Sponsor Leaves NPFH Over Armenian Genocide
By Chris Helms, staff writer
Watertown TAB & Press
Tue Apr 08, 2008, 04:11 PM EDT
/history/x1767331681
BOSTON – The co-sponsor of `No Place for Hate’ cut ties tothe anti-bias
program, delivering a stunning rebuke to the Anti-Defamation League over its
position on the Armenian Genocide.
The board of the Massachusetts Municipal Association voted unanimously
Tuesday that `unequivocal recognition of the Armenian Genocide is both a
matter of basic justice to its victims as well as essential to efforts to
prevent future genocides.’
The association’s move follows 12 cities and towns in Massachusetts cutting
or suspending ties with `No Place for Hate’ over the issue.
Association board member Jonathan Hecht, a Watertown Town Councilor and key
drafter of the statement withdrawing from `No Place for Hate,’ said the
association did the right thing.
`Despite the many good people at the ADL, what is more important isto be
unambiguous about genocide,’ Hecht said. `Unfortunately, the ADL is not
unambiguous and that’s not acceptable.’
In August, the national ADL sparked anger from Turkish authorities when it
_released a statement _ () aboutthe
mass killings of up to 1.5 million ethnic Armenians at the hands of the
Ottoman Empire during and after World War I.
`On reflection, we have come to share the view of Henry Morgenthau,Sr. that
the consequences of those actions were indeed tantamount to genocide,’ read
the ADL’s August statement.
It is a cardinal point of Turkish policy that the deaths of the Armenians
were the result of war, not a systematic attempt to eradicate an ethnic group.
The Massachusetts Municipal Association, prodded by many of its member
cities and towns, urged the ADL to unequivocally call the deaths genocide. In
November, the national ADL _decided to take no further action_
( 00.htm) on the subject.
An e-mail to the national ADL office was not immediately returned.
Statement from MMA withdrawing from NPFH
/x987429207
BOSTON – Massachusetts Municipal Association
The Massachusetts Municipal Association firmly believes that in order to
build and sustain strong and vibrant communities throughout the
Commonwealth, it is essential to promote and protect basic human rights,
mutual understanding, and reconciliation.
In a resolution adopted on September 11, 2007, the MMA Board of Directors
stated that the terrible crimes committed against the Armenian people by the
Ottoman Empire in 1915 must be recognized as genocide. In its resolution,
the MMA applauded the New England Regional Director and New England Regional
Executive Committee of the ADL for unequivocally recognizing the Armenian
Genocide. The MMA further called on the National ADL to adopt the positionof
the New England Region at the ADL’s National Commission meeting in November
and to support the Congressional Resolution on the Armenian Genocide.
The MMA Board of Directors expresses its strong disapproval that the
National ADL did not use the opportunity of its November meeting to clarify
and strengthen its earlier statements concerning recognition of the Armenian
Genocide. The Board believes that unequivocal recognition of the Armenian
Genocide is both a matter of basic justice to its victims as well as
essential to efforts to prevent future genocides.
Since 1999, the MMA has been an official sponsor of the No Place for Hate
(NPFH) program offered by the New England Region of the ADL. The NPFH
program is intended to assist municipalities in Massachusetts to combat bias
and promote tolerance. By helping to reduce acts of violence and
discrimination, NPFH has brought important tangible benefits to the cities
and towns which have chosen to participate in the program. It stands as a
worthy monument to the good works of the man who inspired its creation, the
late Leonard Zakim.
The inconsistency between the National ADL’s position on the Armenian
Genocide and the human rights principles underlying NPFH is a matter of
great concern to MMA Board members and the municipalities they
represent. The MMA feels strongly that it is imperative to speak with
absolute clarity on genocide and that, due to the NPFH program’s association
with the National ADL,the Association will no longer be a sponsor of the
program.
While these issues will continue to be discussed by municipalities and
concerned individuals, the NPFH program has changed. The New England Region
of the ADL recently announced that the NPFH program is moving to a
community-based model. The program will be available as a resource to
community and civic groups but will no longer seek local government
sponsorship or certify cities and towns as NPFH communities.
For Massachusetts municipalities that seek a program specifically designed
for local governments to promote tolerance, combat racism and
discrimination, and facilitate communitybuilding, the MMA commends the
National League of Cities Inclusive Communities program, which can be
accessed via the NLC’s website (). The NLC’s program includes 190
cities and towns in 40 states and provides an ever-expanding toolbox for
municipal officials.
Statement adopted by vote of the MMA Board of Directors on April 8.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress