The Armenian Genocide and Humanity's Conciousness!

 

“Accordingly, I have placed my death-head formation in readiness – for the present only in the East – with orders to them to send to death mercilessly and without compassion, men, women, and children of Polish derivation and language. Only thus shall we gain the living space (Lebensraum) which we need. Who, after all, speaks today of the annihilation of the Armenians?” Hitler August, 1939

We flung the door wide open and ran outside into the hot and humid Ahvaz summer day. It was time for my sister, brother and I to meet up with the rest of the kids of our neighborhood, a neighborhood in what today would be termed as diverse. We spend the late afternoon to late evening playing our local games, one of the favorite kids were the Armenians, Albrik and Mari Hakoopian. Their uncle Alan, who was older would often teach us new games to play and coach the older kids on new bike tricks. These early play-dates with my Armenian neighbors, would, as I grew up, expose me to the fascinating and at times dark but ultimately triumphant history of Armenians as a people.    

As I left Iran and eventually made it to the US, I got to know more Armenians, who shared with me their family history. It seemed each family, though always successful in their adoptive country, had walked a painful path to get there. Today’s Armenians are scattered everywhere, the main reason for which is the genocide of 1915, carried out by the Ottoman Turks. The total killed was around 1.5 million.

What makes the Armenian Genocide, important historically, is that 100 years after it was carried out, the international community, continues to debate whether it was a genocide or not!! The Armenians have proven themselves, as survivors and strivers. This commemoration for the Armenians, though extremely painful, is also about their survival as a community.  Now all is needed, is for the rest of us and our collective consciousness as humanity to once and for all give the respect to those who made the ultimate sacrifice, and recognize this dark chapter as a Genocide.