objected. His generation preferred to look firmly ahead and live out the coveted American dream, thanks to the sacrifices of his immigrant parents, who desired their children to be chiefly American citizens. Seeing his grandchildren obtain Greek citizenship would have signaled a turn back toward the fatherland. It forced me to think long and hard about codifying Greek identity for my children.
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