96th Genocide Commemoration in Times Square May 1

NEW YORK—On Sun., May 1, from 2-4 p.m., thousands of Armenians, Jews, and their supporters will gather in Times Square (43rd St. and Broadway) to commemorate the first genocide of the 20th century.

The theme of the Armenian Genocide Commemoration is “Turkey is Guilty of Genocide: Denying the Undeniable is a Crime,” and will pay tribute to the 1.5 million Armenians who were massacred by the Young Turk government of the Ottoman Empire and to the 6 million Jews who were annihilated by the Nazis. Speakers will include civic, religious, humanitarian, educational, cultural leaders, and performing artists. This event is free and open to the public.

Dennis R. Papazian, national grand commander of the Knights of Vartan and founding director of the Armenian Research Center at the University of Michigan-Dearborn, and Mary A. Papazian, provost and senior vice president for Academic Affairs at Lehman College, CUNY, will preside over the ceremonies.

Commemoration participants will include Armenian Genocide survivors, elected officials, and humanitarian, cultural, religious, educational, and community leaders. Distinguished presenters include Richard G. Hovannisian, professor of Armenian and Near Eastern history and holder of the Armenian Educational Foundation Chair in Modern Armenian History at UCLA; and Joan Rivitz, associate director of the New Jersey Commission on Holocaust Education and commissioner and commission chair of the New Jersey Commission on Civil Rights. Other presenters will include Attorney Mark J. Geragos, who helped lead groundbreaking federal class action lawsuits against New York Life and other insurance companies for policies issued to Armenians living in Turkey prior to the Armenian Genocide; Congressman Anthony Weiner (D-N.Y.); and New York City Comptroller John C Liu.

Rivitz, the daughter of Holocaust survivors, says, “As descendants of survivors, we all suffer the insult of the deniers. It is critically important to commemorate the millions of people that perished during the Armenian Genocide and the Holocaust and listen to the survivors’ first-hand accounts since they are a precious dwindling resource. Time must not be allowed to dim memory. Through this remembrance those who perished shield the living. It is also essential for young people to get involved and learn about the histories of the Armenian Genocide and the Holocaust in order to strengthen their cultural identities and make certain never to let history repeat itself.”

Papazian says, “We welcome the opportunity to stand shoulder to shoulder with our supporters including the Jewish community to commemorate the victims of the Armenian Genocide and the Holocaust. The Armenian Genocide was the blueprint for all future genocides of the 20th and 21st centuries. In fact, when Hitler sent his Death Heads troops into Poland at the beginning of World War II, he said, “Go. Kill without mercy. Who today remembers the extermination of the Armenians?”

The 96th commemoration is organized by the Mid-Atlantic chapters of Knights and Daughters of Vartan (www.knightsofvartan.org, www.knightsofvartan.ca), a U.S. fraternal organization of Armenian Americans, and is co-sponsored by the Armenian General Benevolent Union (www.agbu.org), Armenian Assembly of America (www.aaainc.org), Armenian National Committee of America (www.anca.org), Armenian Council of America, and ADL-Ramgavars.

Participating organizations include the Diocese of the Armenian Church, Prelacy of the Armenian Church, Armenian Missionary Association of America, Armenian Catholic Eparchy for U.S. and Canada, Mid-Atlantic ACYOA, AYF, Armenian Youth organizations, and Armenian university and college clubs.