Hundreds show support for Boston's Armenian community during rally, march

Updated: 11:08 AM EDT Apr 25, 2021
Peter Eliopoulos

BOSTON —

Hundreds of people demonstrated in Boston as a show of support for the city's Armenian community in the wake of a historic move by President Joe Biden.

Biden issued a declaration on Saturday to recognize the mass killings of Armenians, which happened more than a century ago, as genocide.

The declaration comes on Armenian Remembrance Day, which marks the start of the Ottoman-era Armenian genocide in 1915.

Boston's Armenian community marked the day with a rally on Boston Common and a march to Armenian Heritage Park on the Greenway, where local leaders spoke in support of Biden's declaration.

"Our nation is not one that always gets it right, or gets it right immediately, but the arc of our history has been towards justice," said Massachusetts Sen. Will Brownsberger.

"Truth has been spoken and none of those attempts from the other side, from Turkey, to really gag American again didn't work," said Herman Purutyan, an organizer of the demonstration. "This is a huge shift."

Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker is also issuing a proclamation that stands in support of Armenian people and Biden's declaration.