Los Angeles Daily News
April 24 2005
Armenians want justice for 1915
Events mark anniversary of massacre
By Naush Boghossian, Staff Writer
GLENDALE — An Armenian writer once joked that all Armenians recite
two facts to non-Armenians upon introduction:
Armenia was the first nation to accept Christianity as its national
religion. And 1.5 million Armenians were massacred by the Turks in
1915.
Audiences would laugh heartily, recognizing a collective reflex to
teach others about one fact that is a source of pride for Armenians,
and another that is a deep, unhealed wound.
Sunday marks the 90th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide — a
historical event that the Turkish government blames on civil war
rather than an orchestrated massacre.
But likely fueled by that denial, Armenian-Americans are mounting an
unprecedented 45 events — rallies, marches, lectures and protests —
throughout Los Angeles this year, designed to draw recognition.
And partly fueled by the knowledge that the number of survivors is
dwindling, there have been record levels of support from Congress and
the Senate.
Knar Kitabjian, 23, of Arleta decided to participate in a 215-mile
walk from Fresno to Sacramento — a tribute to the hundreds of
thousands of Armenians who perished in forced death marches.
“When I was walking, what made me want to continue was just the fact
that I felt my grandfather walking under the horrible circumstances,
and I kept on going because nobody knows what he had to go through,”
said Kitabjian, whose grandfather was just 7 when he was forced to
walk through the desert.
“It’s forgotten, and I feel it’s my responsibility to do whatever I
can so it can be recognized. We need closure and we need justice to
be served.”
One major step is for the U.S. government to formally recognize the
killings as a genocide, a goal that has eluded the Armenian-American
population despite repeated attempts to get a bill through Congress.
“It doesn’t jibe with the American dream,” said Arbi Nahabedian, 30,
of Glendale. “We’ve both reaped the benefits and contributed to the
American way of life, but there’s this moral or ethical dream that
our adopted country recognizes this event with us, not just for
Armenians, but for all genocides.”
Thirty-two members of the Senate and 178 members of the House
co-signed a letter urging President George W. Bush to formally
characterize the killings as genocide — the highest numbers ever.
“I think it’s a moral imperative for the country to recognize the
Armenian Genocide. If we’re not willing to recognize it as a
genocide, I think it undermines our credibility as a government,”
said Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Pasadena, who for years has been at the
forefront of that cause. “I am completely convinced that it’s only a
matter of time.”
But how has one event that took place 90 years ago had such a
powerful hold on a group of people, to become the unifying cause for
which they will all fight?
Much like the parents of a murdered child not being able to achieve
closure because the killer has not been brought to justice, Armenians
are unable to move through the grieving process.
“It’s a powerful instrument of identity, which has really stunted the
psychological and in some ways the intellectual growth of
post-genocidal generations. Recognition and justice would have a
tremendous positive impact on that psychological retardation,” said
Richard Dekmejian, professor of political science at USC and director
of the USC Institute of Armenian Studies.
“Armenians need recognition for the grievous loss they suffered in
order to move on.”
The younger generation, most of whom were born in the United States,
have joined the fight without missing a beat, but they have taken up
different ways of showing their support.
In recent years, it is not uncommon to see Armenian flags on cars in
the San Fernando Valley and Hollywood areas the week of April 24.
“It’s not to be outrageous. It’s more to show that they wanted to
take us down, but we’re still here and we’re still united,” said
Glendale resident Garni Arakelian, 18, who’s placed a small Armenian
flag in the back window of his Honda Accord.
“And it’s a way of showing respect to the older generation that we
remember.”
But both young and old have a sense that the fight for recognition
has become much larger than one event in history, as genocides
continue to take place throughout the world.
“You don’t forget the past so you don’t repeat it in the future. And
we’ve been repeating it. Rwanda, Darfur,” Dekmejian said. “This
pattern of human pathology has got to be stopped at some point if
we’re going to live together in this world.”