Tweet
Daily Sundial, CSUN.edu, CA
Oct 2012
Levon Parian shares story of genocide, salvation
By Christina Pembleton
October 7th, 2012
A revered lifestyle as a soldier, betrayal, escape and years of
salvation were all part of Levon Yotnakhparian's story, but his life
is a lesser-known facet of the Armenian Genocide that his family is
ready to make known.
Levon Parian, Yotnakhparian's grandson and a professor of art
photography at CSUN, collected pictures, letters and stories from
other family members for three years before publishing his
grandfather's memoirs in `Crows of the Desert.' The historical story
reflects Yotnakhparian's life-saving journey.
`People are wondering where it has been all this time, and why haven't
they heard of this,' Parian said.
Before his death, Yotnakhparian dictated the story to his wife, took
the writings to a novelist who changed the factual history, and left
the author unsatisfied. Parian decided to publish the facts at the
request of his late father.
When Yotnakhparian enlisted in the Ottoman cavalry, he had no idea
that history would change before his eyes as the Turks turned on his
people.
`He saw the transformation,' Parian said. `Armenian soldiers were
highly regarded. And next thing you know they are being put into work
camps, work details to be killed. He's lucky he found people that were
good that wanted to take care of him and protect him.'
He decided to pay it forward by escaping from the military and making
it his mission to save the oppressed Armenian survivors and orphans.
After years of help from world leaders, Yotnakhparian rescued over
4,000 people.
These protectors offered him services that even officials could not
obtain including documents to stop trains so that Yotnakhparian could
transport the rescued orphans, according to Parian.
`These people knew that if they didn't win, they would see everyone in
their family slaughtered. A different kind of mentality forms when you
know that everybody is going to die than when you're the aggressor,'
Parian said.
Turkey, the aggressor, does not recognize this event as genocide.
According to Parian's publication, reformers known as the Young Turks
overthrew Ottoman rule and systematically changed the way the empire
was run. Rather than granting civil rights to those in the empire, the
Turks were determined to `Turkify' every person.
`The Armenians, being the empire's most industrious, and in many ways
most advanced minority, were perceived by the Young Turks to be a
threat to Turkishness,' Parian said in `Crows of the Desert.'
Once the Turks were convinced that the Armenians must be killed, they
went after the Armenian population. The term `genocide' was created by
Raphael Lemkin to describe the Armenian killings, according to Parian.
`Historians recognize that there was a genocide. The word genocide is
derived from the fact that this happened,' Parian said.
Dr. Vahram Shemmassian, a professor of Armenian studies classes under
CSUN's modern and classical languages and literatures department, has
done research on survivors of the genocide and the difficulty they
encountered. He teaches about the genocide for at least one week in
each class, and some students write their research papers on the
topic.
`To this day, Turkey, the perpetrators, denies the Armenian genocide.
It keeps us constantly seeking justice and recognition regardless of
the generation,' Shemmassian said.
The nearly 30-year-old Armenian studies concentration teaches students
about Armenian heritage because it affects all of humanity, according
to Shemmassian.
`Every Armenian feels the burden on their shoulders because of the
lack of recognition and because each and every one of us has a story
to tell. It's a living testimony. We have felt it in our own skins,'
Shemmassian said.
Approximately 80 percent of Armenian studies students have an Armenian
heritage, and of that group, 95 percent came from public schools where
Armenian heritage and culture are rarely taught, according to
Shemmassian.
`By taking even just one course, I try to put a lot of things into
that course for them to have an idea, a lot of background, or to start
an interest or hobby, or to go and read more about the certain subject
that they like,' he said.
Shemmassian said that he was one of the first people to purchase the
English version of `Crows of the Desert,' and he used some of the
information from the original Armenian version to do research a few
years ago. He uses some of the concepts in the book to describe the
relevancy of the Genocide in today's society.
`The Armenian Genocide, as is the case with the Holocaust or Darfur in
the Sudan or Cambodia or any genocide, is a crime against humanity.
Since we are a part of humanity and another group of humanity is
perpetrating this reprehensible, incomprehensible heinous crime, part
of humanity is being affected,' Shemmassian said.
Parian will be speaking about the book at 7 p.m. on Oct. 11 at the
Glendale Central Library. The lecture will be in English, and
admission is free.
http://sundial.csun.edu/2012/10/levon-parian-shares-story-of-genocide-salvation/
From: A. Papazian
Oct 2012
Levon Parian shares story of genocide, salvation
By Christina Pembleton
October 7th, 2012
A revered lifestyle as a soldier, betrayal, escape and years of
salvation were all part of Levon Yotnakhparian's story, but his life
is a lesser-known facet of the Armenian Genocide that his family is
ready to make known.
Levon Parian, Yotnakhparian's grandson and a professor of art
photography at CSUN, collected pictures, letters and stories from
other family members for three years before publishing his
grandfather's memoirs in `Crows of the Desert.' The historical story
reflects Yotnakhparian's life-saving journey.
`People are wondering where it has been all this time, and why haven't
they heard of this,' Parian said.
Before his death, Yotnakhparian dictated the story to his wife, took
the writings to a novelist who changed the factual history, and left
the author unsatisfied. Parian decided to publish the facts at the
request of his late father.
When Yotnakhparian enlisted in the Ottoman cavalry, he had no idea
that history would change before his eyes as the Turks turned on his
people.
`He saw the transformation,' Parian said. `Armenian soldiers were
highly regarded. And next thing you know they are being put into work
camps, work details to be killed. He's lucky he found people that were
good that wanted to take care of him and protect him.'
He decided to pay it forward by escaping from the military and making
it his mission to save the oppressed Armenian survivors and orphans.
After years of help from world leaders, Yotnakhparian rescued over
4,000 people.
These protectors offered him services that even officials could not
obtain including documents to stop trains so that Yotnakhparian could
transport the rescued orphans, according to Parian.
`These people knew that if they didn't win, they would see everyone in
their family slaughtered. A different kind of mentality forms when you
know that everybody is going to die than when you're the aggressor,'
Parian said.
Turkey, the aggressor, does not recognize this event as genocide.
According to Parian's publication, reformers known as the Young Turks
overthrew Ottoman rule and systematically changed the way the empire
was run. Rather than granting civil rights to those in the empire, the
Turks were determined to `Turkify' every person.
`The Armenians, being the empire's most industrious, and in many ways
most advanced minority, were perceived by the Young Turks to be a
threat to Turkishness,' Parian said in `Crows of the Desert.'
Once the Turks were convinced that the Armenians must be killed, they
went after the Armenian population. The term `genocide' was created by
Raphael Lemkin to describe the Armenian killings, according to Parian.
`Historians recognize that there was a genocide. The word genocide is
derived from the fact that this happened,' Parian said.
Dr. Vahram Shemmassian, a professor of Armenian studies classes under
CSUN's modern and classical languages and literatures department, has
done research on survivors of the genocide and the difficulty they
encountered. He teaches about the genocide for at least one week in
each class, and some students write their research papers on the
topic.
`To this day, Turkey, the perpetrators, denies the Armenian genocide.
It keeps us constantly seeking justice and recognition regardless of
the generation,' Shemmassian said.
The nearly 30-year-old Armenian studies concentration teaches students
about Armenian heritage because it affects all of humanity, according
to Shemmassian.
`Every Armenian feels the burden on their shoulders because of the
lack of recognition and because each and every one of us has a story
to tell. It's a living testimony. We have felt it in our own skins,'
Shemmassian said.
Approximately 80 percent of Armenian studies students have an Armenian
heritage, and of that group, 95 percent came from public schools where
Armenian heritage and culture are rarely taught, according to
Shemmassian.
`By taking even just one course, I try to put a lot of things into
that course for them to have an idea, a lot of background, or to start
an interest or hobby, or to go and read more about the certain subject
that they like,' he said.
Shemmassian said that he was one of the first people to purchase the
English version of `Crows of the Desert,' and he used some of the
information from the original Armenian version to do research a few
years ago. He uses some of the concepts in the book to describe the
relevancy of the Genocide in today's society.
`The Armenian Genocide, as is the case with the Holocaust or Darfur in
the Sudan or Cambodia or any genocide, is a crime against humanity.
Since we are a part of humanity and another group of humanity is
perpetrating this reprehensible, incomprehensible heinous crime, part
of humanity is being affected,' Shemmassian said.
Parian will be speaking about the book at 7 p.m. on Oct. 11 at the
Glendale Central Library. The lecture will be in English, and
admission is free.
http://sundial.csun.edu/2012/10/levon-parian-shares-story-of-genocide-salvation/
From: A. Papazian