2012 -- H 8077

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LC00144

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STATE OF RHODE ISLAND

IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY

JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2012

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H O U S E R E S O L U T I O N

PROCLAIMING APRIL 24, 2012, AS "ARMENIAN GENOCIDE REMEMBRANCE DAY"

TO COMMEMORATE THE ARMENIAN GENOCIDE OF 1915 TO 1923 AND TO HONOR

ARMENIAN-AMERICANS

     Introduced By: Representatives Corvese, Jacquard, Schadone, Malik, and Gallison

     Date Introduced: April 24, 2012

     Referred To: House read and passed

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     WHEREAS, One and a half million men, women, and children of Armenian descent were

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victims of the genocide perpetrated by the Ottoman Empire in 1915, and thereafter; and

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     WHEREAS, The United States Ambassador to the Ottoman Empire, Henry Morgenthau,

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Sr., stated, "Whatever crimes the most perverted instincts of the human mind can devise, and

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whatever refinements of persecutions and injustice the most debased imagination can conceive,

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became the daily misfortunes of these devoted people." The killing of the Armenian people was

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accomplished by the systematic destruction of churches, schools, libraries, treasures of art, and

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cultural monuments in an attempt to eliminate all traces of a noble civilization with a history of

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more than three thousand years; and

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     WHEREAS, Contemporary newspapers, such as the New York Times, carried headlines

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including "Tales of Armenian Horrors Confirmed" and "Million Armenians Killed or in Exile";

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and

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     WHEREAS, The Armenian genocide has been acknowledged by countries and

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international bodies such as Argentina, Belgium, Canada, the Council of Europe, Cyprus, the

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European Parliament, France, Great Britain, Greece, Lebanon, Russia, the United Nations, and

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Uruguay; and

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     WHEREAS, Each year Armenians throughout the world honor those who perished from

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1915 to 1923, and all the world's people should commemorate the Armenian genocide because it

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stands as an ugly testament to man's inhumanity to man; and

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     WHEREAS, We must all do our best to raise awareness about the Armenian genocide not

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only because it is an undeniable chapter in world history, but also because learning more about

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this unconscionable tragedy will help us to better understand the necessity of eliminating hatred

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from our own communities; and

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     WHEREAS, Residents of Rhode Island are highly sensitive to the need for consistently

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remembering and openly condemning the crimes committed against any culture or people in

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order to prevent similar atrocities in the future; and

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     WHEREAS, Armenian-Americans living in Rhode Island have greatly enriched our state

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through their leadership in business, agriculture, academia, government, and the arts; now,

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therefore be it

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     RESOLVED, That this House of Representatives of the State of Rhode Island and

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Providence Plantations hereby recognizes April 24, 2012, as "Armenian Genocide Remembrance

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Day" in the State of Rhode Island; and be it further

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     RESOLVED, That this House respectfully urges the Congress of the United States to

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likewise commemorate the Armenian genocide and acknowledge that genocide is relevant to and

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affects all nations; and be it further

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     RESOLVED, That the Secretary of State be and he hereby is authorized and directed to

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transmit duly certified copies of this resolution to the Honorable Barack Obama, President of the

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United States, the Rhode Island Congressional Delegation, The Honorable Lincoln Chafee,

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Governor of the State of Rhode Island, the Armenian Assembly of America in Washington, D.C.,

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and the Armenian National Committee in Washington, D.C.

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LC00144

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