The following remarks were delivered at the AYF D.C. “Ani” Chapter’s annual April 24th demonstration, gathering the Greater Washington, D.C. community in a powerful “March for Justice,” marking the 111th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide of 1915-1923 and demanding accountability for Azerbaijan’s 2023 genocidal ethnic cleansing of Artsakh.
As you know, we are gathered today to commemorate the 111th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide. On this day 111 years ago, Ottoman Turks formally began one of the worst atrocities in recorded history. One and a half million Armenians were killed. Armenian families were systematically uprooted, displaced and subjected to unimaginable suffering. Men were first disarmed and then murdered, while women and children were forced to march to their deaths. Following their example in 2020, under the shadow of the global pandemic, Azerbaijan began its genocide against the Armenians of Artsakh, leading to the forced migration of over 100,000 Armenians. April 24th, 1915, therefore, marked the start of a plan to exterminate a people, and solve the “Armenian Question” once and for all.
Yet, as I look out at this crowd today, I see the truth: They failed. We are here, we are remembering and we are still standing.
However, the danger remains. Today, Azerbaijan and Turkey have made it clear through their actions and rhetoric that they would rather seek annihilation of the Armenian nation than peaceful coexistence. Azerbaijan’s forced displacement of 150,000 Artsakh Armenians from 2020 to the 2023 ethnic cleansing is the latest action in a century of genocide still plaguing the Armenian nation.
Through broken ceasefires and the persistent denial of the crimes committed against our ancestors, they seek to fracture our resolve and break our spirit. Instead, their hostility must only serve to unify us further. If they want a broken spirit, they should only find our collective and unbreakable strength.
They will understand that their efforts to erase us are as futile today as they were a century ago.
It is crucial that we continue to stand in solidarity and remember the painful history we all share. By joining us this Friday, you’ve demonstrated the not-so-hidden strength of the Armenian people: our endurance. A strength that has allowed the concept of Armenia to stay alive for over two thousand years. Believe it or not, there are those who continue to have their eyes on us, the Armenian-American community. Be it officials of the United States, antagonistic forces in Baku or Ankara, or the displaced Armenians of Artsakh: We still care. We will never back down. And we will never forget.
