The Georgia House of Representatives honored the Bosnian-American community on Monday with a resolution and ceremony at the state Capitol marking “March 1, 2015 as Bosnian-American Day.”
The resolution was sponsored by the following members of the Georgia House: Buzz Brockway of Lawrenceville, Joyce Chandler of Grayson, David Clark of Buford, Valerie Clark of Lawrenceville, Brooks Coleman of Duluth and Chuck Efstration of Dacula.
The event was held on Bosnia and Herzegovina’s Independence Day, 23 years after its citizens voted for independence from the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia.
After Bosnia and Herzegovina seceded, Yugoslavia was considered dissolved into five successor states: Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Macedonia, Slovenia and former Yugoslavia, later divided into Serbia and Montenegro.
About 60 Bosnians attended the ceremony with many of the women wearing traditional dresses.
The resolution was highly complimentary of the cultures of Bosnia and Herzegovina, specifically referring to their literature, music, architecture and their “unique” and “creative” ways of interacting between different religions and civilizations.
It also referred positively to a country that having suffered bitterly at the time of its independence, saying that it now is “open and warm, hospitable and friendly…”
Metro Atlanta benefits from the presence of the Bosnian-American community, according to the resolution, “through multiple businesses, restaurants and shops.”
The resolution also says that “the Bosnian community has combined their rich culture with the great American way of life and first, second and even third generations of Bosnian-Americans are living the American Dream.”
Darrel Duliman, outreach coordinator of the Federation of Balkan American Associations, told Global Atlanta that there are an estimated 10,000 Bosnian-Americans living in Georgia.
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