The First Modern Genocide of the 20th Century

The Forgotten Genocide What is to be learned from this Hitler quote?

Where did the word Genocide come from? Greek genos (race) + Latin -cida (killer) “the deliberate killing of a large group of people, especially those of a particular ethnic group or nation.”

Armenian Genocide Overview What: The first genocide of the 20th Century Where: Ottoman Empire When: 1915-1923 More than 1.5 million Armenians killed 2 million lived in the Ottoman Empire at that time Nearly every Armenian lost a family member Who: Perpetrated by the Young Turk Government Why: “Turkification” Pretexts for genocide Religious differences Economic differences Scapegoat for WWI military losses

Background on Armenia Over 4000 years old Has its own language, alphabet Has distinctive architecture First nation to adopt Christianity, 301 AD According to the Bible, the location of the Garden of Eden and Mt. Ararat, where Noah’s ark landed

Historic Armenia

Present Day Armenia Republic of Armenia Location: Southwestern Asia 29,800 sq km (smaller than Maryland) Population: 3 million Capital: Yerevan Independent nation since 1991

How did they implement the genocide? Read your telegram and: Determine how Pasha plans to eliminate the Armenians &/or cover it up. (Turkish doc) What information is known about what the Turkish government did. (British doc)

The Armenian genocide is similar to the Jewish Holocaust in many respects: * Both people adhere to an ancient religion. *Both are religious minorities of their respective states. *Both have a history of persecution. *Both are new democracies. *Both are surrounded by enemies. *Both are talented and creative minorities who have been persecuted out of envy and traditionalism.

Role of WWI: Perfect Opportunity Because it was WWI, the rest of the world was preoccupied (Completely absorbed by another thought or action) and did not notice the conflict until 1918. If WWI had not been happening, then the other countries of the world could have assisted the Armenians in their time of need.

Role of WWI: Perfect Opportunity Armenians side w/Russia, (Allied Powers) Leaders of the Young Turk regime sided with the (Central Powers) Ottomans defeated by Russians Place blame on Armenians “Collaboration with the enemy” War provided perfect opportunity for Turkification

Reaction to Genocide Armenians Turks & others Foreigners Most didn’t know what was happening until it was too late Church leaders urged villagers not to give in to provocations Some organized self-defense or fled Turks & others Many took advantage of the situation - looting, killing Some risked their lives to help save Armenians Foreigners Many news reports, diplomatic protests Some were able to save Armenians No real action taken to stop genocide by foreign governments, neither Turkey’s enemies nor its allies

Armenian Genocide Today Armenians dispersed all over the world Only about 55,000 Armenians left in Turkey, most in Istanbul, To this day the Turkish Government is actively engaged in Genocide denial Turkey passed a law in 2004 known as Article 301 which makes it a criminal offense to insult the Turkish Nation (i.e.: mention the Armenian Genocide in Turkey) Armenian names of cities, villages, mountains, rivers, & even animals have been changed to Turkish names Ancient churches & other historic sites are being intentionally neglected or destroyed Much of Armenian culture has been lost

What they say… The number of Armenian deaths is grossly inflated More Muslims died during the same period because of WWI Armenian American evidence of genocide is derived from uncertain and biased sources The Armenian deaths do not constitute genocide The Holocaust has no meaningful connection to the Ottoman Armenian experience

8 Stages of Genocide Genocide is a process that develops in 8 stages that are predictable but not unstoppable. At each stage, preventive measures can stop it. The later stages must be preceded by the earlier stages, though earlier stages continue to operate throughout the process. Classification – distinguishing people into “us and them” by ethnicity, race, religion, or nationality Symbolization - giving names or other symbols to the classifications. We name people “Jews” or “Gypsies”, or distinguish them by colors or dress; and apply them to members of groups. Classification and symbolization are universally human and do not necessarily result in genocide unless they lead to the next stage, dehumanization. Dehumanization - One group denies the humanity of the other group. Members of it are equated with animals, vermin, insects or diseases. Dehumanization overcomes the normal human revulsion against murder. At this stage, hate propaganda in print and on hate radios is used to vilify the victim group. Organization - Genocide is always organized, usually by the state, though sometimes informally or by terrorist groups. Special army units or militias are often trained and armed. Plans are made for genocidal killings. Polarization - Extremists drive the groups apart. Hate groups broadcast polarizing propaganda. Laws may forbid intermarriage or social interaction. Identification - Victims are identified and separated out because of their ethnic or religious identity. Death lists are drawn up. Members of victim groups are forced to wear identifying symbols. Extermination - It is “extermination” to the killers because they do not believe their victims to be fully human. Denial - is the eighth stage that always follows a genocide. It is among the surest indicators of further genocidal massacres. The perpetrators of genocide dig up the mass graves, burn the bodies, try to cover up the evidence and intimidate the witnesses. They deny that they committed any crimes, and often blame what happened on the victims.

Things to Remember Genocide can happen anywhere Genocide usually occurs during times of crisis or war Genocide denial is a continuation of genocide, “killing the victims twice” Genocide is a crime against all of humanity, not just the victims

20th Century’s Legacy of Genocide 1915-1923 Turkish Genocide of Armenians, Assyrians, and Pontian Greeks 1932-1933 Ukrainian Famine-Genocide 1938-1945 Nazi Holocaust of Jews, Poles, Gypsies 1975-1979 Cambodia 1994 Rwanda 1995 Bosnia Today Darfur Tomorrow ????