THI is a global diasporic organization undertaking philanthropic and grant-giving work in Greece while the majority in its board of directors are involved in global investing including Greece. It maintains strong hubs in the USA, London, Canada, and Australia, enjoying grassroots and elite support.
In my initial work I identified two intertwined modalities of citizenship practiced by the organization, which I called emotional and neoliberal. The meeting in Athens reminded me of two passages I had located which in juxtaposition indicated the alignment of THI’s language of institutional identity with New Democracy’s language of political identity. The connecting thread was along the principles of neoliberal citizenship.
I am sharing the following tentative writing, though the quotes I cite firmly establish the convergence between THI and New Democracy's political philosophy.
It is unusual and risky to publish a draft in such an early stage, but I make it public anyway in case fellow scholars wish to build on this observation. This is an important political issue regarding diaspora-Greece affiliations, and I hope it will spark the interest of the research community if it has not already.
[July 24, 2026]
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The Hellenic Initiative’s (THI) ideology links emotional with neoliberal citizenship by building on the trope I identified earlier, heroism. Specifically, it draws an analogy between its project to rebuild Greece with that of Filiki Eteria’s, an early nineteenth century revolutionary organization founded with the purpose of establishing an independent Greek state. In fact, THI has inscribed this line of identification in its organizational structure by creating The 1821 Society (1821 marking the start of the Greek revolution against the Ottoman empire):
"The 1821 Society has been founded by The Hellenic Initiative as a new “Philiki Eteria” (the secret society founded in 1814 by Diaspora Greeks to fight for Greek Independence). As modern-day Diaspora Greeks, we are as committed to that freedom for Greece as our ancestors ever were. Today, that cause means helping Greece rebuild its economy, reversing the brain drain, and addressing Greece’s humanitarian needs." (NHI’s website, 2023[check])
[One-year individual membership for the Freedom Fighters section of the 1821 Society is $1821.
Two-year individual/couple membership for the Lord Byron section of the 1821 Society is $18,210.]
And along similar lines in the most recent statement (2026) about the mission of The 1821 Society:
"The 1821 Society is The Hellenic Initiative’s global membership community, bringing together Hellenes and Philhellenes who are committed to strengthening Greece and advancing Hellenism around the world.
In 1821, as Greece fought for independence from the Ottoman Empire, the effort extended far beyond its borders, supported by diaspora Greeks and Philhellenes who mobilized resources, influence, and advocacy. In 1814 they founded “Philiki Eteria,” a secret society dedicated to the cause of Greece’s liberation.
Nearly two centuries later, during Greece’s economic crisis, that same spirit reemerged. Once again, the Greek diaspora stepped forward, this time to help rebuild the country’s economy, support its people, and create opportunity for future generations. This was the spirit under which The Hellenic Initiative was founded."
The language of freedom in the context of the Greece crisis necessarily evokes the desire to free Greece from its economic dependency, from the immense debt to foreign creditors, the infamous troika, which bailed out the country from bankruptcy. But it could also translate today as the aim of aiding Greece through investments to negotiate its current enormous debt [cite numbers].
The lexicon of economic development as freedom aligns with the ideology of neoliberal economy [cite Frazer], which is currently central in the ruling New Democracy (ND) party. As Yiannis Mylonas (2021) notes, “One of ND’s potentially most catchy electoral TV and social media ad [in the 2019/check electoral campaign] stressed that ‘development means freedom.’”
Visualized through the depiction of people moving towards open horizons, this message contains a utopian dimension to appeal to the voters’ emancipation desires, spinning neoliberal economic activity toward what xxx frames as “forward thinking and liberatory” (Fraser 2019: 15). (193)
In its commitment to Greece [identify its problems] THI recognizes the structural deficiencies of the country. But it refrains from addressing structural problems linked with poverty, unemployment, part-time employment lacking benefits, soaring real estate prices and cost of everyday necessities (food, electricity, housing). Its approach to the grim realities of poverty, which it acknowledges, is limited to an emphasis in supporting nonprofit relief organization which may alleviate hardship and poverty for some but does not solve the problems that ravage not only the working poor but also the low middle and increasingly the middle class. It also refrains from deliberating of how these social ills may connect with neoliberal capitalist practices. Investments are not translated into major developments in capital-labor relations (level of wages, health care benefits) or environmental preservation. Capitalist development as the promise of freedom appears as a panacea at a time when a list of freedoms, the freedom of the press for example, or the freedom to afford decent housing are seriously compromised in the country. By refraining to deliberate on these issues, THI’s linear view of a redemptive future may be contributing to greater financial freedom for some and at the same time the unfreedom of many others.
Work Cited
Yiannis Mylonas. 2021. "Crisis, Authoritarian Neoliberalism, and the Return of 'New Democracy' to Power in Greece." Stasis.
Yiorgos Anagnostou
Draft 2023
Draft 2023
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