Commemorating The Armenian Genocide To Raise Awareness Of Culture And History

Sunday marks the 107th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide, and the Los Angeles-based Armenian Genocide Committee is commemorating the day with music, talks and scholars.

Mihran Toumajan, the committee’s chair, said he hopes the virtual event will generate a deeper understanding of Armenian culture and history.

Watch the program on the committee's Facebook page

“It'll include interviews with activists who are working on the frontlines to raise awareness about the continued destruction and erasure of Armenian cultural heritage that's happening right now in a part of the homeland known as Artsakh,” he said.

Southern California has the largest population of Armenians outside Armenia and the community here has been instrumental in raising awareness of the tragedy in recent years.

On Friday, Governor Gavin Newsom issued a proclamation declaring April 24, 2022 as “A Day of Remembrance of the Armenian Genocide” in the California.

“On April 24, 1915, the Ottoman Empire began its systematic genocide of Armenian people, a minority group that had long been treated as second-class citizens,” Newsom wrote. “Today and every day, let us recommit ourselves to making certain that we never forget the Armenian Genocide, and that we always speak out against hatred and atrocities anywhere they occur.”

On a national level, a bill introduced to the U.S. House of Representatives last week would fund education about the Armenian Genocide through the Library of Congress.

And a year ago, President Biden formally recognized the Ottoman Empire's killing of an estimated 1.5 million Armenians as genocide. That recognition had long been sought by the Armenian community.