President Obama today issued a statement which failed to characterize the systemic massacres and ethnic cleansing committed against Armenians 100 years ago as genocide, despite his personally stated view that Armenians suffered a genocide.
Statement by the President on Armenian Remembrance Day
This year we mark the centennial of the Meds Yeghern, the first mass atrocity of the 20th Century. Beginning in 1915, the Armenian people of the Ottoman Empire were deported, massacred, and marched to their deaths. Their culture and heritage in their ancient homeland were erased. Amid horrific violence that saw suffering on all sides, one and a half million Armenians perished.
As the horrors of 1915 unfolded, U.S. Ambassador Henry Morgenthau, Sr. sounded the alarm inside the U.S. government and confronted Ottoman leaders. Because of efforts like his, the truth of the Meds Yeghern emerged and came to influence the later work of human rights champions like Raphael Lemkin, who helped bring about the first United Nations human rights treaty.
Read also
Against this backdrop of terrible carnage, the American and Armenian peoples came together in a bond of common humanity. Ordinary American citizens raised millions of dollars to support suffering Armenian children, and the U.S. Congress chartered the Near East Relief organization, a pioneer in the field of international humanitarian relief. Thousands of Armenian refugees began new lives in the United States, where they formed a strong and vibrant community and became pillars of American society. Rising to great distinction as businesspeople, doctors, scholars, artists, and athletes, they made immeasurable contributions to their new home.
This centennial is a solemn moment. It calls on us to reflect on the importance of historical remembrance, and the difficult but necessary work of reckoning with the past. I have consistently stated my own view of what occurred in 1915, and my view has not changed. A full, frank, and just acknowledgement of the facts is in all our interests. Peoples and nations grow stronger, and build a foundation for a more just and tolerant future, by acknowledging and reckoning with painful elements of the past. We welcome the expression of views by Pope Francis, Turkish and Armenian historians, and the many others who have sought to shed light on this dark chapter of history.
On this solemn centennial, we stand with the Armenian people in remembering that which was lost. We pledge that those who suffered will not be forgotten. And we commit ourselves to learn from this painful legacy, so that future generations may not repeat it.
Armenian Assembly of America Responds to Obama
While the Assembly recognizes that President Obama this year has gone farther than any President since Ronald Reagan in 1981, who acknowledged the genocide of the Armenians, he again stopped short of fulfilling his promise and reaffirming the US record.
On the eve of the 100th anniversary of the beginning of the Armenian Genocide, Bryan Ardouny, Executive Director of the Armenian Assembly of America, issued the following statement:
“President Obama’s exercise in linguistic gymnastics on the Armenian Genocide is unbecoming of the standard he himself set and that of a world leader today. One hundred years ago, a crime without a name took place. The definition of that shameful act can be found in the statement just released by the White House. When America stands apart from the European Parliament, Pope Francis, Germany, Austria, and the International Association of Genocide Scholars, we should pause and think about where we are as a nation. The world should know that while our President bowed to Turkish denial, Armenian Americans and other people of good conscience will never allow our history to be swept under the rug.
In that spirit, the Assembly is recommitted to educating our neighbors, friends, and our communities through the launch of the Armenian Genocide Museum of America. This state-of-the-art online museum (www.armeniangenocidemuseum.org) is dedicated to educating the public about the continuing consequences of the Armenian Genocide and its denial. The interactive site invites visitors to explore the story of the Armenian people and its fateful experience in 1915, and it will serve on the frontlines against genocide denial. Genocide prevention is our obligation and we look forward to the day when the President joins us.”
ANCA Comment on President Obama’s April 24th Statement
WASHINGTON, DC — Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA) Executive Director Aram Hamparian offered the following comment on President Obama’s April 24th ‘Armenian Remembrance Day’ statement.
“The sad spectacle of President Obama playing word games with genocide, so obviously dodging the truth at the direction of a foreign power, falls beneath the dignity of the American people,” said Hamparian.
“Candidate Obama was right when he said that ‘America deserves a leader who speaks truthfully about the Armenian Genocide and responds forcefully to all genocides.’ He has, regretfully, proven to the world today that he is not that president. In fact, it’s now clear that President Obama’s misguided attempt to appease Ankara has only isolated Washington,” he added.