Name Ekrem Bardha | Titles Activism, Businessperson | |
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Ekrem bardha portret investitori
Ekrem Bardha (born 13 May 1933) is an Albanian American businessman, leader of the Albanian National Front in Michigan (Balli Kombëtar), co-founder of the National Albanian American Council (NAAC), and former owner of Illyria Newspaper. He is currently serving as Albania's Honorary Consul in Michigan and is regarded as one of the most successful Albanians in America.
Contents
- Ekrem bardha portret investitori
- Ekrem bardha dhe kompania 4000
- Early life
- Political activity
- References
Ekrem bardha dhe kompania 4000
Early life
Bardha was born in the southern village of Radanj in Kolonjë District, Albania. Having escaped from the strict Albanian communist regime in 1953, after one of his brothers was jailed for political reasons, he settled in Detroit and went into the restaurant business. He eventually became the owner of 18 McDonald's fast-food franchises, which grossed over $25 million a year.
Political activity
Bardha, with congressman William Broomfield and others, contributed to the saving of arrested political activist Pjeter Ivezaj in Montenegro and was the reason the US threatened Yugoslavias favored nation status if Ivezaj was not released. Congressman Broomfield and Bardha testified before a congressional human rights committee regarding human rights abuses in Serbia against ethnic Albanians. Bardha has a lifetime as a human rights activist and has met with eight of U.S. Presidents for the Albanian/Kosovo cause. President Nixon assured him in his own handwriting after a meeting that he will refuse the Greek ambitions in Albania at any cost. Bardha also met with President Bill Clinton before the bombing of Serbia by NATO and was assured that Kosovo will be freed from Serbian oppression.
