April 26, 2011

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2011 -- S 0900

S T A T E O F R H O D E I S L A N D
IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY
JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2011

S E N A T E R E S O L U T I O N
PROCLAIMING APRIL 24, 2011, AS "ARMENIAN GENOCIDE REMEMBRANCE DAY" TO COMMEMORATE THE ARMENIAN GENOCIDE OF 1915 TO 1923 AND IN HONOR OF ARMENIAN-AMERICANS

Introduced By: Senators Gallo, Ruggerio, Paiva Weed, Goodwin, and Algiere Date Introduced: April 26, 2011 Referred To: Recommended for Immediate Consideration

WHEREAS, One and a half million men, women, and children of Armenian descent were victims of the genocide perpetrated by the Ottoman Empire in 1915 and thereafter; and

WHEREAS, The United States Ambassador to the Ottoman Empire, Henry Morgenthau, Sr., stated, "Whatever crimes the most perverted instincts of the human mind can devise, and whatever refinements of persecutions and injustice the most debased imagination can conceive, became the daily misfortunes of these devoted people."; and

WHEREAS, The killing of the Armenian people was accomplished by the systematic destruction of churches, schools, libraries, treasures of art, and cultural monuments in an attempt to eliminate all traces of a noble civilization with a history of more than three thousand years; and

WHEREAS, Contemporary newspapers, such as the New York Times, carried headlines including "Tales of Armenian Horrors Confirmed" and "Million Armenians Killed or in Exile"; and

WHEREAS, Around the globe the Armenian genocide has been acknowledged by countries and international bodies such as Argentina, Belgium, Canada, the Council of Europe, Cyprus, the European Parliament, France, Great Britain, Greece, Lebanon, Russia, the United Nations, and Uruguay; and

WHEREAS, Each year Armenians throughout the world honor those who perished from 1915 to 1923, but truly all the world's people should commemorate the Armenian genocide because it stands as an ugly testament to man's inhumanity to man; and

WHEREAS, We must all do our best to raise awareness about the Armenian genocide, not only because it is an undeniable chapter of world history, but also because learning more about this unconscionable tragedy will better help us understand the necessity of eliminating hatred from our own communities; and

WHEREAS, Residents of Rhode Island are highly sensitive to the need for consistently remembering and openly condemning the crimes committed against any culture or people in order to prevent similar atrocities in the future; and

WHEREAS, Armenian-Americans living in Rhode Island have greatly enriched our state through their leadership in business, agriculture, academia, government, and the arts; now, therefore be it

RESOLVED, That this Senate of the State of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations hereby recognizes April 24, 2011, as "Armenian Genocide Remembrance Day" in the State of Rhode Island; and be it further

RESOLVED, That this Senate respectfully urges the Congress of the United States to likewise commemorate the Armenian genocide and acknowledge that genocide is relevant to and affects all nations; and be it further

RESOLVED, That the Secretary of State be and he hereby is authorized and directed to transmit duly certified copies of this resolution to the Honorable Barack Obama, President of the United States, the Rhode Island Congressional Delegation, the Honorable Lincoln D. Chafee, Governor of the State of Rhode Island, the Armenian Assembly of America in Washington, and the Armenian National Committee in Washington.