UC-Davis students remember Armenians at vigil
By Joanna Tung, The California Aggie; SOURCE: UC-Davis
University Wire
April 25, 2005 Monday
DAVIS, Calif. — With a new bill signed into law by California
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger on Thursday, April 24 now marks the official
anniversary of the Armenian Genocide that took place between 1915
and 1923.
In remembrance of the genocide, which resulted in the deaths of 1.5
million Armenians, the Armenian Student Association at the University
of California at Davis held a candlelight vigil Friday evening.
Michael Armstrong, an executive member of ASA, was one of the speakers
at the event who reviewed the atrocities of the genocide and conveyed
an urgency to prevent such an event from being repeated in the future.
“I stand here as a UC-Davis student, but in the context of this day,
I am here as representative of one person in my family who was able
to survive,” Armstrong said. “In my heart and in my veins runs the
blood of a nation martyred.”
Other speakers at the vigil included Associate Executive Vice
Chancellor Rahim Reed, Associated Students of UCD President Caliph
Assagai, ASA President Aileen Babajanian and ASA executive member
Garo Manjikian.
Friday’s event marked the conclusion of the annual Genocide Awareness
Week, which included documentary and movie screenings, a genocide forum
and a March for Humanity to the Capitol in support of the state bill.
In previous years, the ASA focused its efforts solely on the Armenian
Genocide, but this year’s events also touched on mass persecutions
that affected other groups, Manjikian said.
While the Armenian genocide devastated the Armenian nation, the
systematic elimination of particular groups of people is not limited
to one culture alone, as history has shown in the Holocaust and the
Tutsi genocide in Rwanda, to name a few.
For this reason, the ASA emphasized cultural awareness and respect,
stressing the importance of understanding these historical crimes
against humanity to prevent future intolerance and destruction,
Manjikian said.
Although 90 years have passed since the genocide, ASA students believe
much more can be done to educate the public about the Armenian genocide
to attain future peace and harmony among various cultures.
After the ceremony, vigil participant and former Turkish missionary
Melissa McKeand addressed the lack of both religious and cultural
tolerance that contributes to the ongoing cruelty facing Armenians
today.
“People desperately need to develop a greater tolerance for each other,
not only for culture, but for religion too,” McKeand said.
ASA members announced that for the first time, the week’s participants
included scholars from outside the Davis, Calif., community, thus
creating a greater sense of unity among several universities and
their diverse student bodies.
As the week came to a close, Manjikian said the ASA hoped to spark
a spirit of open-mindedness, universal acceptance and harmony among
people.
“I’m definitely happy the bill passed …. It’s going to raise more
awareness about the genocide,” he said. “We’re still waiting for
federal government to recognize the genocide.”
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress