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Armenian Orphan Rug to be displayed, Rep. Adam Schiff says

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  • Armenian Orphan Rug to be displayed, Rep. Adam Schiff says

    Los Angeles Daily News
    May 1 2014

    Armenian Orphan Rug to be displayed, Rep. Adam Schiff says

    By Susan Abram, Los Angeles Daily News
    Posted: 04/30/14, 6:30 PM PDT |


    A historic rug that was made by orphans of the Armenian Genocide will
    be displayed publicly for the first time in nearly a century, after
    the White House reversed an earlier decision and agreed to release it
    from storage.

    The Armenian Orphan Rug had been the subject of controversy when the
    Obama administration in October refused to allow it to be released for
    a planned exhibit at the Smithsonian Institute in December. The reason
    was never disclosed publicly but critics felt it was out of
    sensitivity to Turkey, a NATO ally that is blamed for the genocide.

    The announcement was met Wednesday with gratefulness and optimism but
    also caution by Armenian-American groups who had pressed the White
    House to release the rug.

    U.S. Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Burbank along with Rep. David Valadao,
    R-Hanford, and Sen. Ed Markey, D-Mass., were among those who urged the
    White House to reconsider its stance on making the rug available for
    public view.

    Schiff said Wednesday he was pleased with the decision but was
    uncertain why the White House reversed course.

    "We've been working with the White House to find an appropriate
    venue," Schiff said. "It was time to get a yes on it, and I'm pleased
    we have."

    It's still unclear if it will appear at the Smithsonian or elsewhere,
    and when, he said.

    The nearly century-old rug was made for and delivered to President
    Calvin Coolidge on Dec. 4, 1925, as a thank-you gift to America.
    Orphaned girls who survived the Armenian Genocide worked on the
    approximately 19-by-12-foot rug for 10 months. Its intricate design is
    made up of more than 4 million individual knots.

    Coolidge kept the rug and it was passed down in his family until it
    was presented again to the White House in the 1980s. Since then, the
    rug was pulled from storage in 1984 and 1995, but only for private
    viewing.

    The rug itself has become a symbol of the tug of war between the
    Armenian diaspora and the desire for both the American and Turkish
    governments to recognize the genocide. Both governments continue to
    refuse to call it such.

    An estimated 1.5 million Armenians died from 1915-23 in what has been
    called the first genocide of the 20th century. The Turkish government
    maintains the deaths were a consequence of betrayal and civil unrest
    in what was then the Ottoman Empire. Armenians, however, say the
    killings involved the systematic cleansing of Christians, which
    included Assyrians and Pontic Greeks.

    Armenian-American activists have said the U.S. government won't
    officially recognize the killings as genocide because it would hurt
    relations with Turkey.

    Schiff said he believes a shift may be occurring.

    "I think things are slowly changing," he said. "The hope is that
    Congress and the administration will formally recognize the genocide
    this coming year when it marks a century. If not now, when?"

    Aram Hamparian, executive director for the Armenian National
    Committee, said his group is grateful for the leadership from Schiff
    and others, but will remain vigilant.

    "We're going to follow this policy closely to make sure the White
    House follows on their commitment," Hamparian said.

    http://www.dailynews.com/general-news/20140430/armenian-orphan-rug-to-be-displayed-rep-adam-schiff-says

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