Welcome to the website of the Albanian American Civic League. The Civic League was founded by former Congressman Joe DioGuardi and a board of Albanian Americans in 1989 as the only registered, volunteer grassroots lobby in Washington, DC, representing the concerns of Albanian Americans about the national cause of seven million Albanians living side by side in Albania, Kosova, Macedonia, Montenegro, Presheve, Medvegje, Bujanoc, and Chameria. The Civic League is registered to lobby the legislative and executive branches of the U.S. government, and it files semi-annual reports with the Secretary of the U.S. Senate and the Clerk of the U.S. House of Representatives.
For highlights of our twenty-year history click here. To view photos click here.
2010
“It’s Time to End the Appeasement of Serbia” by Shirley Cloyes DioGuardi and Roland Gjoni. The authors explain why the international community’s insistence on new talks between Belgrade and Prishtina, without Serbia first recognizing Kosova’s independence, will undermine Kosova’s sovereignty and insure that lasting peace and stability in Southeast Europe remains elusive. September 2010. Please click here for the English version and here for the Albanian. Kliko ketu per shqip.
2009
“The Unfolding Crisis in the Presheva Valley.” Shirley Cloyes DioGuardi details the arrest, torture, and imprisonment of ten Albanian men in Presheva against the backdrop of the deteriorating political, economic, and social conditions for Albanians in Presheva, Medvegje, and Bujanovc. January 2009. Please click here for the English version and here for the Albanian. Kliko ketu per shqip.
2008
“Saving Kosova” by Shirley Cloyes DioGuardi. An analysis of the UN’s “six-point plan” and its potentially devastating consequences for Kosova and the future of all Albanians in Southeast Europe. November 2008. Please click here for the English version and here for the Albanian. Kliko këtu për shqip.
“Kosova Adrift” by Shirley Cloyes DioGuardi. Based on a fact-finding mission to Kosova, Cloyes DioGuardi outlines the various forces that are undermining Kosova’s sovereignty and a stable future for Southeast Europe. July 26, 2008. Please click here for the English version and here for the Albanian. Kliko ketu per shqip.
“The Albanian Question Lingers” by Joe DioGuardi. Based on a keynote address that he gave at a conference in Washington, DC, DioGuardi calls for renewed American effort to prevent the partition of Kosova and to invest in education, economic development, and human rights for all Albanians in the Balkans. August 2, 2008. Please click here for the English version and here for the Albanian. Kliko ketu per shqip.
“Honoring Our Heroes” by Shirley Cloyes DioGuardi. This article is based on remarks made by Cloyes DioGuardi at the Ded Gjo’ Luli celebration in the Bronx, New York. May 7, 2008. Please click here for the English version and here for the Albanian. Kliko ketu per shqip.
Kosova! Why Independence and Why Now? by Joe DioGuardi. DioGuardi reflects on some of the key steps taken in Washington over a twenty-year period that led to the declaration of Kosova’s independence on February 17, 2008. April 8, 2008. Please click here for the English version and here for the Albanian. Kliko ketu per shqip.
“The Albanian American Civic League Applauds Kosova’s Declaration of Independence.” An AACL press release that calls on the U.S. government to recognized the new state immediately. February 21, 2008. Please click here for the English version and here for the Albanian. Kliko ketu per shqip.
Members of the Albanian American Civic League board attend a reception at the St. Regis Hotel in Manhattan for Republican Presidential candidate John McCain. January 22, 2008. An article with photos was written by Beqir Sina about this important event. Please click here for the English version and here for the Albanian.
2007
“Albanians and Jews: An Historic Milestone in Israel” by Shirley Cloyes DioGuardi. This article includes a timeline about the activities of the Albanian American Civic League and Foundation on behalf of Albanian-Jewish relations since 1990. December 2007. Please click here for the English version and here for the Albanian.
New York Times Editorial Letter. Shirley Cloyes DioGuardi publishes a letter in the New York Times on July 17 about the resolution of Kosova’s final status. July 2007. Click here for the English version and here for the Albanian.
“Countdown for Kosova: What’s at Stake at Kennebunkport.” The contents of this article reflect the position of the Albanian American Civic League about the resolution of Kosova’s final status, before, during, and after the inconclusive Bush-Putin summit on July 2. July 2007. Please click here for the English version and here for the Albanian.
THE ROAD TO INDEPENDENCE FOR KOSOVA WAS PAVED BY THE ALBANIAN AMERICAN CIVIC LEAGUE THROUGH THE CONGRESS OF THE UNITED STATES. The historic efforts of the Civic League for the past two decades in support of Kosova’s independence are captured here in text and photo. May 2007. Please click here for the English version and here for the Albanian. Kliko ketu per shqip.
“KOSOVA & THE ROAD TO PEACE IN THE BALKANS.” Congressman Tom Lantos, Joe DioGuardi, and Shirley Cloyes DioGuardi participated in a panel discussion at the National Committee on American Foreign Policy in New York City. April 23, 2007. Please click here for the English version of Cloyes’ introductory comments and here for the Albanian. Kliko ketu per shqip.
“THE TERRORS OF JUSTICE IN MONTENEGRO/FREE THE TUZI FOURTEEN.” Shirley Cloyes DioGuardi explains why fourteen Albanians, including three American citizens, who were tortured and jailed in Montenegro in September 2006, are still in prison. April 2007. Please click here for the English version and here for the Albanian. Kliko ketu per shqip.
THE AHTISAARI PLAN: CAVEAT EMPTOR. Shirley Cloyes’ critique of UN Envoy Martti Ahtisaari’s proposal for the resolution of Kosova’s final status. February 2007. Please click here for the English version and here for the Albanian. Kliko këtu për shqip.
“DOCUMENT OF THE COMMITTEE OF CHAM ALBANIANS IN EXILE ON GREEK PERSECUTION OF THE CHAMS”. Excellent English translation by Peter Prifti. This important document, which was originally published in Albanian by Professor Dr. Agron Fico in Diaspora e Rilindur, records the terrible fate of the Chams, from the Greek occupation of Chameria in 1913 to the massacre and expulsion of Cham Albanians by Greek fascists at the end of World War II. February 2007. Click here for the full text in English.
LANTOS AND ROS-LEHTINEN INTRODUCE RESOLUTION FOR KOSOVA’S INDEPENDENCE. Albanian American Civic League is pleased to announce that Congressman Tom Lantos, Chairman of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, and Congresswoman Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, the Committee’s Ranking Republican, have introduced H.Res. 36 in support of the independence of Kosova. January 2007. Please click here for the English version of the resolution and our press release and here for the Albanian. Kliko këtu për shqip.
SENATOR JOSEPH BIDEN ON KOSOVA AND MONTENEGRO. Senator Joe Biden continues to make a significant contribution to the cause of lasting peace in Southeast Europe, as the attached documents demonstrate. The first is his January 3rd commentary in The Financial Times of London, entitled “Opponents of a new Kosovo must be stopped.” The second is the letter that he sent last November at the urging of the Civic League to Montenegrin Prime Minister Zeljko Sturanovic on behalf of the fourteen Albanians tortured and jailed in Montenegro. January 2007. Please click here for the English version and here for the Albanian. Kliko këtu për shqip.
Joe DioGuardi, the founder of the Albanian American Civic League, and former Congressman. Please click on Joe DioGuardi’s name to view his biography.
Shirley Cloyes, Balkans Affair Adviser of the Albanian American Civic League. Please click on her name to view her biography.
National Geographic, “Albania: A People Undone”—This article, featured in the February 2000 issue of National Geographic, discusses the history and culture of the Albanian people in the Balkans and is accompanied by a beautiful photographic layout.
The Agony of Kosova—Joseph DioGuardi provides in this well-documented resource book a clear picture of the systematic repression and atrocities that Kosovar Albanians suffered in the early years (1989-1992) of Serbia’s decade-long occupation of Kosova, and makes the argument for Kosova’s independence as the only just and lasting solution to the Balkan conflict.
The Expulsion of the Albanians—a memorandum presented on March 7, 1937 (two years before the “final solution” was formulated in Nazi Germany) showing how the Serbian regime planned to brutally repress, expel, and exterminate the Albanians of Kosova.