Las Vegas Review-Journal
April 12 2015
Las Vegas Armenians remember tragic history and genocide
By MICHAEL LYLE
LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNAL
In 1915, an estimated 1.5 million Armenians were systematically
exterminated, about 30 years before there was even a word for what
that was — genocide.
Although it is rarely talked about in history classes or among the
general public, the Armenian-American community vows to never stop
raising awareness of this tragedy.
“Just because people in the U.S. don’t know about it doesn’t mean we
shouldn’t be telling our story,” says Andy Armenian, a member of the
Armenian American Cultural Society of Las Vegas. “It’s important for
our community as well as the general public to know this story.”
This year is the 100th anniversary of the start of the genocide, which
the organization plans to commemorate on April 24 by hosting a
groundbreaking for a memorial at Sunset Park, 2601 E. Sunset Road.
Gov. Brian Sandoval has also issued a proclamation declaring April
19-26 “Days of Remembrance of the Armenian Genocide.”
Whether it’s through the memorial or just talking about their
heritage, the Armenian community thinks it’s time for people to know
about their history.
Michelle Tusan, a history professor at UNLV and author of “Smyrna’s
Ashes: Humanitarianism, Genocide and the Birth of the Middle East,”
says Armenians had a long history of being discriminated against prior
to 1915.
Under the cover of World War I, the Ottoman Empire — the historical
name for Turkey — began to act on its hatred for Armenians, who were
among the Christian minorities in the country.
“There was a lot of resentment toward that community,” Tusan says.
“They were also paranoid that (Armenians) were siding with the
enemies.”
On April 19, 1915, Armenian civilians began being rounded up. Five
days later, on April 24, 250 intellectuals and Armenian leaders were
killed.
“And that was the beginning,” Tusan says.
The government separated the men from women and children, killing many
men of military age.
During the next year, women and children were moved to relocation camps.
“You didn’t have gas chambers,” Tusan says. “But you did have
concentration camps. But it started with what was essentially known as
a death march.”
Those who were forced to make the journey to the camps were sent along
the way with little to no supplies.
“Then they would arrive to these camps and have very little there,” she says.
Andy Armenian says about 70 percent of Armenians were killed.
“The other 30 percent escaped either going east or south to other Arab
countries,” he adds.
At that time, many of those families sought asylum in the United States.
Much of the history during that time is lost. What few photographs
there are were taken either by German soldiers or missionaries in the
region.
Turkey still doesn’t recognize the actions as genocide.
Armenian says under international law, if Turkey acknowledged the
genocide, it would have to pay reparations and possibly sort out which
land was stolen from the Armenians.
“I think it also goes deeper into the Turkish identity,” Tusan says.
“For them to acknowledge this would mean rethinking their whole
history. Look how much Germany’s history was shaped postwar.”
The United States has failed to pass a resolution that acknowledges
the genocide even though many politicians agree it is something that
happened.
“It’s a hot-button issue, because Turkey is an ally,” Tusan says.
She adds that when the topic is brought up for Congress to pass a
resolution acknowledging the history, Turkey makes threats about its
alliance with the U.S., which also means putting the United States’
standing in the Middle East in jeopardy.
“It goes back to geopolitics,” she says.
Even though the United States hasn’t voted on a resolution, many
states, including Nevada, have adopted state resolutions.
No matter what the rest of the international community says, Armenians
never forget the stories that are passed down through the generations.
Armenian says even 100 years after the genocide, Armenians still feel
remnants of the tragedy.
“Genocide has affected every single one of us,” he says.
One of the byproducts is constantly being uprooted, Armenian adds.
“Whenever there is turmoil in the Middle East, we see a new wave of
immigrants,” he explains.
For example, in the mid-’70s during the Lebanese civil war, more than
100,000 Armenians — his family included — fled to the United States.
Another huge number of Armenians left Iraq between 1987 and 1990.
“The Armenian population in Iraq is almost nonexistent now,” he says.
While some families journeyed to the United States later, Armen
Anooshian’s grandmother came to New York after fleeing Turkey in 1915.
“Most survivors ended up either on the East Coast or the West Coast,”
Anooshian says. “Because all their family members had died in the
genocide, the community was one big family.”
Anooshian says it’s nearly impossible to grow up in an Armenian
community without hearing someone bring up the history in
conversation.
In New York City, where he was born and raised in an Armenian
neighborhood, his grandmother along with other women would talk about
how she survived.
“You would always overhear stories when you were a kid,” he says.
Jack Kassamanian, born and raised in Chicago, never met his
grandmother, who also survived the Armenian genocide. He does remember
seeing her photos, in which she had a scar on her cheek.
“I was told she was shot in the cheek while she was trying to flee,” he says.
The stories aren’t isolated to families. Kassamanian says Armenians
usually gravitate toward each other to develop a community.
With that in mind, the Armenian American Culture Society of Las Vegas
was founded in 1978 but wasn’t established as a nonprofit until 1981.
“Its purpose is to preserve the Armenian tradition, history, language
and culture,” Armenian says.
A central point for gatherings has always been a church, Anooshian
notes. St. Garabed Armenian Apostolic Church was established in 1994
but opened a permanent location at 2054 E. Desert Inn Road two years
ago to provide a place for the community.
Armenian says two more churches are being constructed in the valley.
In the courtyard of St. Garabed Armenian Apostolic Church is a statue
known as “The Surviving Mother,” which is in honor of all the mothers
who survived the genocide.
For the past few years, the organization has discussed a permanent
memorial in Las Vegas that would recognize Armenian genocide.
Anooshian says other cities in the U.S. — San Francisco, Los Angeles,
Philadelphia — have versions of a memorial.
“The largest one is in Montebello, (Calif.),” Kassamanian notes.
The group wanted the memorial placed in Sunset Park because of the
park’s central location in the valley. The groundbreaking for the
memorial April 24 will also include a candlelight vigil.
Kassamanian says the memorial is being designed by Levon Gulbenkian,
board president of the Armenian American Cultural Society.
After looking at models across the country, Kassamanian says the
design includes 12 pillars that represent a lost province during the
genocide while the bench in the center of the pillars has the Armenian
symbol for eternity.
He adds they hope to have the memorial finished in September.
“It will coincide with the Armenian independence,” he says.
The memorial costs $200,000 and is funded through private donations.
“We are a little over 50 percent done with fundraising,” Kassamanian
says. “We could always use more donors. We estimate we should have all
the money by the time the memorial is finished.”
Although April 24 is the day of remembrance for all Armenians, the
organization has events planned throughout the month.
Besides the larger memorial at Sunset Park, the Armenian American
Cultural Society is getting a memorial plaque at UNLV.
On April 18, Armenian says an Honorary Consul of the Republic of
Armenia is opening in Las Vegas.
Besides preserving Armenian culture, the consulate will provide
resources to new and current citizens and work to help economic
development between Nevada and Armenia.
Each accomplishment helps to bring a little more recognition to this
issue, Armenian says.
“We have to learn from this tragedy so we don’t repeat it,” he adds.
Contact reporter Michael Lyle at [email protected] or
702-387-5201. Follow @mjlyle on Twitter.
http://www.reviewjournal.com/life/las-vegas-armenians-remember-tragic-history-and-genocide