As Armenian-Americans, we have long looked to our elected leaders for support in our struggle for recognition, justice and peace in the homeland. Kamala Harris, even during her time as a U.S. senator from California — a state with the largest Armenian population in the country — often fell short of our expectations. While she co-sponsored resolutions recognizing the Armenian Genocide and supported demining in Artsakh, her overall track record with our community was lukewarm at best. Now as vice president, her approach has left many in our community feeling not just overlooked but outright abandoned.
Recognition without action
For over a century, Armenians have fought for global recognition of the Armenian Genocide, a horrific chapter in our history that saw the systematic extermination of 1.5 million Armenians by the Ottoman Empire. When the Biden-Harris administration finally recognized the Genocide in 2021, it was a moment of triumph for our community. However, recognition, while symbolic, is only the first step. The real measure of a leader’s commitment to justice is what follows — and on that front, Harris has failed.
In the wake of this recognition, we felt deeply betrayed when we learned that just one day before the announcement, the Biden-Harris administration had quietly waived Section 907 of the FREEDOM Support Act. This crucial legislation restricts U.S. assistance to Azerbaijan, a country that has been openly hostile toward Armenia and Artsakh. The timing of this waiver sent a chilling message: while the administration was willing to offer symbolic recognition of our past suffering, it would simultaneously empower a nation that threatens our very existence today.
Following this, we have seen little in the way of concrete action from the administration to hold Turkey accountable for its denial of the Genocide or to address the ongoing threats facing Armenians in the region. The recognition felt more like a box checked off than a meaningful commitment to righting a historic wrong and preventing future genocides.
The Artsakh betrayal
The 2020 Artsakh war was a devastating blow to Armenians worldwide. Civilians were killed, homes were destroyed and ancient cultural sites were desecrated. The Trump administration allocated $120 million in security assistance to Azerbaijan and then turned a blind eye to the attacks and subsequent crisis, offering little more than prayers and lip service and failing to take a strong stand against the aggressors. The Biden-Harris campaign called for an immediate stop to military aid to Azerbaijan, but when they came to power a few months later, they reversed course, continuing a policy that prioritized short-term geopolitical interests over human rights.
But perhaps a greater indicator of how Harris would respond to Azerbaijan’s anti-Armenian aggression as president is her stance during the 2020 war. As a senator from California, a state that is home to more than a million Armenians, Harris never condemned the attacks, never responded to constituent concerns regarding the crisis. The audacity of this silence was staggering — a slap in the face of the Armenian community.
The Biden-Harris administration’s greatest betrayal of the Armenian American community and their stated commitment to human rights came in 2023. During the 10-month Azerbaijani blockade of Artsakh, not one penny of U.S. assistance went to Artsakh to help 120,000 Armenians, already devastated from the 2020 war. Only after the September 2023 genocidal ethnic cleansing of Artsakh did USAID Administrator Samantha Power travel to Armenia, refusing to call the situation a crisis and offering a pittance in U.S. assistance to the forcibly displaced — less than $100/person.
A balancing act at Armenia’s expense
The U.S. has strategic interests in the South Caucasus, and maintaining relationships with both Azerbaijan and Turkey is part of that equation. However, this balancing act has come at the expense of Armenian lives and sovereignty. The Biden-Harris administration’s unwillingness to impose significant consequences on Azerbaijan and Turkey for their attacks against Artsakh and Armenia sends a clear message to Armenian American constituents: Armenian lives are secondary.
To counterbalance policies that green-lighted Azerbaijan’s genocide and ongoing aggression, the Biden-Harris administration now offers lip-service to Armenia, talking of “strategic partnerships,” offering $65 million in aid to Armenia this year and pledging an additional $11.9 million. This financial aid does little to address the deep wounds inflicted from 2020 to today, when lives and a homeland were lost. Armenian American votes cannot be bought with symbolic gestures or financial crumbs.
Harris has been largely silent on these issues, which is deeply troubling for a community that once viewed her as a potential champion of their cause. Her silence suggests that when it comes to difficult choices, she, like many before her, has chosen realpolitik over the principles of human rights that she once preached.
Cultural heritage ignored
Beyond the immediate humanitarian crisis, there is also the ongoing destruction of Armenian cultural heritage in occupied Artsakh by Azerbaijan. Churches are being desecrated, monuments destroyed and the historical presence of Armenians in the region systematically erased. Yet, there has been no strong condemnation from Harris or the Biden administration.
For a community that has already endured the trauma of genocide, the erasure of our cultural heritage is an unbearable loss. The lack of action from the U.S. government, especially from leaders like Harris who once claimed to stand with us, is disappointing.
The way forward
Harris’s record as vice president, and her silence as a senator during the 2020 Artsakh war, have left many Armenians questioning her commitment to our community. The Armenian community deserves more than symbolic gestures; we need a partner who will advocate for our survival as a nation. As it stands now, Harris does not deserve the vote of the Armenian community in the upcoming presidential election. The same holds true for Donald Trump.
Harris, of course, can address this issue head-on. She can break from the failed Biden-Harris policies on Artsakh and Armenia and speak out condemning Azerbaijan’s ethnic cleansing of Artsakh and Azerbaijan’s occupation of sovereign Armenian territory. The Biden-Harris administration can publicly affirm — now, prior to the November election — an end to all security and military aid to Azerbaijan. It can review and apply Magnitsky sanctions against Azerbaijani government war criminals, as detailed in legislation in submissions to the State Department and Treasury Department.
In the absence of concrete action, our votes are too precious to be given to those who fail to stand by us in our most desperate moments. It’s an act of undeserved political charity for the partisan political interest of Harris or Trump — and, in equal measure, a costly disservice to our community — when any Armenian American cheerleads either administration, both of which are guilty of arming Azerbaijan, enabling genocide and abandoning Artsakh. If we don’t respect our issues, we can’t expect anyone else to respect our issues.
Alex Manoukian
Latest posts by Alex Manoukian (see all)
- Kamala Harris: A disappointing partner for the Armenian community - August 27, 2024
The Democrats consistently avow that they are for Armenia, but prove themselves to be liars when they do not keep their promises. I realize that the Republicans, also, are lax in supporting and favoring Armenia against its enemies. As the direct descendant of an Armenian hero, Professor Arakel Garabed Sivaslian, I feel helpless to accomplish anything to help my people. I will vote for President Trump, because he is infinitely more qualified to lead our country than the do-nothing, worthless candidate of the Democrats. I sincerely hope, and pray, that he will do a better job of protecting and supporting Armenia and its people, than in the past.
Can you explain why President Trump is more qualified to lead our country. Was it his attempt on January 6 to lead an insurrection to circumvent a legitimate presidential election? Was it his abandonment of the Kurds to the Turks after the Kurds were the most effective fighting force against ISIS? Maybe it was his penchant to grab women’s genitals and brag about it that impressed you? Was it his suggestion to drink bleach to treat COVID? Or perhaps his siding with Valdimir Putin over our own intelligence service in Helsinki. Did you agree with him denigrating war hero Senator McCain and calling our US veterans “suckers and losers”? Are you happy with his business relationships with Putin, Aliyev, and Erdogan, the three architects of the ethnic cleansing of Artsakh? You must certainly know that Putin, Erdogan, and Aliyev are rooting for Trump to win. As an Armenian American are you really going to pick Trump too? Trump bestowed over 120 million dollars in US aid to Azerbaijan during his 4 years as president. Does that impress you as good use of US taxpayer money? What did Trump do when the Azeris attacked in 2020? NOTHING!
At least Biden recognized the Armenian Genocide which is an important milestone and useful in any further diplomatic engagement. I too am very disappointed in Biden/Harris not pursuing concrete actions to lift the blockade of Artsakh and do more to prevent the final ethnic cleansing. They could have blocked aid to Azerbaijan, organized a humanitarian airlift for the suffering Artsakh people, and imposed Magnitsky Sanctions on the Azerbaijani government officials responsible for human rights violations. At least now they are blocking aid to Azerbaijan for two years and beginning to deliver some humanitarian aid.
As I have stated previously I would vote for an eggplant ahead of Trump. So my order is Harris first, eggplant second, and Trump third.
Thank you for a well thought out and comprehensive look at our choices and what each has to offer Armenia and Armenians around the world. Well said!
@ GARY
Trump did not “lead an insurrection”. Stop being a brainwashed fool and turn off CNN. And if you believe he did, ask your idol, Nancy Pelosi, why she did not send in the National Guard before the “insurrection” when Trump told her to. If Robert Kennedy Jr., a Democrat, from a Democrat family, who ran with a Democrat running mate, endorsed Trump and the Republican Party, that should tell you how pathetic and dangerous your Demon-crat party has become to America and society. Go ask your senile grandpa, Biden, about his “if you don’t vote for me, you ain’t black” comment before opening your beak about what Trump has said. Lastly, try listening to Malcolm X interviews who says Democrats are liars and should never be trusted, yet you would rather vote for an eggplant than Trump.
You are like the other buffoons on this website who constantly want the USA to help Armenia. The USA can help whoever it wants. It is up to Armenia to stop their self-destructive corruption and no rule of law thinking and living. If you live in the USA, your allegiance is to the USA–not Armenia. If you care that much about Armenia, stop being a hypocrite, pack your bags, and buy a one-way ticket to Yerevan.
@ “Truth Armenian” a phony pseudonym if I ever heard one. FYI I do not watch ANY cable news and I am an Independent, not a Democrat. I am an American citizen and want my country to factor human rights into our foreign policy decisions. If you do not think that Armenians have undergone undue suffering trying to survive in their ancestral homeland, then you are truly an idiot.
And yes Trump lead an insurrection. He told his followers to head down to the Capitol. They stormed the Capitol and chanted “hang Mike Pence.” Was that a love chant?
I am not going to respond to you anymore because you are a MAGA nutcase. And by the way stop watching Fox News and Newsmax.
The idiotic level of manifestation of such infantile analysis is mind boggling. Such “disapproval” of VP Harris will most definitely please, and gain the approval, of our Russian friends. For your information Harris, as the vice president, is not responsible for White House foreign policy decisions. Let alone the fact that Biden did indeed acknowledge the Genocide.
Let’s remember…we have been told Harris is most capable and aware and has sit in on major decisions of all sorts—enough free passes.
Kamala Harris is a corrupt politician and an immoral human being. She is an empty vessel with no moral compass. It would be a disgrace for any American Armenian to vote for her.
Anyone that votes for Trump should get their hear examined . God forbid if he has a second term in office, he says from day one he will be a dictator, he loves all the dictator leaders, he is a narcissistic liar, a man with 34 criminal charges, he is delusional person and very dangerous. Is this the sort of man you want to call you President?
The Second Artsakh War happened during the Presidency of Trump, and the destruction of Artsakh and the ethnic cleansing of all Armenians happened during the Presidency of Biden. What did they do? Absolutely nothing! They are as bad as each other. A potential second Trump Presidency or a potential Harris Presidency, won’t change the outcome. It is always the same callous indifference.
It is important to point out that Biden signed the Armenian Genocide Resolution, not out of altruism, but in order to punish Erdogan for his aggressive policies which clash with U.S. interests, and Harris, being Californian, payed lip service to the local Armenian electorate during elections, in order to get their votes.
Pick your poison.