Representative Judy Chu (D-Calif.) added her voice to the growing list of elected officials who have marked the anniversary of the Sumgait and Baku pogroms.
Chu joins representatives Adam Schiff, Brad Sherman, Tony Cárdenas and State Senator Anthony Portantino, among others who voiced their support for the people of Artsakh and condemned Azerbaijan ongoing aggression Armenia and Artsakh.
Below is Chu’s statement.
Madam Speaker, as the Representative of America’s largest and oldest Armenian population, I rise today to commemorate the Baku and Sumgait Pogroms and to reaffirm that the US stands on the side of democracy and peace–and that means standing with the Armenian people.
Over 30 years ago, as the lines of the Soviet Union were fading, the people of Artsakh were united and voted for greater independence from Azerbaijan. But this peaceful movement for self-determination was followed by premeditated and government-sponsored attacks. Over the next two years, the Armenian population of Artsakh was repeatedly victim to brutal and racially motivated pogroms. Hundreds were murdered, and thousands were displaced in Baku, Sumgait and Kirovabad.
These pogroms were a direct assault on the right of self-determination in Artsakh, and it is an assault that is continuing today. In the fall of 2020, as the world was struggling to contain the coronavirus pandemic, Azerbaijan launched yet another war of aggression against the peaceful people of Artsakh, destroying homes and villages and once again displacing thousands.
This violence is unacceptable, which is why I immediately called for a cease fire and have called for an end to U.S. military assistance to Azerbaijan. We must also ensure the humanitarian needs of the Armenian people are being met, which is something I have pushed Samantha Power, the Administrator of USAID, to help us do.
Having had the privilege of visiting Artsakh in October 2019, I’ve seen the pride of the people there and I know how strong they are. That is why I know that, just as their spirit could not be defeated after the Sumgait and Baku pogroms, it will not be defeated today.
I am proud to stand with the Armenian people in their fight for democracy and human rights and stand united in rejecting the violence from Azerbaijan that has destroyed too many lives.
