Alecia Foster
It was about 85 years ago when the Ottoman Turks went through a small
Armenian village where Mikael Kourinian's great-uncle lived.
"All of them were rounded up and shot," Kourinian said.
The story, passed down through his family, was one the Glendale
Community College student will never forget.
Kourinian, also president of the Armenian Student Assn. at GCC, asked
fellow students Thursday to share their knowledge of the Armenian
genocide with others.
"These are crimes against humanity," he said. "It doesn't matter if
you're Armenian or any other ethnicity."
Armenians became the targets of persecution by the Ottoman Empire
during the late 19th century. More than 300,000 Armenians were killed
between 1894 and 1909.
In 1915, another mass persecution began in which 1.5 million Armenians
were killed and more than 500,000 were exiled from the empire.
The Turkish government denies the genocide ever happened, community
activist Alex Sardar said. A community that remainssilent does the same,
he said.
"I urge you to stand up and demand justice for Armenians and all
others victims of genocide," Sardar told students.
A group of Glendale students are planning to protest in front of the
Turkish embassy Monday, the anniversary of the genocide.
