MASSACHUSETTS DISTRICT COURT DISMISSES ARMENIAN GENOCIDE DENIAL CASE

armradio.am
11.06.2009 11:28

In a major blow to Turkey’s global campaign to suppress the truth about
the Armenian Genocide, U.S. District Court Chief Judge Mark Wolf today
ruled in favor of the Massachusetts Department of Education, allowing
it to continue teaching the facts of the Armenian Genocide, and other
crimes against humanity, in public schools across the Commonwealth as
constitutionally protected government speech, reported the Armenian
Assembly of America (Assembly).

"The Armenian Assembly appreciates the court’s ruling in this
matter. It sends a clear message to Turkey and its revisionist allies
that history cannot be rewritten to further Ankara’s state-sponsored
denial campaign," said Assembly Board of Trustees Chairman Hirair
Hovnanian. Carolyn Mugar, the Board’s President, added, "Given
the overwhelming historical and legal evidence documenting the
incontestable fact of the Armenian Genocide, this ruling is a victory
for all those concerned about genocide education and prevention."

Assembly Executive Director Bryan Ardouny noted that "today’s decision
is in keeping with a growing trend toward teaching genocide prevention
with nearly every state, including Massachusetts, formally recognizing
the Armenian Genocide. We want to thank the office of the Attorney
General of Massachusetts for not backing down in this case."

The court’s ruling preserves the teaching of accurate history,
which is part of the official "Massachusetts Guide to Choosing and
Using Curricular Materials on Genocide and Human Rights," prepared in
1999. In 2005, the Assembly of Turkish American Associations (ATAA),
along with others, filed the suit against the Department of Education
arguing that the Commonwealth violated the plaintiffs’ First Amendment
rights by removing materials from the curriculum that deny the events
of 1915.

In an unprecedented move, the plaintiffs attempted to use the federal
courts to argue a tired and discredited practice that the "other side"
of the story should be taught.

"In light of the fact that Turkey criminalizes honest discussion
of the Armenian Genocide, it is especially ironic that Turkish
denialists turned to U.S. courts in an attempt to twist freedom of
speech in America," stated Assembly Board of Trustees Counselor Van
Krikorian. "Even though the court viewed this case ‘in the light
most favorable to plaintiffs,’ it still ruled in favor of truth,
history and the U.S. Constitution. The sooner Turkey comes to terms
with its past, the better it will be for everyone."

The Armenian Assembly immediately responded when the suit was filed,
hiring Duke University Law Professor Irwin Chemerinsky, one of the
nation’s leading First Amendment experts, and co-counsel Arnold
Rosenfeld of the firm K&L Gates LLP. Over the past four years, the
Assembly, and others, challenged the ATAA at every turn by filing a
series of pleadings including an amicus curiae (friend of the court)
brief. The brief was intended to assist the Court in bringing the
case to a conclusion in favor of the Commonwealth.

Attorneys Rosenfeld and Krikorian presented the amicus brief before
Judge Wolf. Rosenfeld and Krikorian warned that if the court accepted
the plaintiffs’ First Amendment claims, it would open the door for any
extremist group, such as Holocaust deniers, to challenge curriculum
matters in court.

Attorney Gabrielle R. Wolohojian, then of Wilmer, Cutler, Hale
and Dorr LLP, also represented an Amicus Class, which included the
Armenian Bar Association, the Armenian National Committee of America,
the Irish Immigration Center, the Jewish Alliance for Law and Justice
and the NAACP.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress