Congressional Record: U.S. House of Representatives
Worldwide, Weekly news | ankakh | April 20, 2012 7:23
WASHINGTON, DC – Maryland Congressman John Sarbanes (D-MD) offered moving remarks on the floor of the U.S. House this week in support of full and formal U.S. recognition of the Armenian Genocide, reported the Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA).
In his April 18th speech, Representative Sarbanes stressed that the U.S. government’s failure to stand up to Turkey’s denial of this crime “puts salt on the wounds of the Armenian people. But it does more than that. It corrodes the moral standing of our Nation as a whole.”
He also explained to his House colleagues that: “When faced with the deeply compelling research and scholarship surrounding the Armenian Genocide, it is wholly untenable to assert that the genocide did not occur. Instead, many in Congress offer the protest that recognition would harm our relationship with Turkey and undermine our broader geostrategic interests. Others suggest weakly that it is just not the right time to push the issue of recognition.”
“Armenian Americans from Maryland and across America join in thanking Congressman Sarbanes for his principled call for U.S. condemnation and commemoration of the Armenian Genocide,” said ANCA Executive Director Aram Hamparian. “We share his view that U.S. complicity in the denial of this crime not only represents an offense against Armenians, but also a surrender of our human rights policy to foreign pressure that undermines America’s moral standing.”
The full text of the Congressman’s remarks are provided below. They can be seen on-line via this link:
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April 18, 2012
The SPEAKER pro tempore: The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Sarbanes) for 5 minutes.
Mr. SARBANES: Mr. Speaker, the genocide of more than 1 1/2 million Armenians by Ottoman-era Turkish authorities is an undeniable fact of history. In 1915, the Armenian nation which had resided in Anatolia for thousands of years was subjected to an organized barbarity that included death marches, drowning, and executions.
Those who managed to survive these horrors scattered to the four corners of the Earth. Today, survivors of the Armenian Genocide and their children and grandchildren bear witness to this massacre. Each year, Armenian Americans, supported by others who readily accept the teachings of history, renew their plea that the United States Government formally recognize the Armenian genocide, and every year that responsibility of recognition remains unfulfilled.
When faced with the deeply compelling research and scholarship surrounding the Armenian Genocide, it is wholly untenable to assert that the genocide did not occur. Instead, many in Congress offer the protest that recognition would harm our relationship with Turkey and undermine our broader geostrategic interests. Others suggest weakly that it is just not the right time to push the issue of recognition. The result is the same–the continued failure on the part of the United States to do the right thing. This failure puts salt on the wounds of the Armenian people. But it does more than that. It corrodes the moral standing of our Nation as a whole.
I join those who once again, at this time of annual remembrance, implore my fellow Members of Congress and President Obama to formally recognize the Armenian genocide.
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