MU lecture spurs conversation of Armenian Genocide

By Krista Savage, The Miami Student

The remains of thousands of Armenians lay forgotten in the Syrian Desert in a place called Deir-ez-Zor, also referred to as the "Armenian Auschwitz."

This year marks the 100th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide, the first genocide of the 20th century. In the spring of 1915, the Ottoman Empire expelled Armenians living in eastern Turkey from their homes, forcing them on death marches into the Syrian Desert.

Somewhere between 600,000 and one million Armenians were killed.

Author and expert on the Armenian Genocide, Ronald Suny, shared his research with Miami University at an on-campus lecture March 18. Suny is also the Director for the Eisenberg Institute for Historical Studies at the University of Michigan.

Erik Jensen is a professor at Miami and a member of the Genocide and Holocaust Education committee. He invited Dr. Suny to speak on the Armenian genocide. The Center for American and World Cultures at Miami will host more events throughout April dedicated educating students about tragedies throughout world history.

In 1915, the leaders of the Ottoman Empire began to question the loyalty of Armenians living in eastern Turkey; they claim the Armenians were rebels aiding the Russians against them. This led the Turkish Government to take authoritative actions. First, they disarmed Armenian soldiers fighting in the Turkish army. Then, they rounded up Armenian politicians, journalists and professors, and slaughtered them.

"With the muscle and the brains gone, left were women, children and elderly who were then sent on death marches through the Syrian Desert," Suny said.

Today, the Turkish government does not recognize this genocide. In fact, the word "genocide" is forbidden when speaking of the Armenians. Several other nations, including the U.S. and Germany, speak cautiously of the event, and avoid the term "genocide" in order to preserve ties with Turkey.

Even though there is substantial evidence and many survivors and witnesses of the genocide, the Turks refuse to take blame, often trying to provide alternative reasons for the deaths. Turks put blame on the Armenians, claiming they were the victims. In fact, there is a museum in Turkey acknowledging Turks killed by Armenians.

"…Armenians were actually loyal to the Turks, and hundreds of thousands of them joined the army. Then, they were demobilized and killed," Suny said. "If any Turks were killed it was purely out of self defense by the Armenians who were getting their families torn apart or were starving to death."

Today, the Armenian Genocide isn't covered in many history classes. It's often overlooked, partly due to the events of WWI and the Jewish Holocaust. Some historians even claim that Hitler was inspired by the massacres of the Armenians.

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"Who, after all, speaks today of the annihilation of the Armenians?" Hitler said during his dictatorship in 1939.

Caroline Schube, a junior history and political science double major at Miami, didn't know anything about the Armenian Genocide until her professor mentioned Suny's lecture.

"I am shocked more people do not pay respect to this tragedy," Schube said. "There is a forest of bones that lies forgotten."

However, present-day Armenians don't take the subject lightly. Sadie Zazian, from Allen Park, Michigan, is the mother to a staff member at Miami. She remembers in detail her mother's stories from the Armenian Genocide.

Her mother was one of the few survivors.

Zazian's parents lived in a city called Govdooun, in Sepastia, Turkey. They married in 1914 when her mother was 18 years old. Shortly after, Zazian's father escaped in hopes of avoiding serving in the Turkish army. However, her mother and aunt remained in Govdooun.

"My mother and her sister were forced out of their homes by the Turkish government," Zazian said. "They were tortured, starved and they had to endure many tragic experiences. They were tortured. Plain and simple. My grandparents were murdered and thrown into the Black Sea."

Zazian accredits her mother's survival to the Syrians, who fed large groups of the survivors in the desert. Eventually, through efforts made by the American Red Cross Association, the survivors were rescued and brought to the United States.

"My mother told me stories of her travels every day. I always wondered why she never got sick of talking about it and she would say, 'When you wake up next to your nephew, and realize that he had starved to death overnight, it's hard to forget,'" Zazian said. "At that point, I realized that you can't ever move on from something like this."

For the last 100 years, Armenians have struggled to raise awareness of the murders of their people. April 24 is recognized as Armenian Genocide Awareness Day. This year, Istanbul will host a large memorial service.