Lemkin and Armenian Genocide Lecture (Belmont, Mass.)

OCT. 6, 2011 * MOURADIAN TALK: RAPHAEL LEMKIN. The National Association for Armenian Studies and Research (NAASR) presents a talk by Khatchig Mouradian titled “Raphael Lemkin and the Armenian Genocide in Light of New Research.” By coining the word “genocide,” formulating its meaning, and through his lifelong struggle to render genocide a crime punishable by law, Lemkin exercised a profound influence on the discourse on the Armenian Genocide worldwide. In turn, from the mid-1940’s, Armenian newspapers embraced the term and engaged in discussions of the Genocide Convention and its implications, contributing to Lemkin’s efforts for the adoption and ratification of the Convention. Mouradian draws from a wealth of archival material—including Lemkin’s papers and newspapers articles published on three continents—to examine the impact on Lemkin of the destruction of the Armenians in the Ottoman Empire, Lemkin’s influence on the public discourse on the Armenian Genocide globally, and the role played by Armenian journalists and activists in advancing Lemkin’s cause. Within this broader context, Mouradian zooms in on the cooperation between Armenian intellectuals and Lemkin during the struggle for the ratification of the Genocide Convention by the U.S. Mouradian’s lecture will trace the path from the sands of Der Zor to the conference halls of the UN drafting committees and offices in Washington where a joint struggle by Lemkin and his supporters was being waged against genocide and in pursuit of justice for its victims. Mouradian is a Ph.D. student at the Strassler Center for Holocaust and Genocide Studies (Clark University) and the editor of the Armenian Weekly. His doctoral dissertation focuses on the destruction of the Armenians in the Syrian desert during the Armenian Genocide. The talk begins at 8 p.m. at the NAASR Center, 395 Concord Ave. in Belmont, Mass. Admission is free (donations appreciated). A reception will follow the program.