The Forgotten Genocide - Armenians in 1915

Tomorrow Armenians across the world will remember those that perished between 1915 and 1917 at the hands of Ottoman Empire.

As an Armenian, and someone who lost family members in this massacre, this is a very dear subject to me, and I just wanted to share some info about it with my fellow DUers.

One of the 'problems' with the Armenian Genocide is not all countries are willing to recognize it. US for example to this day doesn't recognize it as Genocide, because they don't want to upset Turkey. Turkey of course to this day denies it did anything wrong, saying it was all part of the war. 1.5 million people were killed, in droves, you tell me, genocide or not?

Anyways, here's a good article about Canada recognizing it as genocide:
http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/nm/20040422/wl_canada_nm/canada_turkey_armenians_col_1

And this is an excellent site if you want to know more: http://www.genocide1915.info/

If you get a chance see the ABC World New video they have on the site, or look through the photos.

German Ambassador to the Ottoman Empire July 10, 1916, cable to the German Chancellor
"In its attempt to carry out its purpose to resolve the Armenian question by the destruction of the Armenian race, the Turkish government has refused to be deterred neither by our representations, nor by those of the American Embassy, nor by the delegate of the Pope, nor by the threats of the Allied Powers, nor in deference to the public opinion of the West representing one-half of the world."

Adolf Hitler, while persuading his associates that a Jewish holocaust would be tolerated by the west stated…
"Who, after all, speaks today of the annihilation of the Armenians?"

...I'm not Armenian, but have a few Armenian friends. Even before I knew them, though, I was aware of this tragedy. This horror. Thanks for the links. They help.

Link:
<http://www.anca.org/anca/pressrel.asp?prid=553&pressregion=other>

(snip)
New York Times Reverses Policy on Armenian Genocide
    -- ANCA Welcomes Historic Move by Newspaper to Properly Characterize
      Armenian Genocide

WOODSIDE, NY - In a move aimed at reaffirming its past record on the first genocide of the 20th Century, the New York Times has lifted its long-standing policy against the use of the term "Armenian Genocide," reported the Armenian National Committee (ANC) of New York.

According to a news release by the International Association of Genocide Scholars, The New York Times revised guideline for journalists states that “after careful study of scholarly definitions of ‘genocide,’ we have decided to accept the term in references to the Turks’ mass destruction of Armenians in and around 1915.”  The policy goes on to note that “the expression ‘Armenian genocide’ may be used freely and should not be qualified with phrasing like ‘what Armenians call,’ etc.”  more. . .
(snip)

Note: ". . .should not be qualified with phrasing like 'what Armenians call'. . ."

About f**kin' time.


:kick:

...i guess better really late, than never

Link:
http://www.motherjones.com/cgi-bin/print_article.pl?url=http://www.motherjones.com/news/dailymojo/2004/04/04_534.html


:kick:

..great read. My family and I went through a very minor version of the events of 1915 in the late 1980's. We lived in Baku, Azerbaijan, when the war broke out between Armenia and Azerbaijan. We've lost a lot, in terms of material things, and family members and friends...Granted, it was nothing like 1915, and I wouldn't wish that to repeat to anyone, ever again.

The Ottoman Empire had a vicious army.
My Grandpa was born in a small town in what was then Austria, and is now northeastern Italy. He was a little kid during WWI. He said there was nothing more terrifying than the turkish army riding through his village-they had scimitars, and wore necklaces made of human ears. All the people in the village would hide their sons in the cellars, because they would pick up little boys to train as soldiers or worse. The Ottoman Empire was hoping to get the Balkans in WWI, and my grandpa's village is near the border between Italy, Slovenia (his mother was slovenian, and I have a cousin who still lives there)and Austria, about 30 miles from Trieste.

called "Ararat" that dealt with the Armenian genocide.



http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/B00005JLR5/ref=ase_imdb-adbox/102-8720756-7215361?v=glance&s=dvd

It was excellent.

Elimination Why,
Die Walk Down
A whole race Genocide,
Taken away all of our pride,
A whole race Genocide,
Taken away,
Watch Them all fall down.
Revolution, the only solution,
The armed response of an entire nation,
Revolution, the only solution,
We've taken all your shit, now it's time for restitution.
Recognition, Restoration, Reparation,
Recognition, Restoration, Reparation,
Watch them all fall down.
Revolution, the only solution,
The armed response of an entire nation,
Revolution, the only solution,
We've taken all your shit, now it's time for restitution.
The plan was mastered and called Genocide (Never want to see you around)
Took all the children and then we died, (Never want to see you around)
The few that remained were never found, (Never want to see you around)
All in a system of Down...Down...
Down...Down...Walk Down...
Watch them all fall down,
Revolution, the only solution,
The armed response of an entire nation,
Revolution, the only solution,
We've taken all your shit, now it's time for restitution.
The plan was mastered and called Genocide (Never want to see you around)
Took all the children and then we died, (Never want to see you around)
The few that remained were never found, (Never want to see you around)
All in a system, down

and I have to conclude that these massacres were going on well before 1915, since my grandfather escaped from there and arrived in the U.S. in 1909. Unfortunately, I never knew him as he died at an early age in 1930 when my mother was 7. Except for a brother and a sister who also escaped, his whole family was wiped out, including a young wife.

There's no question these atrocities (genocide) happened, but the U.S. government refuses to recognize it.

...on my father's side, his aunt's mother hid in the bathroom as Turkish soldiers slaughtered (there's no other term for it) her parents, grandparents, 3 brothers, and a sister...she was 8. She's still alive, lives in South Dakota now (talk about a journey), and to this day remembers it.

(When I was a kid, it was had the second largest, but I think it may be third now, I'm not sure.) I've known about this for years. I had friends whose grandparents fled Armenia back then. There are a couple of billboards up about April 24 every year. Our state reps get rememberance events set up at the State House every year.

Someone mentioned a System of a Down song: all the members of that band are Armenian, and they are very active in Armenian causes, particularly regarding recognition of the genocide. They've done fundraisers for these things, and if I remember correctly, they are (or were) doing one this year.

who on March 14, 1921 brought a measure of justice to those slaughtered in the Armenian geocide by murdering Mehmed Talaat, former Interior Minister of Turkey who, in 1915, presided over the murder of nearly 1 million Armenians. Tehlirian was aquitted by a German court under what we would now call temporary insanity. His case sparked the interest of the young Jewish lawyer Raphael Lemkin, who would become the driving force behind the passage of the UN Genocide Convention.

and not jessa big ribba in Egypt...