Joe Cunningham: “I rise today, on the 86th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide, to lend my voice to this important debate remembering…”

“I rise today, on the 86th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide, to lend my voice to this important debate remembering the Armenian Genocide. While Turkey's brutal campaign against the Armenian people was initiated almost a century ago, its impact lives on in the hearts of all freedom-loving people. That is why we must continue to speak about it. We must remind the American people of the potential for such atrocities against ethnic groups, because history lessons that are not learned are too often repeated. The Armenian Genocide, conceived and carried out by the Ottoman Empire between 1915 and 1923, resulted in the deportation of 2 million Armenians from their homeland and the ultimate slaughter of 1.5 million of those people. The continued tensions in the Caucasus region are rooted in this history, and until they are forthrightly acknowledged among world leaders, the prospects for resolution remain dim. And so, Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize history, and to demonstrate that history is unkind to that abuse either rules of war or basic human dignity.”