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ANC Florida Educates Thousands of Floridians

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  • ANC Florida Educates Thousands of Floridians

    PRESS RELEASE
    Armenian National Committee of South Florida
    931 NE 48 Street
    Fort Lauderdale, FL 33334
    Contact: Michael Toumayan
    Tel: 561-716-6155
    E-mail: [email protected]
    Web: http://www.anca.org

    ANC FLORIDA EDUCATES THOUSANDS OF FLORIDIANS

    FORT LAUDERDALE, FLA - Thousands of Floridians, from the serene
    Panhandle to sultry Miami, attended the System of a Down concerts in
    Pensacola, Orlando and Fort Lauderdale held from August 15-17. While
    enjoying the music of one of rock music's most notable bands, they
    were also apprised of the ongoing fight for United States recognition
    of the Armenian Genocide, reported the Armenian National Committee of
    Florida.

    Young politically aspired activists from organizations such as the
    Armenian National Committee of South Florida, Axis of Justice, Amnesty
    International Miami chapter, and Florida Voter Registration, set up
    booths at the entrances of the Office Depot Center in Fort Lauderdale
    at the request of System of a Down (SOAD) to educate the public about
    injustices occurring throughout the world.

    Representing the Armenian National Committee of South Florida were
    activist Taniel Koushakjian, and ANCA 2004 summer intern Michael
    Toumayan. The two Hai Tahd activists provided critical analysis of the
    injustice behind many of the Turkish government's policies, thereby
    convincing over 200 people to sign a petition in less than 2 hours in
    support of the House Resolution (H.Res.) 316, which would reaffirm the
    U.S. record on the Armenian Genocide.

    The petition titled `End the Cycle of Genocide' is a two-part letter
    addressed to the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Rep. Dennis
    Hastert, urging him to work for a timely passage of legislation
    recognizing the Armenian Genocide, and to work for the passage of the
    Darfur Peace and Accountability Act to bring an end to the systematic
    massacres and forced starvation in the Darfur region of Sudan.

    Toumayan and Koushakjian came across two SOAD fans of Turkish
    ancestry. `When Taniel asked them to sign the petition, they looked at
    us and pointed to the red Crescent and Star imprinted on their
    t-shirts, indicating that they were Turkish and do not support our
    cause that contradicts their views,'said Toumayan.

    Many fans of Armenian ancestry came running to the ANC booth when they
    recognized the tri-colored ANCA logo in the background. For them, a
    System of a Down Concert is the ultimate venue for marrying their
    concern for the Armenian Cause with their enjoyment of contemporary
    music they can relate to. The Armenian flag could be seen fading in
    crowd in the monumental arena as thousands jumped up and down and
    shook their heads to SOAD's revolutionary, adrenaline pumping music.
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