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DOCUMENTARY ON ARMENIAN GENOCIDE TO BE SHOWN IN RACINE
16:17, 16 March, 2015
YEREVAN, MARCH 16, ARMENPRESS. A film being shown at Racine's Golden
Rondelle Theater on Thursday tells a powerful story that will be new
to many, yet all too familiar to others.
"Orphans of the Genocide" tells part of a larger story of the Armenian
genocide of 1915, through the eyes of some of its more than 130,000
orphaned children. The documentary, by Emmy Award-winning director
Bared Maronian, focuses on one orphanage where 1,000 Armenian genocide
orphans lived and were forcefully converted to Turkish beliefs and
culture during World War I.
As reports "Armenpress" citing The Journal Times, he 90-minute film
features never-before-seen archival footage, as well as discovered
memoirs of orphans. And, while it is an Armenian story, it is also
truly an American story, according to Maronian, whose career includes
21 years working for PBS television.
"Americans were the first ones who went through a lot of effort and
raised a lot of money to make sure that at least 132,000 orphans
were saved," the director said during a phone interview from his
Florida home.
Many members of Racine's two Armenian churches - Saint Hagop and
Saint Mesrob - know similar stories because they are children of
genocide orphans. Some know only bits and pieces, as their parents
were reluctant to talk about the atrocities that occurred when the
Ottoman Turkish government attempted to exterminate the indigenous
Armenian population.
More than 1.5 million Armenians were killed between 1915 and 1923,
and the entire population was uprooted from its homeland, which it
had inhabited for more than 3,000 years, according to the Diocese of
the Armenian Church of America. As of today, the Turkish government
has yet to acknowledge the atrocities.
"There has never been a place where the people responsible were brought
to justice by a court of law," said Leon Saryan, a member of Racine's
St. Hagop Church, 4100 N. Newman Road, who lives in Greenfield and
serves as commissioner of the Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District.
Maronian, who is a third-generation genocide survivor, said that
while the orphans' story is a very sad one, it is also bittersweet in
that they not only survived but went on to create whole new nation of
Armenians after the genocide. It is also a story that many audience
members -- Armenian and not -- are shocked or surprised to learn,
he said.
"About 80 percent of the history I learned in making the film was
new to me," said Maronian, who also published a companion book to
help tell the many stories he couldn't fit in the film.
The film screening is one of a series of area events scheduled
throughout 2015 to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the genocide.
Saryan and other members of St. Hagop and St. Mesrob serve on
a committee with members of Milwaukee's two Armenian churches -
St. John the Baptist and Holy Resurrection - that is planning special
services, concerts and other programs here as part of a worldwide
100th anniversary movement.
The yearlong commemoration is not only about remembering the victims of
the genocide, but about telling their story in hopes of preventing such
atrocities from happening again, said the Rev. Yeprem Kelegian, pastor
at St. Mesrob Church, 4605 Erie St., and the son of a genocide orphan.
Its goal is to create a better understanding of what happened, not
just for Armenians but for everyone, Saryan said.
"We're seeing other instances of man's inhumanity to man playing out
right now in other parts of the world," said Saryan, whose father
was also a genocide orphan. "Raising awareness of what happened to
Armenians will, hopefully, give people the opportunity to reflect on
where this kind of thing goes when you step off the edge."
http://armenpress.am/eng/news/797826/documentary-on-armenian-genocide-to-be-shown-in-racine.html
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
16:17, 16 March, 2015
YEREVAN, MARCH 16, ARMENPRESS. A film being shown at Racine's Golden
Rondelle Theater on Thursday tells a powerful story that will be new
to many, yet all too familiar to others.
"Orphans of the Genocide" tells part of a larger story of the Armenian
genocide of 1915, through the eyes of some of its more than 130,000
orphaned children. The documentary, by Emmy Award-winning director
Bared Maronian, focuses on one orphanage where 1,000 Armenian genocide
orphans lived and were forcefully converted to Turkish beliefs and
culture during World War I.
As reports "Armenpress" citing The Journal Times, he 90-minute film
features never-before-seen archival footage, as well as discovered
memoirs of orphans. And, while it is an Armenian story, it is also
truly an American story, according to Maronian, whose career includes
21 years working for PBS television.
"Americans were the first ones who went through a lot of effort and
raised a lot of money to make sure that at least 132,000 orphans
were saved," the director said during a phone interview from his
Florida home.
Many members of Racine's two Armenian churches - Saint Hagop and
Saint Mesrob - know similar stories because they are children of
genocide orphans. Some know only bits and pieces, as their parents
were reluctant to talk about the atrocities that occurred when the
Ottoman Turkish government attempted to exterminate the indigenous
Armenian population.
More than 1.5 million Armenians were killed between 1915 and 1923,
and the entire population was uprooted from its homeland, which it
had inhabited for more than 3,000 years, according to the Diocese of
the Armenian Church of America. As of today, the Turkish government
has yet to acknowledge the atrocities.
"There has never been a place where the people responsible were brought
to justice by a court of law," said Leon Saryan, a member of Racine's
St. Hagop Church, 4100 N. Newman Road, who lives in Greenfield and
serves as commissioner of the Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District.
Maronian, who is a third-generation genocide survivor, said that
while the orphans' story is a very sad one, it is also bittersweet in
that they not only survived but went on to create whole new nation of
Armenians after the genocide. It is also a story that many audience
members -- Armenian and not -- are shocked or surprised to learn,
he said.
"About 80 percent of the history I learned in making the film was
new to me," said Maronian, who also published a companion book to
help tell the many stories he couldn't fit in the film.
The film screening is one of a series of area events scheduled
throughout 2015 to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the genocide.
Saryan and other members of St. Hagop and St. Mesrob serve on
a committee with members of Milwaukee's two Armenian churches -
St. John the Baptist and Holy Resurrection - that is planning special
services, concerts and other programs here as part of a worldwide
100th anniversary movement.
The yearlong commemoration is not only about remembering the victims of
the genocide, but about telling their story in hopes of preventing such
atrocities from happening again, said the Rev. Yeprem Kelegian, pastor
at St. Mesrob Church, 4605 Erie St., and the son of a genocide orphan.
Its goal is to create a better understanding of what happened, not
just for Armenians but for everyone, Saryan said.
"We're seeing other instances of man's inhumanity to man playing out
right now in other parts of the world," said Saryan, whose father
was also a genocide orphan. "Raising awareness of what happened to
Armenians will, hopefully, give people the opportunity to reflect on
where this kind of thing goes when you step off the edge."
http://armenpress.am/eng/news/797826/documentary-on-armenian-genocide-to-be-shown-in-racine.html
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress