PRESSURE, POLITICS, PERSISTENCE, PAYOFF
Friday, May 23rd, 2014
BY GAREN YEGPARIAN
What’s worse than a Genocide denier? A smug Genocide denier!
What warms an Armenian heart? A smug Genocide denier reformed (even
if only superficially).
Of course I’m referring to two time SpitRain Award (my irregularly
bequeathed commendation for shamelessness) winner Abe Foxman, National
Director of the Anti-Defamation League. In his speech at Suffolk
University Law School’s (Boston, Mass.), it seems he finally stopped
denying the Armenian Genocide. He said, “Had there been people of
courage to act in 1915 when the Armenian Genocide was taking place,
had there been international intervention when massacres in Cambodia,
Bosnia, and the genocide in Rwanda were happening, innocent lives in
great numbers could have been saved.”
Of course, this is him speaking, and it is only a passing reference.
The ADL, which he represents, has been just as duplicitous,
so before I fully warm the cockles of my heart, I want to see a
similar, unequivocal, acknowledgement by the organization. Hell, for
that matter, I want to see something more substantive from Foxman,
too. As a reminder, in 2007, they released a statement in which the
“consequences” of Turkish actions in 1915 were described as “tantamount
to genocide”– double-speak for “we’re supporting Turkish denialism”
since consequences do not carry the intent required for killings to
qualify as genocide (a nuance I had missed when first writing about
this matter years ago).
I write all this in spite of the ADL’s statement released just before
Foxman was to speak at Suffolk, in which all they do, really, is
reference and re-release their 2008 statement (intended to “correct”
the 2007 statement), which in turn refers to even older (unspecified,
uncited) acknowledgements of the Armenian Genocide.
If they’re sincere, and if they’re not continuing their Orwellianism,
why not simply say something like: “We want to clear up our stance
on the Armenian Genocide once and for all. The mass murders and
deportations of the 1915-1923 period constitute genocide and the
denialism that has characterized official Turkish behavior is the
final stage of that same genocide.” That should be it. No subsequent
backpedaling language about how a Congressional resolution would be
counterproductive. No other too-clever-by-a-half language to water
down the statement. Just a clean acknowledgement.
If your head is spinning from all the self-referential statements
that ultimately lead nowhere, I don’t blame you. So let’s move on to
what we can learn from the last seven years.
Of course none of this would have happened if various factors
hadn’t woven a web to catch the fly of denial. The first of these was
pressure. We on the West Coast were not as impacted as our compatriots
on the East Coast where many more jurisdictions were using the ADL’s
“No Place for Hate” program that schools sometimes include in their
curriculum. These jurisdictions provided opportunities to go after the
program to expose the ADL’s hypocrisy when this issue first became big
back in 2007. Ultimately, numerous governments chose to disaffiliate
with it. More recently, a candidate for a judgeship in Massachusetts
was ultimately denied appointment, in part because of his affiliation
with the ADL and its two-faced Armenian Genocide policies. Finally,
when it became known that Foxman was to be the commencement speaker
at Suffolk, a petition initiated by some students, National Lawyers
Guild chapter (in the Los Angeles area, you can hear their radio show
on KPFK 90.7 FM, Thursdays at 3:00 pm), and alumni from Suffolk was
also strongly supported by Armenian efforts.
Meanwhile, relations between Israel and Turkey continue to be
strained. This eliminates, or reduces, some of the incentives for
American Jewish organizations to be in bed with Turkey and engage in
Armenian Genocide denial or opposition to a commemorative resolution
passing in Congress. And boy-oh-boy was the ADL in bed with Turkey.
Just review some of the Jewish media’s reporting and the organization’s
own press releases. Foxman, along with others, has even met with
Erdogan, Gul, and more of Turkey’s leaders. The coolness between the
two countries has now existed for over half a decade in some form
for one reason or another (e.g. Gaza, Mavi Marmara, leaders’ egos).
Throughout these seven years, the ADL/Foxman denial club has been
on the receiving end of persistent, if not necessarily very strong,
criticism for its denial, as evident from the examples above, including
occasional articles in the media.
Finally, the pressure, politics, and persistence paid off in the form
of Foxman’s May 17 remarks. Who knows, his upcoming July 20 retirement
from the ADL may even have something to do with it. This carries a
very important lesson. We have many cynics and pessimists among us
who seem convinced that nothing we do matters because everything
is controlled by omnipotent “powers that be” who are untouchable,
impervious to any influence but their own mighty will. This teaches us
the value of applying unrelenting pressure (much as has the progress
in Turkey regarding awareness of the Genocide). The pressure must be
persistent. Otherwise, it’s easy to lose credibility in the court of
public opinion. Then, when the political conditions ripen, the desired
result may be achieved. This is not unlike how Armenia regained its
independence, or the changes triggered by the self-immolation of a
street vendor in Tunisia that brought on the not-necessarily-very-sunny
Arab Spring.
Now, it’s time for more pressure, polite, persistent, pragmatic… all
to push the ADL, and others of its co-denialists, to fully, clearly,
unquestionably, part company with Turkey’s government. The context of
the 100th anniversary may provide the opportunity for these groups,
and even governments, to be more forthcoming.
We’re not done yet. Get to work. Let your Jewish friends know you
want and need their support.