PRESS RELEASE
May 23, 2014
ARMENIAN ASSEMBLY OF AMERICA
Contact: Taniel Koushakjian
Email: [email protected]
Phone: (202) 393-3434
Web:
ARMENIAN ASSEMBLY OF AMERICA, ARMENIAN NATIONAL INSTITUTE EXPAND ARMENIAN
GENOCIDE DISCUSSION IN THE MAINSTREAM MEDIA
Washington, D.C. – As the world marked Genocide Awareness month this
past April, representatives of the Armenian Assembly of America (Assembly)
and the Armenian National Institute (ANI) broadened the discussion of the
Armenian Genocide with the American public and abroad with several
appearances in national and international media, reported the Assembly.
On the heels of the Islamic militant attack on Kessab Armenians launched
from Turkey, Assembly Executive Director Bryan Ardouny told the International
Business Times, `For Armenian Americans, current images of Armenian homes
being looted and occupied in Kesab, and innocent lives tragically lost,
invoke painful memories of the early phases of the first genocide of the
20th century at the hands of Ottoman Turks.”
The Assembly’s efforts to secure the release of the Armenian Orphan Rug
from the White House also made headlines. `The Armenian Assembly ramped up
pressure by displaying a `sister rug’ in Boston and Boca Raton, Fla.,’
reported the Miami Herald, while Ardouny told KPPC-Southern California
Radio that, “The display of this tangible expression of gratitude for
America’s humanitarian intervention to save the survivors of the Armenian
Genocide is a positive development.”
Following President Barack Obama’s April 24 statement which again fell
short of his 2008 campaign promise to acknowledge the Armenian Genocide,
Assembly Board Chairman Hirair Hovnanian told Radio Free Europe/Radio
Liberty’s (RFE/RL) Armenia service, that `In 1981 President Ronald Reagan
squarely acknowledged the Armenian Genocide … This accurately reflects
America’s values and record of speaking out against genocide, and I welcome
this approach.’ `In a related development, a member of the
Assembly’s
board, Van Krikorian, praised the influential American Jewish Committee
(AJC) for urging Turkey to `address the realities’ of the Armenian
genocide,’ the same RFE/RL report said.
In addition, former Assembly board member Mark Momjian, Esq. discussed the
Armenian Genocide on WBAI/NYC 99.5 FM Radio. On Sunday, April 13, Momjian
appeared on the show “Beyond the Pale,” which explores cutting edge Jewish
culture and offers local, national, and international political debate and
analysis from a Jewish perspective.
The Assembly’s activities surrounding the decision by Suffolk University
Law School to invite Anti-Defamation League (ADL) National Director Abraham
Foxman to deliver this year’s commencement address was also noteworthy.
`’If the ADL now supports the pending Congressional resolution, this would
truly be a courageous act against injustice,’ said Anthony Barsamian, a
1990 Suffolk Law School graduate and member of the Armenian Assembly of
America,’ to the Boston Globe. In 2007, Foxman and the ADL publicly
opposed the Armenian Genocide resolution that was pending in Congress.
With over 30,000 downloads in the first few weeks, the release of `The Last
Refuge & the First Defense: The Armenian Church, Etchmiadzin, and the
Armenian Genocide,’ a free, online exhibit jointly produced by ANI, the
Armenian Genocide Museum of America (AGMA), the Assembly, and in
cooperation with the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin, the Armenian Genocide
Museum-Institute in Yerevan, and the Republic of Armenia National Archives,
also expanded the scope and reach of genocide awareness.
Appearing on Voice of America-Armenia, ANI Director Dr. Rouben Adalian
discussed the unique focus of the exhibit and its broad appeal. ANI’s
website registered one million hits during March and April of this year
alone.
On April 24, Dr. Adalian also discussed Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip
Erdogan’s April 23 announcement and President Obama’s statement with
Arabic-language Al Hurra TV broadcast throughout the Middle East. In
addition to reaching international audiences on Armenian Genocide
remembrance day, Adalian told Business Insider that `'[Obama] has made
unambiguous statements as a senator and in his presidential campaign to
fully recognize the genocide … But he has avoided using the actual word
for obvious reasons: pressure from Turkey, whom the U.S. considers an
important ally.”
A pillar of the Assembly’s Mission is to expand the organization’s
pioneering research, education, and advocacy campaigns for universal
affirmation of the Armenian Genocide and to secure Diaspora-wide consensus
for the government of the Republic of Armenia to deal with the consequences
of this crime against humanity.
Established in 1972, the Armenian Assembly of America is the largest
Washington-based nationwide organization promoting public understanding and
awareness of Armenian issues. The Assembly is a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt
membership organization.
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NR: # 2014-031
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