Advertisement

Armenian 'genocide' still a hotly debated term, even 100 years later

"I have consistently stated my own view of what occurred in 1915, and my view has not changed," President Barack Obama said of the mass killings.

By Doug G. Ware
Thousands march to the Turkish consulate in Los Angeles to mark the 100th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide, Friday, April 24, 2015. President Barack Obama has not yet made good on a campaign pledge to officially recognize the killings as a "genocide.'' Photo: Jim Ruymen/UPI
1 of 12 | Thousands march to the Turkish consulate in Los Angeles to mark the 100th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide, Friday, April 24, 2015. President Barack Obama has not yet made good on a campaign pledge to officially recognize the killings as a "genocide.'' Photo: Jim Ruymen/UPI | License Photo

LOS ANGELES, April 24 (UPI) -- Tens of thousands marched through the streets of downtown Los Angeles on Friday to commemorate the 100th anniversary of what's known as the Armenian Holocaust -- a 1915 mass killing of minority Turkish Armenians by their own government.

The deaths, which were systematically orchestrated by Turkey's Ottoman Empire, are widely acknowledged by Armenian officials and historians as meeting the definition of the word 'genocide.' It is a very passionately debated distinction, however, as many of Turkish origin flatly reject the term's use, saying it is a misrepresentation of what occurred.

Advertisement

Friday, to mark the slaughter's centennial, about 130,000 people participated in a mass demonstration in Los Angeles -- a city with a large Armenian population -- that culminated at the Turkish consulate on Wilshire Boulevard. Millions more observed the anniversary around the world.

Advertisement

Some protesters carried signs during the walk -- two of which said "we demand justice" and "Turkey must pay," the Los Angeles Times reported -- clearly demonstrating that 100 years has done little to diminish the pain ancestors still feel today.

As many as 1.5 million Armenians were killed in the slaughter during the first World War, amid a separate civil war between the nation's Armenian Christians and Turkish Muslims.

Turkish advocates and officials in Southern California acknowledged the event's centennial Friday, but took the opportunity to clarify what they say has been a greatly exaggerated chapter in Turkey's history.

"We do not deny the suffering of the Armenians and we do not deny the fact that hundreds of thousands of Armenians did die during the First World War," Turkey's consulate general in Los Angeles, Raife Gülru Gezer, said in an interview with KTLA-TV. "The number is debatable, frankly speaking."

Friday evening, more Armenian advocates observed the anniversary in the Bay Area, gathering at San Francisco City Hall.

"One hundred years have gone by, but no one has forgotten what has happened – the consequences continue to be felt," citizen David Balabanian said in a KPIX-TV report.

Advertisement

For decades, the Armenian people have been campaigning for the recognition of the mass slaughter as a genocide -- a debate that has also raged in the United States. During his campaign for the White House in 2008, then-senator Obama publicly said he would fully recognize the genocide if he was elected president.

"Armenian genocide is not an allegation, a personal opinion or a point of view, but rather a widely documented fact supported by an overwhelming body of historical evidence," Obama said during the 2008 campaign. "The facts are undeniable."

However, Obama has not yet made that official acknowledgement. He had another opportunity to do so Thursday, but did not.

RELATED Pope Francis calls mass killing in Armenia 'genocide'

"I have consistently stated my own view of what occurred in 1915, and my view has not changed," he said in a prepared statement, which acknowledged the Armenian deaths as the first mass atrocity of the 20th Century. "A full, frank and just acknowledgment of the facts is in all our interests."

Critics say Obama refuses to describe the events of 1915 as a genocide because he cannot afford to alienate the Turkish government -- a U.S. ally.

Advertisement

Some Armenian advocates hoped the centennial of the Turkish slaughter would finally prompt Obama to use the term. Several other nations, including Germany and Israel, have always avoided the term 'genocide' when referring to the 1915 killings -- even though most scholars argue that's exactly what they should be called.

"There is a near consensus that the Armenian genocide was a genocide, or that genocide is the right word," Yale University political science professor David Simon said in a report by Newsweek. "The deportations and massacres amounted to a crime we now know is genocide. In 1915 there was no such word."

"There shouldn't be really a controversy or debate, except for geopolitical reasons and the fact that Turkey denies it," Connecticut philosophy professor Armen T. Marsoobian added.

The Turkish foreign ministry on Friday again dismissed Armenians' use of the term 'genocide' as "a propaganda campaign" -- particularly in response to Russian President Vladimir Putin's using the term Friday.

"We reject and condemn the labeling of the 1915 events as 'genocide' by the President of the Russian Federation, Vladimir Putin, despite all our warnings and calls," the foreign ministry said. "Such political statements, which are flagrant violation of law, are null and void for Turkey ... Russia's "insistence on wrongdoing will not help peace, prosperity and welfare in our region."

Advertisement

Armenian advocates and some history scholars believe the Ottoman Empire's actions constitute genocide every bit as much as Adolf Hitler's did -- and that merely acknowledging it would go a long way in making reparations and bringing closure to those still impacted by the Turkish government's actions 100 years ago.

"If a U.S. official or Congress would just say this is genocide, deal with controversy and get past it ... [we could] go back to trying to understand what happened and understand why it was so horrendous," Simon said.

Latest Headlines