Political Quotes

“I am pleased to join my colleagues today to commemorate the 79th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide. Beginning in 1915 and until 1923, over 1.5 million Armenians died as a result of persecution by the Ottoman Empire. The massacre of the Armenian people was a systematic program to cleanse the Ottoman Empire of the Armenian people. Armenians were displaced from their homes and subject to torture, mutilation, and inhumane treatment. This type of ethnic cleansing is still frequent today; in the former Yugoslavia, the Caucausus, Rwanda and Burundi. We still live in a world where racial bigotry and persecution rule the governments and lead the people of various nations. The end of the Cold War and the rise of the new independent states is a call for the United States to remain at the forefront of the battle for human rights, democracy and peace. We must be very clear that in our world community there is no place for behavior that oppresses the inalienable rights of human beings to exist. Just as when we commemorate the Jewish Holocaust, we recite 'never forget,' so should be the case with the plight of the Armenian people. The atrocities of the Ottoman Empire should be a constant reminder to us that it is our responsibility to insure that tragedies like this will never resurface to stain the history of mankind. It is my sincere hope that this commemoration will assuage the survivors and increase the level of knowledge in our own communities.”