Monday, April 26, 2010

Armenian Genocide remembrance

On Friday, we took a moment in Council to recognize and remember one of the most horrific events in world history -- the Armenian Genocide.

Beginning in 1915, the genocide was carried out by Ottoman Turkey and resulted in the death of more than 1.5 million men, women, and children. The remaining survivors were expelled from their historic homeland.

In Council Chambers, we honored Dr. J. Michael Hagopian, a survivor of the Armenian Genocide who has dedicated his life to documenting the stories of survivors on film. Dr. Hagopian, 96, is pictured above at the podium.

Maya Angelou once wrote, "History, despite its wrenching pain, cannot be unlived but if faced with courage, need not be lived again." We recognize the wrenching pain of this moment in our history and strive to never let it be lived again.