WASHINGTON, D.C. — On Saturday, Feb. 28, 2026, the Armenian Youth Federation–Youth Organization of the Armenian Revolutionary Federation (AYF-YOARF) Washington, D.C., “Ani” Chapter held a protest and commemoration outside the Embassy of Azerbaijan, marking the Sumgait, Baku, Kirovabad and Maragha pogroms and condemning Azerbaijan’s unbroken legacy of genocidal aggression against the Armenian people.
Armenian American activists and allies gathered to demand justice for the victims of those massacres, accountability for Azerbaijan’s 2023 ethnic cleansing of Artsakh, the immediate release of Armenian hostages, and a dignified, safe and collective right of return for Artsakh’s forcibly displaced Armenian population.
The protest took place as U.S. and Israeli forces launched major military strikes on Iran. AYF “Ani” Chapter member Galy Jackmakjian opened the program with an acknowledgment of the crisis before turning to the day’s demands. “Our hearts are with the Armenian community in Iran — and our eyes are on Baku and Ankara. Because we know what opportunity looks like to them,” said Jackmakjian.
Jackmakjian then turned to the day’s commemoration, describing the pattern of Azerbaijani violence without equivocation. “Thirty-eight years ago, in Sumgait, Armenians were hunted in the streets. Beaten. Tortured. Murdered. Sumgait was not an isolated incident. Neither was Baku. Neither was Kirovabad. Neither was Maragha. The pattern of erasure is clear,” she said.
The protest came one week after Azerbaijani security officers attacked peaceful protesters in Washington outside the inaugural Board of Peace meeting — a reminder, the speaker said, that Baku’s contempt for democracy extends even to the streets of the U.S. capital.
“We remember our history because it contains lessons for the future. The massacre of 1988 — this unforgivable crime carried out in cold blood — must always remain a lesson for our Armenian nation. As we mourn the lives of our martyrs, as we remember the innocent Armenian souls stolen from this world by Azeri hands, let us honor the Armenians lost in Baku by promising always to uphold justice,” said AYF Eastern Region Central Hai Tahd Council Chair U. Areni Hamparian in remarks presented in Armenian.
Speakers condemned Azerbaijan’s decadeslong pattern of denial. “Now, Azerbaijan blames Armenians for their own slaughter, in a trend of victim-blaming that unfortunately has carried over to today. This perversion of reality is not just offensive — it is very dangerous,” said AYF “Ani” Chapter member Alek Tekeyan. “History has shown us a clear pattern: violence followed by denial, suffering followed by silence. Every time the world ignores the truth, the door is left wide open for Azerbaijan or anyone else to commit the next atrocity.”
The event drew attention to ongoing abuses by Azerbaijan, including the illegal imprisonment of Artsakh’s elected leadership, Armenian prisoners of war and civilian hostages; the systematic destruction of Armenian churches and cultural monuments in Artsakh; and Azerbaijan’s continued occupation of sovereign Armenian territory. Speakers called on the United States to sanction the Azerbaijani government and halt all military aid to Baku.
“The constant threat of erasure of an entire group of people should make us terrified that the events that happened in Sumgait, Kirovabad and Baku could happen again — but this time, it could happen to you, it could happen to us,” said AYF “Ani” Chapter Treasurer Arpa Shahnazarian. “If we do not demand justice for the crime of ripping Artsakhtsis from their homes, then we will never earn justice for the crimes committed in 1988.”
Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA) Government Affairs Director Tereza Yerimyan called on Armenian Americans to translate their community’s grief into civic power. “Armenian Americans have power — not just sentimental power, but civic power. We vote. We advocate. We educate. We organize. We build coalitions. We demand that American leadership be measured not by speeches, but by deeds,” said Yerimyan. “Let our message be simple and unshakable: we will not accept a future where Armenian survival is bargained away by the U.S. or by Armenia, where Artsakh is erased, where prisoners are forgotten, where sacred heritage is destroyed and where Armenians are told to be quiet in exchange for ‘stability.’”
Protesters called on the U.S. and international institutions to move beyond statements and deliver enforceable guarantees, rejecting any peace framework that leaves Armenian prisoners behind, legitimizes Azerbaijan’s occupation of Armenian land, does not guarantee the right of return for Artsakh’s Armenians, or allows the destruction of Artsakh’s Christian heritage to continue unchecked.
The program closed with a prayer led by Fr. Sarkis Aktavoukian, pastor of Soorp Khatch Armenian Church, who honored the memory of Armenians who have died defending the Armenian homeland against Azerbaijani aggression. Aktavoukian also offered prayers for the Armenian community in Iran amid the day’s strikes and called for peace to return to the region.
Community members are urged to contact their elected officials to demand accountability for Azerbaijan’s human rights violations. To take action, visit anca.org/action.
