Mark Krikorian (born ) is an American activist who has been the executive director of the

Center for Immigration Studies The Center for Immigration Studies (CIS) is an American anti-immigration think tank. It favors far lower immigration numbers and produces analyses to further those views. The CIS was founded by historian Otis L. Graham alongside eugenicist a ...

, an American anti-immigration

think tank A think tank, or public policy institute, is a research institute that performs research and advocacy concerning topics such as social policy, political strategy, economics, military, technology, and culture. Most think tanks are non-governme ...

. Since 1995. Krikorian has been a contributor to ''

National Review ''National Review'' is an American conservative editorial magazine, focusing on news and commentary pieces on political, social, and cultural affairs. The magazine was founded by William F. Buckley Jr. in 1955. Its editor-in-chief is Rich L ...

'', a conservative publication. Krikorian is credited with popularizing the concept of illegal immigrant

self-deportation Self-deportation is an approach to dealing with illegal immigration, used in the United States and the United Kingdom, that allows an otherwise inadmissible person to voluntarily depart a country for which they have no legal ties to rather than fac ...

with the term "attrition through enforcement", and is an advisor to

Project 2025 Project 2025 (also known as the 2025 Presidential Transition Project) is a political initiative to reshape the federal government of the United States and consolidate executive power in favor of right-wing policies. The plan was published in ...

, a right-wing conservative political initiative by

the Heritage Foundation The Heritage Foundation (or simply Heritage) is an American Conservatism in the United States, conservative think tank based in Washington, D.C. Founded in 1973, it took a leading role in the conservative movement in the 1980s during the Presi ...

, a conservative think tank.

Early life and education

Krikorian was born in the United States to American-born parents of Armenian descent from the (former) Soviet Republic. His father worked as a chef and restaurant manager, moving his family from New Haven, to Boston, Cleveland, Chicago, and then Boston again, always living in densely Armenian neighborhoods. His parents spoke to their children in

Armenian Armenian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Armenia, a country in the South Caucasus region of Eurasia * Armenians, the national people of Armenia, or people of Armenian descent ** Armenian diaspora, Armenian communities around the ...

but to each other in English. Krikorian knew only Armenian when he entered kindergarten. He lost his right eye to a retinal blastoma while still a baby. He earned his B.A. at

Georgetown University Georgetown University is a private university, private Jesuit research university in Washington, D.C., United States. Founded by Bishop John Carroll (archbishop of Baltimore), John Carroll in 1789, it is the oldest Catholic higher education, Ca ...

and a master's at the

Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy The Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy is the graduate school of international affairs of Tufts University, in Medford, Massachusetts. Fletcher is one of America's oldest graduate schools of international relations. As of 2017, the student bo ...

Tufts University Tufts University is a private research university in Medford and Somerville, Massachusetts, United States, with additional facilities in Boston and Grafton, as well as Talloires, France. Tufts also has several Doctor of Physical Therapy p ...

, further spending two years studying at the

Yerevan State University Yerevan State University (YSU; , , ), also simply University of Yerevan, is the oldest continuously operating public university in Armenia. Founded in 1919, it is the largest university in the country. It is thus informally known as Armenia's ...

in then-

Soviet Armenia The Armenian Soviet Socialist Republic (ArSSR), also known as Soviet Armenia, or simply Armenia, was one of the Republics of the Soviet Union, constituent republics of the Soviet Union, located in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Soviet Armenia ...

Career

Krikorian was an editor at the '' Winchester Star'', a local newspaper in Virginia, and worked as

editor Editing is the process of selecting and preparing written, visual, audible, or cinematic material used by a person or an entity to convey a message or information. The editing process can involve correction, condensation, organization, a ...

of an

electronic media Electronic media are media that use electronics or electromechanical means for the audience to access the content. This is in contrast to static media (mainly print media), which today are most often created digitally, but do not require ele ...

publication on

marketing Marketing is the act of acquiring, satisfying and retaining customers. It is one of the primary components of Business administration, business management and commerce. Marketing is usually conducted by the seller, typically a retailer or ma ...

. He wrote for the monthly newsletter of the

Federation for American Immigration Reform The Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR) is a nonprofit, anti-immigration organization in the United States. The group publishes position papers, organizes events, and runs campaigns in order to advocate for changes in U.S. immigr ...

, before joining CIS in February 1995. A comment in one of his articles in the ''National Review'' was called misogynistic; he had said about President Obama that he was "an effete vacillator who is pushed around by his female subordinates". In January 2013,

ABC News ABC News most commonly refers to: * ABC News (Australia), a national news service of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation * ABC News (United States), a news-gathering and broadcasting division of the American Broadcasting Company ABC News may a ...

listed Krikorian as one of the top 20 immigration experts to follow on

Twitter Twitter, officially known as X since 2023, is an American microblogging and social networking service. It is one of the world's largest social media platforms and one of the most-visited websites. Users can share short text messages, image ...

in the United States. In September 2024 Krikorian testified before Congress, being questioned about comments he made about Haiti, which he said was "so screwed up because it wasn't colonized long enough".

Books

*''The New Case Against Immigration, Both Legal and Illegal'', Sentinel HC, 2008. *''How Obama is Transforming America Through Immigration'', Encounter Broadsides, 2010. *''Open Immigration: Yea and Nay'', By Mark Krikorian and

Alex Nowrasteh Alexander Nowrasteh is an American analyst of immigration policy currently working at the Cato Institute, a libertarian think tank located in Washington D.C. Nowrasteh is an advocate of freer migration to the United States. He previously worked ...

Encounter Books Encounter Books is a book publisher in the United States known for publishing conservative authors. It was named for '' Encounter'', the now defunct literary magazine founded by Irving Kristol and Stephen Spender. Based in New York City since 20 ...

, 2014.

References

External links

Mark Krikorian's Biography
at CIS *
Washington Post Biography
{{DEFAULTSORT:Krikorian, Mark Year of birth missing (living people) Georgetown University alumni American people of Armenian descent Living people Anti-immigration activists The Fletcher School at Tufts University alumni