The Armenian Genocide and Its Denial - 1503 Words

Genocide. The killing of hundreds of people. The extermination of a nation. Such a thing may sound too horrible to be true, but it happens right under our very noses. And what is even worse, is when such tragic events are not recognized as what they are, or simply forgotten. Such is the case of the Armenian Genocide, also referred to as the Forgotten Genocide, the Hidden Holocaust, the Secret Genocide, or the Unremembered Genocide (Balakian xvii). The Jewish Holocaust is well known throughout the world and is taught to all students. But who talks of the Armenians? Who talks of the innocent people being forced by the Turks to leave their 3,000 year-old homeland and march without stopping to the Syrian Desert (Bournoutian†¦show more content†¦Also, all valuables had to be turned in to the Turks. It is a bit odd how the Armenians cooperated so well withal of it. They had no idea what was going to happen. Having been told by the Turks that everything was for the war ef fort, they turned in all weapons and gathered for relocation without much resistance, believing they were being transported to safety for their own good (â€Å"Armenian†). Though things went like this most of the time, there was some rebellion. A well known incident of such sort is the rebellion in the city of Van in the year 1914 (Douglas 326). The Armenians were forced to march in what came to be known as Death Marches across Anatolia and into the Syrian Desert. They were faced with many horrors along the way. Many were raped, starved, dehydrated, murdered, or kidnapped (â€Å"Armenian†). No men or boys older than eleven were left alive during the Death Marches, and often, the women had to march completely naked in the scorching sun. Water and food were rarely distributed, and anyone who slowed down was shot and left to die (Miller). On top of all this, there was greed. The Turks would burn or cut up bodies to search for pieces of gold or other valuables that had been swallowed for safekeeping (Balakian 243). Often, the Armenians would be taken to open fields and shot, or tied together withShow MoreRelatedThe Denial of The Armenian Genocide Essay1442 Words   |  6 PagesThe denial of the Armenian genocide and the use of the term â€Å"alleged† are insults to those who have agitated over the years in highlighting the genocide and the Armenian people themselves. The pictorial anger and anguish of this painful traumatic experience had left the survivors of this horrific event with deep scars beyond repairs. The late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries were a dark world for the Armenians who were held helpless and bound at the treacherous hand of the Muslim Turks ofRead MoreTurkish Armenian Reconciliation Committee ( Tarc ) Essay1519 Words   |  7 Pagesas far as the genocide. As they argue history is subjective therefore, it is not a fact that the genocide ever happened. They’ve asserted that the genocide is some id ea brought about by historians that have tried to sensationalize things so they can make a name for themselves. According to Theriault there is a â€Å"Turkish† and an â€Å"Armenian† view of the history and each are extreme with either of them being more valid than the other. Theriault goes on to talk about the â€Å"Turkish Armenian ReconciliationRead MoreEssay on Recognizing the Armenian Genocide1266 Words   |  6 PagesThe Armenian Genocide, also known as the Armenian Holocaust, was the organized killing of Armenians. While there is no clear agreement on how many Armenians lost their lives, there is general agreement among Western scholars that over a million Armenians may have perished between 1914 and 1918. It all happened during the Ottoman Empire, present-day Turkey, where 2 million Armenians lived. The Armenian Genocide is the second-most studied massacre, after the Holocaust. To date Twenty-two countriesRead MoreWas Genocide Committed against the Armenia n People in the Ottoman Empire During World War I1597 Words   |  6 PagesWAS GENOCIDE COMMITTED AGAINST THE ARMENIAN PEOPLE IN THE OTTOMAN EMPIRE DURING WORLD WAR I? In some countries, it is highly forbidden to mention the Armenian Genocide, which took place during the First World War with an approximate number of one and a half million Armenians exterminated. Currently around the world, there are still arguments whether genocide took place in the Ottoman Empire, targeting the Armenians. However, Turkey continues to firmly deny the fact that there was genocide, concedingRead MoreArmenian Genocide and Holocaust Comparison860 Words   |  4 PagesHolocaust and Armenian Genocide in the Ottoman Empire. That is more than half the number of people that died in World War I. The book Maus by Art Spigelman tells the story of a man who was a victim of and lived through the Holocaust. The Holocaust and Amenian Genocide are indistinguishable because of not only the amount of people that died but also for three more main reasons. These reasons are the gruesome leaders of both genocides, the merciless dehumanization that was forced upon the Armenians, Jews,Re ad MoreThe Armenian Genocide And The Decline Of The Ottoman Empire1671 Words   |  7 PagesI. The primary underlying cause of the Armenian genocide derived from the decline of the Ottoman Empire towards the end of the 19th century, and was based on land dispute, religion, and ultra-nationalism. â€Å"One of the main factors that led to the Armenian genocide is to be found in the mental conditions and characteristics of Turkish National identity† (AkcÃŒ §am, 2004, 59). The Armenians have claimed their home in the southern Caucasus since 7th Century BCE. Throughout many centuries, the MongolRead MoreThe Armenian Genocide2102 Words   |  9 PagesArmenian Genocide Andy Leeds Ms. Bullis English 1 April 24 Armenians are a Christian nation, and when they were a country, they were the first to proclaim Christianity as the state religion. The Ottoman Empire took control of Armenia during the 15th century, and they were mistreated for quite a while due to religious differences (Christians vs. Muslims), and this mistreatment culminated and peaked during 1915-1918. During World War I, the Ottoman Empire took the opportunity among a world of chaosRead MoreThe Armenian Genocide Committed By The Ottoman Empire1579 Words   |  7 PagesThe Armenian genocide committed by the Ottoman Empire against its minority Armenian population from 1915-1917 left an estimated 1.5 million dead and to date, not one individual has been tried for these egregious crimes. The mass killings of Armenians by the Ottoman Empire in World War I and Jews by the Nazis in World War II shocked the conscience of the international community and led to the creation of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crim e of Genocide (CPPCG), in order toRead MoreThe Armenian Genocide 1788 Words   |  8 PagesThe Armenian genocide was the first genocide of Modern World History, but it was not the first time the world saw an ethnic and religious group angry with and persecuting another. The Armenian genocide is special because it was the first time the world saw mass slaughter being planned and executed by government officials. This deliberate slaughter of Armenians has been the focus of many because of its unique persecution of a single ethnic group and the fact that the Turkish government still deniesRead MoreEssay Genocide and Modernity2065 Words   |  9 PagesThe crime of genocide is one of the most devastating human tragedies throughout the history. And the word genocide refers to an organised destruction to a specific group of people who belongs to the same culture, ethnic, racial, religious, or national group often in a war situation. Similar to mass killing, where anyone who is related t o the particular group regardless their age, gender and ethnic background becomes the killing targets, genocide involves in more depth towards destroying people’s