Dianne Feinstein: “As we approach the 92nd anniversary of the Armenian Genocide, I rise today in support of a resolution introduced by…”

“As we approach the 92nd anniversary of the Armenian Genocide, I rise today in support of a resolution introduced by Senator Richard Durbin, calling on the President to recognize the Armenian Genocide. Specifically, this resolution would: encourage the President to incorporate the memory and lessons of the Armenian Genocide into the foreign policies of the United States, and; urge the President to accurately portray this terrible episode as 'genocide' in his annual statement. Between 1915 and 1923, as many as 1.5 million Armenians perished and 500,000 were exiled by the Ottoman government in a systematic campaign of murder, deportation, and forced starvation. Ninety-two years later, nearly all of the survivors are no longer with us. Yet their solemn voices still echo, urging us to remember them and work to ensure that their suffering was not in vain. In my 15 years in the U.S. Senate, I have received thousands of letters from members of the Armenian-American community in my home State of California, encouraging our government to recognize the Armenian Genocide. Many of them are descendants of the genocide's survivors, who immigrated to the United States and, over the course of a few decades, built a strong and vibrant community in California and elsewhere. For the genocide's victims, there can be no justice. But by preserving and cherishing their memory, we can begin healing the wounds that still linger.”