Still Remembering, Still Demanding

Armenian Martyrs’ Day Article by Rev. L. Nishan Bakalian

Isn’t a hundred years long enough to hold on to this? Can’t you Armenians just put this behind you?

People may wonder why the Armenian Genocide has to be a topic for discussion 101 years after the fact. Each year on April 24th, Armenians throughout the world continue to hold commemorations. Even the UCC includes this date in its calendar. But why is it so important?

No serious scholar contests the fact that the Ottoman Turkish government and its successors carried out a premeditated plan of race extermination against its Christian minorities (Armenian, Assyrian, Greek) from 1915-1923. But today’s Turkish government spares no effort to cast doubts on it, steadfastly refusing to allow any recognition of the Armenian Genocide as a crime committed in its borders, and therefore allowing no restoration or reparation to be made. It remains a blight on the Turkish soul, as well as a wound on the Armenian soul, preventing much-needed healing to take place. Click here to to read full PDF article