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AFTER YEARS OF DENIAL, FOXMAN RECOGNIZES GENOCIDE
http://asbarez.com/123385/after-years-of-denial-foxman-recognizes-genocide/
Friday, May 23rd, 2014
The ADL's National Director Abraham Foxman
BY LAURA BOGHOSIAN
BOSTON--After years of equivocation, Anti-Defamation League National
Director Abraham Foxman has publicly acknowledged that the Turkish
massacres of the Armenian people constituted genocide.
This recognition comes after a seven-year campaign in which the
Armenian and Jewish communities, as well as human rights activists and
local officials, demanded that the ADL affirm this historical truth.
In remarks delivered at Suffolk University Law School's commencement
on May 17, Foxman stated, "Had there been people of courage to
act in 1915 when the Armenian genocide was taking place, had there
been international intervention when massacres in Cambodia, Bosnia,
and the genocide in Rwanda were happening, innocent lives in great
numbers could have been saved."
The announcement that Foxman would deliver the keynote address
and receive an honorary degree unleashed widespread criticism that
the university planned to honor a man who refused to issue a clear
statement on the Armenian Genocide and who actively lobbied against
its recognition.
Groups including the Suffolk chapter of the National Lawyers Guild,
Suffolk student organizations, the Armenian Bar Association, Suffolk
alumni, and others called on Suffolk to rescind its invitation. When
Suffolk refused, several faculty members carried small Armenian flags
in silent protest onto the stage where Foxman spoke.
Foxman's Suffolk remarks stand in contrast to the ADL's 2007 statement
that the "consequences" of the Turkish government's actions were
"tantamount to genocide." The Armenian community and its supporters
rejected that statement as its qualifiers circumvented the intent
required by the 1948 United Nations Genocide Convention.
An ADL statement one year later that alleged it had "referred to
those massacres and atrocities as genocide" was likewise rebuffed as
it only "referred" to the unacceptable 2007 statement. Recent claims
by Foxman and the ADL that this 2008 release clearly and unequivocally
acknowledged the Armenian Genocide are false.
Since that time, human rights activists have continued to press
the ADL for an unequivocal acknowledgement, as well as an end to
its lobbying for the Turkish government to prevent passage of a
Congressional Resolution affirming the Armenian Genocide.
"Abe Foxman's reference to the Armenian massacres as genocide,
without any qualifiers, is a welcome change," stated Herman Purutyan,
Massachusetts chair of the Armenian Assembly of America. "Even though
Foxman continues to assert that he had previously acknowledged
the genocide, the basis for his claims are a chain of statements,
at the root of which is the 2007 statement full of qualifications,
intended to obfuscate the question. We expect that Foxman's statement
at Suffolk is not only his personal view, but that it also reflects
ADL's official position. ADL should confirm this by publishing an
unequivocal statement on its website, and joining in the efforts to
have the U. S. Congress recognize the Armenian Genocide by passing
the resolution currently before it."
Foxman's remarks reflected growing support by Jewish organizations
for recognition of the Armenian Genocide. In March, ADL New England
Regional Director Robert Trestan was quoted stating that the ADL
"now fully recognizes the Armenian genocide without reservation."
The following month, the American Jewish Committee issued a release
that read, "We pause in mournful tribute to the memories of the
estimated 1.5 million victims of the Meds Yeghern, the Genocide of
Armenians, committed in the final years of the Ottoman Empire."
Describing the genocide as "an unspeakable crime against humanity,"
the AJC called upon the Turkish government to confront the truth. "
Finally, the Israeli Knesset discussed recognition of the Armenian
Genocide at a plenum on May 13. A motion by the left-wing Meretz
party to recognize the genocide before its 100th anniversary next
year received support from across the political spectrum, including
from the rightist coalition government.
"These reversals of position by major Jewish organizations are quite
significant for all those committed to recognition of the genocides of
the past century," stated Dikran Kaligian, chairman of the Armenian
National Committee of Eastern Massachusetts. "No longer will Turkey
be able to exploit the differences between the positions of these
organizations' leadership and their membership -- the vast majority
of whom want nothing to do with Turkey's genocide denial campaign."
Locally, the Coalition to Recognize the Armenian Genocide was
established in 2008 to foster communication between the Armenian and
Jewish communities and to raise awareness of the Armenian Genocide
within the Jewish community. Its objectives include advocating for
official recognition of the genocide by the United States government.
Coalition members include representatives from the Armenian National
Committee of America and the Armenian Assembly of America.
The coalition facilitated contacts between Armenian activists and
members of the ADL and created an online petition calling on Congress
to recognize the Armenian Genocide that has gathered over 21,000
signatures to date.
Laura Boghosian is a member of the Coalition to Recognize the Armenian
Genocide.
From: A. Papazian
http://asbarez.com/123385/after-years-of-denial-foxman-recognizes-genocide/
Friday, May 23rd, 2014
The ADL's National Director Abraham Foxman
BY LAURA BOGHOSIAN
BOSTON--After years of equivocation, Anti-Defamation League National
Director Abraham Foxman has publicly acknowledged that the Turkish
massacres of the Armenian people constituted genocide.
This recognition comes after a seven-year campaign in which the
Armenian and Jewish communities, as well as human rights activists and
local officials, demanded that the ADL affirm this historical truth.
In remarks delivered at Suffolk University Law School's commencement
on May 17, Foxman stated, "Had there been people of courage to
act in 1915 when the Armenian genocide was taking place, had there
been international intervention when massacres in Cambodia, Bosnia,
and the genocide in Rwanda were happening, innocent lives in great
numbers could have been saved."
The announcement that Foxman would deliver the keynote address
and receive an honorary degree unleashed widespread criticism that
the university planned to honor a man who refused to issue a clear
statement on the Armenian Genocide and who actively lobbied against
its recognition.
Groups including the Suffolk chapter of the National Lawyers Guild,
Suffolk student organizations, the Armenian Bar Association, Suffolk
alumni, and others called on Suffolk to rescind its invitation. When
Suffolk refused, several faculty members carried small Armenian flags
in silent protest onto the stage where Foxman spoke.
Foxman's Suffolk remarks stand in contrast to the ADL's 2007 statement
that the "consequences" of the Turkish government's actions were
"tantamount to genocide." The Armenian community and its supporters
rejected that statement as its qualifiers circumvented the intent
required by the 1948 United Nations Genocide Convention.
An ADL statement one year later that alleged it had "referred to
those massacres and atrocities as genocide" was likewise rebuffed as
it only "referred" to the unacceptable 2007 statement. Recent claims
by Foxman and the ADL that this 2008 release clearly and unequivocally
acknowledged the Armenian Genocide are false.
Since that time, human rights activists have continued to press
the ADL for an unequivocal acknowledgement, as well as an end to
its lobbying for the Turkish government to prevent passage of a
Congressional Resolution affirming the Armenian Genocide.
"Abe Foxman's reference to the Armenian massacres as genocide,
without any qualifiers, is a welcome change," stated Herman Purutyan,
Massachusetts chair of the Armenian Assembly of America. "Even though
Foxman continues to assert that he had previously acknowledged
the genocide, the basis for his claims are a chain of statements,
at the root of which is the 2007 statement full of qualifications,
intended to obfuscate the question. We expect that Foxman's statement
at Suffolk is not only his personal view, but that it also reflects
ADL's official position. ADL should confirm this by publishing an
unequivocal statement on its website, and joining in the efforts to
have the U. S. Congress recognize the Armenian Genocide by passing
the resolution currently before it."
Foxman's remarks reflected growing support by Jewish organizations
for recognition of the Armenian Genocide. In March, ADL New England
Regional Director Robert Trestan was quoted stating that the ADL
"now fully recognizes the Armenian genocide without reservation."
The following month, the American Jewish Committee issued a release
that read, "We pause in mournful tribute to the memories of the
estimated 1.5 million victims of the Meds Yeghern, the Genocide of
Armenians, committed in the final years of the Ottoman Empire."
Describing the genocide as "an unspeakable crime against humanity,"
the AJC called upon the Turkish government to confront the truth. "
Finally, the Israeli Knesset discussed recognition of the Armenian
Genocide at a plenum on May 13. A motion by the left-wing Meretz
party to recognize the genocide before its 100th anniversary next
year received support from across the political spectrum, including
from the rightist coalition government.
"These reversals of position by major Jewish organizations are quite
significant for all those committed to recognition of the genocides of
the past century," stated Dikran Kaligian, chairman of the Armenian
National Committee of Eastern Massachusetts. "No longer will Turkey
be able to exploit the differences between the positions of these
organizations' leadership and their membership -- the vast majority
of whom want nothing to do with Turkey's genocide denial campaign."
Locally, the Coalition to Recognize the Armenian Genocide was
established in 2008 to foster communication between the Armenian and
Jewish communities and to raise awareness of the Armenian Genocide
within the Jewish community. Its objectives include advocating for
official recognition of the genocide by the United States government.
Coalition members include representatives from the Armenian National
Committee of America and the Armenian Assembly of America.
The coalition facilitated contacts between Armenian activists and
members of the ADL and created an online petition calling on Congress
to recognize the Armenian Genocide that has gathered over 21,000
signatures to date.
Laura Boghosian is a member of the Coalition to Recognize the Armenian
Genocide.
From: A. Papazian