Benjamin Gilman: “I am honored that my colleague, the gentleman from California, Mr. Lehman, has invited me to join in today's special…”

“I am honored that my colleague, the gentleman from California, Mr. Lehman, has invited me to join in today's special order commemorating the tragic events that began in 1915. I am also honored that the Armenian National Committee of America asked me to join in this special order today, because I know how important this commemoration is to those Armenian-Americans descended from the survivors of those tragic massacres 79 years ago. At that time, and over the course of several subsequent years, hundreds of thousands of Armenians died as a result of brutal actions taken by the Turkish Ottoman Empire. While it is indeed my privilege to join in honoring the memory of those thousands who died as a result of that campaign of violence and deprivation begun 79 years ago, this commemoration is obviously not a happy occasion. None of us enjoys contemplating the worst aspects of mankind's history, as illustrated by the events of 1915 and subsequent years in Ottoman Turkey. Still, it is important that we do so, because such historical events hold meaning for us today.”