It’s quite obvious by my last name that I’m Armenian, at least to those who live in cities that are densely populated by Armenian communities, such as Los Angeles, Boston, Paris, Lebanon or Buenos Aires. And if you’ve lived in any of those cities, you might be familiar with a mass Exodus of flag and sign bearing-Armenians marching on the streets on April 24th of every year, yelling some jibberish about Turkey and the year 1915.

To make it short and sweet, April 24th is significant for the Armenian community because it was the start of the calculated murders of an estimated 1.5 million Armenians by the Ottoman Empire in 1915. The reason why some 93 years later, protests and marches are held in numerous cities around the world, is because to this day, the Turkish government refuses to acknowledge that these events ever occurred. More specifically, Turkey does not accept the word genocide, even when 22 countries have officially accepted the events encapsulating the Armenian Genocide. In fact, accepting the Genocide in Turkey falls under “insulting Turkishness” which is a crime punishable by law in Turkey.

I personally do not take part in the protests and marches that occur. I never have and I most likely never will. Despite the fact that that’s just not my style, I don’t feel like it ever accomplishes anything at all, except that it clogs up important traffic routes (especially in L.A), annoys people and gives Armenian kids a free day off school.

If you’re an outsider looking in, you might be thinking, “Why don’t you just move on? It was so long ago, it really doesn’t mean anything these days,” or “You don’t see Jewish people protesting the Holocaust, why should the Genocide be any different?

Oh, but it is.

It is for the pure and simple fact, that while the Holocaust is recognized by the entire international community, including every single government in the world, to this day, 93 years later, the Armenian Genocide still has not received a recognition not only from Turkey, but from the United States of America, the continent which houses one of the world’s largest Armenian populations.

“Once the country who was the offender in such a situation recognizes it, the rest of the world has no choice,” said a friend of mine today. Truer words have never been spoken.

Politicians have come and gone with empty promises of recognition and resolutions. Committees have been set up to “discuss” the facts and have never accomplished anything substantial. Turkish authors like Orhan Pamuk have been jailed for acknowledging genocide occurred, newspaper columns about it have been written, but not without “alleged” written before “the word that shall not be discussed: genocide.”

As a journalist, I understand. As an Armenian, my heart burns inside. I feel disheartened when I think of the men, women and children that suffered, that were murdered, raped in front of their children and left to starve. Try telling the few Genocide survivors who are still alive, that what they saw and what they went through never happened. And I guarantee, you will see tears in their eyes and their hands on their heart.

It’s quite amazing that we’ve somehow managed to stay alive in moderate numbers, enough to keep remembering our past anyway. It’s a bit ironic, but it’s because of this genocide that not only are there Armenians all over the world, but that we try so hard to keep our culture alive, because for us, it’s a matter of survival. All members are accountable. All of us have a looming responsibility over our heads. Survive, survive, survive.

But I digress. All the protests, the resolutions, the committees, the historical research, what have they accomplished? Where have we reached? How is the situation different from 10, 20 or even 50 years ago. A lot, some would argue. Creating a buzz and drawing attention helps keep the cause alive, they will say. But the point isn’t keeping the cause alive, the point is getting it recognized by not only the the Turkish government, but the rest of the world. That hasn’t happened in 93 years and I have a strong feeling that it won’t happen any time soon, I’m sorry to say. Politics are a dangerous game to meddle with, and getting your voice heard and taken seriously through all the noise is very difficult.

I’m not saying any of this to sound discouraging, I’m trying to be realistic. Yelling down the streets and marching in front of the Turkish Consulate does not accomplish anything. You can yell and scream all you want, the world is not going to issue an apology and recognition the minute you hold up some signs and attach flags to the side of your car. Those tactics need to be retired, as soon as possible.

There are things however, that in my opinion, have helped this cause, one of which was House Speaker Nancy Pelosi attending the Capitol Hill Armenian Genocide Commemoration event Wednesday and emphasizing the importance of recognizing the Armenian Genocide. Pelosi is a long time backer of a resolution condemning the Armenian genocide, in which Turkey and the United States (which needs Turkey’s help in Iraq) have repeatedly and strongly opposed.

Also, the Israeli parliament for the first time, is going to be discussing the matter as well. “It is impossible that the Jewish nation will not speak up,” Kneseet member Haim Oron has said.

More locally, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger has proclaimed April 20 to the 27th as “Days of Remembrance of the Armenian Genocide.”

I think however, the most significant thing to arise out of it all, is the fact that there are Turks who are speaking out in support of recognizing the genocide. The most well known one, would be Turkish scholar Taner Akcam, whom I have had the pleasure of speaking to.

“I am often asked why Turkey keeps up its policy of denial,” Ackam said during a presentation of his book “A shameful Act: Armenian Genocide and the Question of Turkish Responsibility” in Athens. I think that it’s conditioned by moral reasons. Each nation has its heroes. It’s hard to accept the shortcomings of these heroes and it’s even harder to realize that they were criminals and liars. Degradation of heroes is pregnant with grave consequences and can deliver a serious blow on national dignity. That is why Turkey should be a developing democracy and its people should learn to face up the history,” Akcam said.

There are many that would say, that is it because of the protesting and remembering that the events presented above have come into fruition. That’s probably true, because if we forget, who will remember? Still, I think we need a plan B, although I’m not even sure what that would be, as of yet. This is and always will be, the defining moment of our history.

Photos by Malser via Flickr

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