karakash

Statement by Sen. Barack Obama Commemorating the Armenian Genocide April 28, 2008 Mr. President, last week, we paused in remembrance of the Armenian genocide , which was carried out by the Ottoman Empire from 1915 to 1923. Nearly 2 million Armenians were deported, and approximately 1.5 million of those deported were killed. It is imperative that we recognize the horrific acts carried out against the Armenian people as genocide and I will continue to stand with the Armenian American community in calling for the Government of Turkey to acknowledge it as such. The occurrence of the Armenian genocide is a widely documented fact supported by an overwhelming collection of historical evidence. I was deeply disturbed 2 years ago when the U.S. Ambassador to Armenia was fired after he used the term “genocide” to describe the mass slaughter of Armenians. I called for Secretary Rice to closely examine what I believe is an untenable position taken by the U.S. Government. I will continue to push for the acknowledgement of the Armenian genocide, and I offer the Armenian people my condolences.

Yes, the local ANCA chapters work on such issues. We are very close in one of those states. Texas would be the hardest to do.

That is not true. Members of Congress are being encouraged to make statements regarding the 20th anniversary of the Karabagh movement.

Instead of taking these ANCA articles from other sources, why not just get them directly from the ANCA - www.anca.org

I forgot to add one thing - Yerevan is NOT lawless. I felt completely safe at 2 am walking the streets of Yerevan.

I was an AAA intern in both 1998 and 1999, in Washington, DC and in Armenia at the Americas Desk at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. I now work for the ANCA in Washington, DC. I think you will be happy with any internship you choose. The AAA program in DC puts you on the Hill or at the AAA offices. The ANCA internship in DC focuses on community building and you work out of our office. The ANCA also has the Capitol Gateway Program which is for recent college graduates who want to find work in DC. We help with finding a job and you get three months of free housing once you get here. The AAA internship in Armenia was very fun. I highly recommend it, but from what I understand, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is no longer accepting AAA interns. I don't know too much about Birthright, but have heard many good things about that and the AGBU internship in NYC. Visit our website to learn more - www.anca.org

We will get the resolution done in March or April 2008.

The House Foreign Affairs Committee will mark up the resolution in September or October. Once it passes that committee, it gets sent to the House floor for a vote. But we can have 350 cosponsors - unless the Speaker pushes the chairman of the comittee for a committee vote, this resolution won't move. Then, even after it passes the committee level, the Speaker still needs to bring it to the floor for a vote. I'm guessing this will all happen in about a month.

Hopefully September.

http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/20...20070803-3.html Today, Friday, August 3, 2007, the White House withdrew the nomination of Amb. Richard Hoagland to serve as ambassador to Armenia. Visit www.anca.org for more details. The Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA) is the largest and most influential Armenian American grassroots political organization. Working in coordination with a network of offices, chapters and supporters throughout the United States and affiliated organizations around the world, the ANCA actively advances the concerns of the Armenian American community on a broad range of issues.

http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/20...20070803-3.html

The New Republic - July 23, 2007. Pick it up at your local bookstore.

We are now at 227.

We are now at 223.

First off, we need 218 votes to pass, not 238. Second, Lantos is the chair of the House Foreign Affairs Committee. In the past, he has not been supportive of the Armenian Genocide Resolution. However, he voted for it in 2005 during the committee vote and is expected to support it again this time. Regardless of what Lantos believes, if Speaker Pelosi tells him to bring it up for a mark up in committee, he will do it. Watch for the committee mark up and floor vote for some time at the end of July or beginning of September.