March for Justice participants walk three miles down DC’s busy streets

Community Demands Trump Recognize Armenian Genocide, End Azerbaijani Impunity, and Secure Immediate Return of Armenian Hostages

WASHINGTON—The Armenian Youth Federation Federation – Youth Organization of the Armenian Revolutionary Federation Washington, D.C. “Ani” Chapter on Friday led the Greater Washington community in a powerful “March for Justice,” marking the 111th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide of 1915-1923 and demanding accountability for Azerbaijan’s 2023 genocidal ethnic cleansing of Artsakh.

The march began at the Azerbaijani Embassy, continued past the Turkish Embassy – where Turkish counter-protesters celebrated the legacy of genocide -and concluded at the White House. Participants condemned not only the Ottoman Turkish government’s annihilation of 1.5 million Armenians, Greeks, Assyrians, Syriacs, Chaldeans, and Maronites from 1915-1923, but also Azerbaijan’s 2023 genocidal ethnic cleansing of Artsakh’s indigenous Armenian population, backed by Turkey. They demanded justice, accountability, the immediate release of Armenian hostages – including Artsakh leaders – and the safe, protected return of Armenians to Artsakh.

The two-hour march was broadcast live on AYF, ARF, and ANCA social media platforms.

The program opened at the Azerbaijani Embassy, where AYF DC “Ani” member, Alek Tekeyan set the tone: “One and a half million Armenians were killed. Armenian families were systematically uprooted, displaced, and subjected to unimaginable suffering. Men were first disarmed and then murdered, while women and children were forced to march to their deaths. Following their example in 2020, under the shadow of the global pandemic, Azerbaijan began its genocide against the Armenians of Artsakh, leading to the forced migration of over 100,000 Armenians. April 24th, 1915, therefore, marked the start of a plan to exterminate a people, and solve the Armenian Question once and for all.”

Tekeyan then spoke directly to the assembled crowd: “Yet, as I look out at this crowd today, I see the truth: They failed. We are here, we are remembering, and we are still standing.”

AYF DC “Ani” member Haig Penenian followed with powerful words in Armenian, grounding the march in memory and moral obligation.  “We remember those who were massacred. We remember those who were driven into the wilderness. We remember those whose voices were silenced and silenced, whose homes were pillaged, whose churches were emptied, whose villages were destroyed. We remember because to forget would be to lose them a second time.”

From the Azerbaijani Embassy, marchers proceeded to the Turkish Embassy, chanting across Washington’s rush-hour streets. At the Turkish Embassy, AYF DC “Ani” member Harout Tatarian drew on his experience at Dzidzernagabert last April 24th:

“We stood in silence around Dzidzernagabert’s eternal flame, mourning the lives that were taken and the stories that were erased. The mothers and fathers who never got to see their children grow up. The children who never had the chance to experience the beauty that life has to offer.

We honored our fedayis, who despite suffering unimaginable loss, stood in the face of evil, and chose to fight. Today we remember their courage. We remember their sacrifice. And we remember that their fight is carried on through us.”

Next, the community members marched three miles to the White House, chanting and singing in the face of Turkish counter-protestors who celebrated their legacy of genocide. Across the rush hour traffic streets of D.C., AYF DC “Ani” members led the crowd, while echoing chants calling on the Trump Administration to recognize the Armenian Genocide.

At the White House, AYF DC “Ani” member Christopher Huth acknowledged both the weight of the present moment and the scale of what Armenians have built against it. “Within this struggle, we have had victories too. Survival against all odds, gifted to us by our ancestors, an independent state that so many other nations and people groups have failed to obtain, an Artsakh that stood as a testament to the Armenian spirit for over 30 years, and a highly educated and motivated diaspora, filled with young and energetic people who ready and eager to share in the burden of the struggle,” he stated.

Huth did not spare the crowd the full picture of what is at stake: “The situation looks increasingly dire. Artsakh has been ethnically cleansed, parts of Armenia have been militarily occupied for 3 years, cultural and historical heritage around the region being willfully neglected and destroyed, ancient thriving communities in Syria, Lebanon, Iran, Iraq, Jerusalem and many other countries continuously shrinking, and all the while in Armenia itself at best there is a marginalization of these issues and at worst the placation of the very actors who carry out these crimes against us.”

Following Huth, Ani Mard, AYF DC “Ani” alumni, issued a direct call to action. She states, “we cannot say never again while accepting displacement, erasure, and silence today. And we cannot demand accountability from the international community, while being unwilling to ask difficult questions of our own institutions and our own people…honoring our ancestors is not confined to remembrance; it is expressed in what we choose to do with that memory, whether that is speaking, advocating, preserving culture, or simply refusing to let erasure go unanswered.”

Following Ani Mard, AYF DC “Sevan” Junior Chapter member and Homenetmen Scout Ani Garabet delivered a stirring recitation of Hamo Sahyan’s ‘In This Handful of Stony Earth,’ a testament to the Armenian people’s enduring bond with their homeland, culture, and heritage.

ANCA National Grassroots Director Gev Iskajyan closed the program’s speeches with an unsparing charge to the community:  “In front of nations, in front of millions, in front of the White House, we will tell our stories without softening the edges. In our communities, we will build power — not just by protests, but through institutions, professionals, votes, and voices that can’t be ignored. And in our hearts, we’ll reject the lie that we have to be quiet to be accepted. Being Quiet has never saved a single Armenian soul. Being quiet has only made the next crime easier.”

The program concluded with 10-year-old AYF DC Sevan Junior and Homenetmen Scout Kevork Tatarian performing a powerful rendition of “April 24” and Emma Soghomonian offering a moving rendition of “Giligia,” drawing a reverent silence from the crowd. Master of Ceremonies Alek Tekeyan then invited Soorp Khatch Armenian Church pastor Der Sarkis Aktavoukian to offer the Lord’s Prayer for the victims of the Armenian Genocide of 1915.

The day’s powerful and resilient speakers all emphasized a critical lesson learned during this 111th commemoration of the Armenian Genocide: that commitment to justice must be persistent.

Armenian Americans and allies can take action by visiting anca.org/action to urge their elected officials to stop U.S. complicity in genocide and its denial, support Armenian national security and secure justice for Artsakh.

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