Walter Cronkite

My ISTORIA Series

Walter Cronkite is a legend in broadcast news. It saddens me when people do not know about him. He was with CBS nightly news from 1962- 1981 and very trusted by the public. If you want to connect with someone from an older generation, say: 'and that's just the way it is.' See if they pick up on the phrase Mr. Cronkite ended his news broadcasts with nightly. We have seen a move away from news reporting to speaking opinions. There is a move for independent writers to receive funding for newsletters that are without bias. How did we get away from the facts of what is happening? As I tell my family's story, it's important to understand the era. We had limited information from only nightly news, newspapers, magazines such as Time. We did not have the internet, CNN, Fox News, or cable. I remember the beginning of each of these. When the invasion of Cyprus happened, it was Walter Cronkite who entered our living room nightly with information. There was no communication with our extended family until they settled in new homes. The following is my account.

My parents immigrated to the US in 1968, with one visit to Cyprus the year prior to the invasion in 1973. The reason it took so many years to visit Cyprus was economic. My family was living paycheck to paycheck with no savings and credit cards were not o!ered so easily at that time to 'foreigners.' Until this day, both my parents had farmland in Cyprus. They had not taken out any loans from the paid for land that had been passed down generation to generation in my family with multiple occupations by the British, Venetians, Ottomans; to name a few. The most recent occupation had lasted from 1925-1960, when Cyprus went from a British 'Crown Colony,' to its own independent country.

In the late hours of the night, Turkish soldiers forced my extended family from both maternal and paternal sides from their land. My relatives fled quickly, not taking anything with them, as they had no comprehension that this would result in permanent displacement. Years later, the one thing they lamented not taking with them was photo albums. To this day, this is the one thing my relatives have requested from the Turkish people now occupying their homes. Consistently we hear denial of photos. Photos are proof of ownership of the land in a court, yet precious memories for my family.

There was no communication for days, turning to weeks from our extended family. We did not have internet, cell phones, email; only rotary phones working from landlines. My relatives in Cyprus were in refugee camps with no way of making an international call. My parents lived on the edge with anxieties, unsure if their parents, sisters, aunts, uncles, etc. were even alive. I remember Walter Cronkite night after night updating us on the war as it unfolded.

It took my parents another 5 years before they saved enough money to buy international plane tickets for a family of 4 to visit Cyprus from the US. It was my #rst time meeting my grandparents, aunts, uncles, nieces, & nephews. It was 1979 and I was nine years old. Not one relative died, and they resettled in government sponsored housing in the southern part of the island. They lost all farmland, houses, and retail property. My mother lost her orchards and house. My father lost his farmland where he grew up growing watermelons. We visited understanding the Greek language, as none of my relatives at that time spoke English.

I will share about this visit and more in upcoming episodes.