Tweet
HOLOCAUST MUSEUM SPOTLIGHTS 100TH ANNIVERSARY OF ARMENIAN GENOCIDE
Chicago Tribune, IL
Feb 10 2015
By Mike Isaacs Pioneer Presscontact the reporter
Some 100 years later, the black-and-white photo, grainy and archaic
as it may be, remains ghastly and gruesome, documentation of grand
inhumanity still difficult to digest today.
The remains of a woman and two young children lay lifeless, starved
to death and apparent victims of the Armenian genocide that dates
back to 1915.
Tragically, other global genocide -- whether the Holocaust waged by
Nazi Germany against the Jews or barbarity more recent and current ---
have produced their own photos documenting systematic, brutal murder,
efforts to eliminate a demographic of human beings.
In marking the 100th anniversary of the Armenian genocide with a
symposium Feb. 8 at Skokie's Illinois Holocaust Museum, a panelist
concluded that every genocide is unique and yet every genocide is
the same.
lRelated Skokie Lifestyles and EntertainmentSee all related 8
"The magnitude of them could be different, the causes of them could
be different, but there tends to be common elements that you see
persistently through most of them," said Shant Mardirossian, chairman
of the Near East Foundation.
One of the most basic is dehumanization of a group of people.
Eventually targeted for persecution, those people become regarded as
less than human beings so attempts to eliminate them take on a warped
and skewed sense of morality.
The most publicized difference about the Armenian genocide, though,
is the controversial refusal of the Turkish government to recognize
a horrific chapter in history as genocide.
Turkey and some aligned with it have admitted atrocities have occurred,
but it has been steadfast in maintaining that they were not pre-planned
against a designated group, rather the results of the ravages of war.
cComments Got something to say? Start the conversation and be the
first to comment.
Add a comment 0
"The Ottoman state certainly deserves the blame for letting this
happen," states the Stanford University Turkish Association. "However,
the evidence tells that it is the inability of the state to
control its provinces, rather than its intended plan, that lead
to the atrocities. The government authority in most of that area
in question was limited to a network of alliances with Turkish and
Kurdish warlords, over which it had limited control."
It is a contention countered by the great majority of historians and
a continued source of pain for many Armenians who say the truth must
be recognized.
It's estimated that 1.5 million Armenians were massacred during the
events of the Armenian genocide.
Most sources agree that there were more than two million Armenians
in the Ottoman Empire before the genocide. Massacres and deportations
reduced that number through 1923.
The University of Minnesota's Center for Holocaust and Genocide
Studies suggest its research shows there were 2.1 million Armenians
in the empire in 1914, 387,800 left by 1922.
According to Armenian genocide scholar Dr. Peter Balakian, there
remains only 30,000 to 40,000 Armenians in Turkey.
Raphael Lemkin, a Polish Lawyer of Jewish descent, first coined the
term "genocide" in 1944 to describe the systematic extermination of
Armenians and Assyrians during and after World War I.
"Lemkin did so much thinking about the extermination of the Armenians,"
Balakian told well over 300 people Feb. 8 at the museum.
"It was vital to his entire lifetime project."
The museum symposium was not the first time the museum has shined a
light on the controversy surrounding the Armenian genocide.
Nearly two years ago, it hosted a talk about the Armenian genocide
followed less than a month later with a two-day conference on the
subject.
Dedicated not only to preserving the history of World War II genocide,
but in teaching about genocide all over the world, the museum describes
its mission this way: "Remember the past, transform the future."
The Armenian genocide addresses both parts of that mission. Until
the truth is recognized, social justice leaders say, history remains
tainted and the future impacted.
Balakian called genocide denial the last step of genocide, echoing
a similar refrain from Jewish Holocaust survivor and Nobel Laureate
Elie Wiesel.
"Constant and aggressive" genocide denial means that first they kill
the victims, and then they kill their memories, Wiesel has said.
The beginning of the Armenian genocide is known as April 24,
1915, when the Turkish government arrested and executed hundreds of
Armenian intellectuals. That began aggressive persecution of Armenians
throughout Turkey, historians say.
Dr. Stephen Smith, executive director of the University of Southern
California Shoah Foundation - Institute for Visual History and
Education, noted that only 30 years marks the beginning of the Armenian
genocide and the end of the Holocaust.
Just as it did in recording the live testimony of Holocaust survivors,
the Shoah Foundation has played a role to preserve testimonies from
first-hand witnesses of the Armenian genocide.
Shown at the Feb. 8 symposium was a partial interview providing a
harrowing account of atrocities observed by a witness.
"I saw with my own eyes a neighbor of mine...They took hold of her
by the hair and [threw] her into the burning fire," she recalls. Her
4-year-old sister died on a train during a deportation and was buried
by the side of the railroad tracks, she said.
The museum's symposium also addressed American response to the Armenian
genocide during and after 1915.
The Near East Relief mobilized ordinary citizens to raise more than
$117 million for emergency relief and services -- the equivalent to
$1.25 billion today.
More than one million Armenian refugees, including 132,000 orphans
were saved because of the effort, which became a model for citizen
and social justice philanthropy.
Most in the audience Feb. 8 were of Armenian descent, coming from
throughout the Chicago area to learn more about the Armenian genocide
and support its recognition.
Countries, including the United States, have been accused of dragging
their feet in making such a declaration -- in large part because of
politics and their relationships with Turkey, panelists said.
"The United States Congress has not forgotten about this genocide,"
assured U.S. Rep. Robert Dold (R-10), chairman of the Congressional
Armenian Caucus.
Dold is one of the lead sponsors of an upcoming resolution on the
Armenian genocide.
"Simply put," he told the crowd, "this resolution will shine a
spotlight on the genocide denial and show that the United States
Congress firmly stands on the side of truth."
In some of the Feb. 8 comments, though, a relatively few still
questioned the legitimacy of calling the horrific events of 100 years
ago a genocide, in line with the position of Turkey.
Panelist Omer Ismail, senior adviser to the Enough Project and
eyewitness of the genocide in Darfur, had an answer for them.
He said it's time to bury the hatchet, acknowledge the truth and to
move forward.
"Come out of this and be clean about it and tell your own government
to move on," he said.
http://www.chicagotribune.com/suburbs/skokie/lifestyles/ct-skr-armenian-genocide-tl-0212-20150210-story.html#page=1
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
Chicago Tribune, IL
Feb 10 2015
By Mike Isaacs Pioneer Presscontact the reporter
Some 100 years later, the black-and-white photo, grainy and archaic
as it may be, remains ghastly and gruesome, documentation of grand
inhumanity still difficult to digest today.
The remains of a woman and two young children lay lifeless, starved
to death and apparent victims of the Armenian genocide that dates
back to 1915.
Tragically, other global genocide -- whether the Holocaust waged by
Nazi Germany against the Jews or barbarity more recent and current ---
have produced their own photos documenting systematic, brutal murder,
efforts to eliminate a demographic of human beings.
In marking the 100th anniversary of the Armenian genocide with a
symposium Feb. 8 at Skokie's Illinois Holocaust Museum, a panelist
concluded that every genocide is unique and yet every genocide is
the same.
lRelated Skokie Lifestyles and EntertainmentSee all related 8
"The magnitude of them could be different, the causes of them could
be different, but there tends to be common elements that you see
persistently through most of them," said Shant Mardirossian, chairman
of the Near East Foundation.
One of the most basic is dehumanization of a group of people.
Eventually targeted for persecution, those people become regarded as
less than human beings so attempts to eliminate them take on a warped
and skewed sense of morality.
The most publicized difference about the Armenian genocide, though,
is the controversial refusal of the Turkish government to recognize
a horrific chapter in history as genocide.
Turkey and some aligned with it have admitted atrocities have occurred,
but it has been steadfast in maintaining that they were not pre-planned
against a designated group, rather the results of the ravages of war.
cComments Got something to say? Start the conversation and be the
first to comment.
Add a comment 0
"The Ottoman state certainly deserves the blame for letting this
happen," states the Stanford University Turkish Association. "However,
the evidence tells that it is the inability of the state to
control its provinces, rather than its intended plan, that lead
to the atrocities. The government authority in most of that area
in question was limited to a network of alliances with Turkish and
Kurdish warlords, over which it had limited control."
It is a contention countered by the great majority of historians and
a continued source of pain for many Armenians who say the truth must
be recognized.
It's estimated that 1.5 million Armenians were massacred during the
events of the Armenian genocide.
Most sources agree that there were more than two million Armenians
in the Ottoman Empire before the genocide. Massacres and deportations
reduced that number through 1923.
The University of Minnesota's Center for Holocaust and Genocide
Studies suggest its research shows there were 2.1 million Armenians
in the empire in 1914, 387,800 left by 1922.
According to Armenian genocide scholar Dr. Peter Balakian, there
remains only 30,000 to 40,000 Armenians in Turkey.
Raphael Lemkin, a Polish Lawyer of Jewish descent, first coined the
term "genocide" in 1944 to describe the systematic extermination of
Armenians and Assyrians during and after World War I.
"Lemkin did so much thinking about the extermination of the Armenians,"
Balakian told well over 300 people Feb. 8 at the museum.
"It was vital to his entire lifetime project."
The museum symposium was not the first time the museum has shined a
light on the controversy surrounding the Armenian genocide.
Nearly two years ago, it hosted a talk about the Armenian genocide
followed less than a month later with a two-day conference on the
subject.
Dedicated not only to preserving the history of World War II genocide,
but in teaching about genocide all over the world, the museum describes
its mission this way: "Remember the past, transform the future."
The Armenian genocide addresses both parts of that mission. Until
the truth is recognized, social justice leaders say, history remains
tainted and the future impacted.
Balakian called genocide denial the last step of genocide, echoing
a similar refrain from Jewish Holocaust survivor and Nobel Laureate
Elie Wiesel.
"Constant and aggressive" genocide denial means that first they kill
the victims, and then they kill their memories, Wiesel has said.
The beginning of the Armenian genocide is known as April 24,
1915, when the Turkish government arrested and executed hundreds of
Armenian intellectuals. That began aggressive persecution of Armenians
throughout Turkey, historians say.
Dr. Stephen Smith, executive director of the University of Southern
California Shoah Foundation - Institute for Visual History and
Education, noted that only 30 years marks the beginning of the Armenian
genocide and the end of the Holocaust.
Just as it did in recording the live testimony of Holocaust survivors,
the Shoah Foundation has played a role to preserve testimonies from
first-hand witnesses of the Armenian genocide.
Shown at the Feb. 8 symposium was a partial interview providing a
harrowing account of atrocities observed by a witness.
"I saw with my own eyes a neighbor of mine...They took hold of her
by the hair and [threw] her into the burning fire," she recalls. Her
4-year-old sister died on a train during a deportation and was buried
by the side of the railroad tracks, she said.
The museum's symposium also addressed American response to the Armenian
genocide during and after 1915.
The Near East Relief mobilized ordinary citizens to raise more than
$117 million for emergency relief and services -- the equivalent to
$1.25 billion today.
More than one million Armenian refugees, including 132,000 orphans
were saved because of the effort, which became a model for citizen
and social justice philanthropy.
Most in the audience Feb. 8 were of Armenian descent, coming from
throughout the Chicago area to learn more about the Armenian genocide
and support its recognition.
Countries, including the United States, have been accused of dragging
their feet in making such a declaration -- in large part because of
politics and their relationships with Turkey, panelists said.
"The United States Congress has not forgotten about this genocide,"
assured U.S. Rep. Robert Dold (R-10), chairman of the Congressional
Armenian Caucus.
Dold is one of the lead sponsors of an upcoming resolution on the
Armenian genocide.
"Simply put," he told the crowd, "this resolution will shine a
spotlight on the genocide denial and show that the United States
Congress firmly stands on the side of truth."
In some of the Feb. 8 comments, though, a relatively few still
questioned the legitimacy of calling the horrific events of 100 years
ago a genocide, in line with the position of Turkey.
Panelist Omer Ismail, senior adviser to the Enough Project and
eyewitness of the genocide in Darfur, had an answer for them.
He said it's time to bury the hatchet, acknowledge the truth and to
move forward.
"Come out of this and be clean about it and tell your own government
to move on," he said.
http://www.chicagotribune.com/suburbs/skokie/lifestyles/ct-skr-armenian-genocide-tl-0212-20150210-story.html#page=1
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress