Journey for Humanity walks to raise awareness of genocide
Wednesday, September 6, 2006
Connie Jo Discoe/McCook Daily Gazette
By Connie Jo Discoe
Regional Editor
One step after the other ... one day and 30 miles at a time, six young people are making their way across America, celebrating their freedom to do so and, at the same time, remembering and honoring those who have lost their freedoms, and their lives.
The mission of the walkers' organization, "Journey for Humanity," is to raise awareness of genocide -- the deliberate and systematic annihilation of a racial, political or cultural group -- the genocides of the past and those occurring even now.
"Genocide -- crimes against humanity -- is going on today, as we talk and as we walk," said Vahe Abovian.
Vahe joins Hasmig Tatiossian, Edward Majian, Sarkis Nazaryan, Albrik Zohrabyan and Levon Sayadyan in a 3,300-mile trek across America -- from Los Angeles to Washington, D.C. -- to tell people about the vitally important issue of genocide. "It keeps happening," said Hosmig Tatiossian, "because we don't learn from it."
Journey for Humanity recognizes seven occurrences of genocide in recent history:
* 1915-1923, "The Armenian Genocide," by the Ottoman Turkish Government, during which more than one-half of the Armenian population (about 1.5 million) people was killed. Approximately 750,000 Assyrians and about one million Greeks also lost their lives.
* 1933-1945, "The Holocaust" by Nazi Germany, in which two out of three Jews living in Europe were killed by 1945. Also targeted and killed were Soviet prisoners of war, Gypsies, homosexuals, the physically handicapped and mentally disabled.
* 1975-1979, "The Cambodian Genocide," in which the Pol Pot Regime tried to "purify" Cambodia of western culture, city life and religion, and more than 25 percent of the country's population died of starvation, overwork and execution. All those considered to be part of the "old society" -- intellectuals, former government officials and Buddhist monks -- were murdered.
* 1992-1995, "The Bosnian Genocide" by Bosnian Serbs, during which more than 200,000 Bosnian Muslims were systematically murdered, men and boys were deported to concentration camps and civilians were gunned down by snipers in the city of Sarajevo.
* 1994, "The Rwanda Genocide," during which Hutu militia, armed with machetes, started a campaign of murder of the ethnic Tutsi population. One-tenth of the country's population -- an estimated 800,000 people -- was murdered during the campaign of terror.
* 2003-today, "The Darfur Genocide" by the Sudanese government and a militia group known as "Janjaweed." Since February 2003, government-sponsored militias have conducted a calculated campaign of slaughter, rape, starvation and displacement against the African population of Darfur. It is estimated that 400,000 people have died due to violence, starvation and disease, that more than 2.5 million have been displaced and about 200,000 have fled the border to Chad.
The Journey for Humanity cross-country trek hopes to make people aware of such crimes against mankind, but also of the denial of genocide. Edward said, "The Armenian genocide is being denied, even 91 years later."
Although many countries around the world have declared the mass murders, rapes, torture and mutilations in Armenia genocide, the current Turkish government denies that a genocide occurred.
The United States and President George W. Bush have declared the situation in Darfur as "genocide."
Vahe said that too many people feel that, "the crimes are too far from us. It doesn't affect us. But as human beings, everyone is either a victim or a survivor of crimes against humanity."
He continued, "We have to realize as we enjoy our homes and our families, that people are being killed."
Hosmig said that complacency and not standing up against genocide allows it to continue to happen.
What can someone half-a-world away from genocide do about it? It's the people's responsibility, Hosmig said, to elect only public officials who stand up against genocide, and support legislation that recognizes the atrocities of genocide, such as:
* H.Con.Res. 19 in 2005, which called for the United States to observe the 60th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz (January, 2005) and honor all victims of the Holocaust. It also called for teachers to educate students about Auschwitz and stress the importance of the collective responsibility of humanity to ensure that what happened at Nazi death camps is never allowed to happen again.
* H.Con.Res. 146 in 2005, which honors the victims of the Cambodian genocide and welcomes the establishment of an international criminal tribunal to bring its perpetrators to justice.
* H.Con.Res. 195 in 2005, which commemorates the victims of the Armenian Genocide and calls for the government of the Republic of Turkey to acknowledge the culpability of its predecessor state, the Ottoman Empire, for the genocide.
* House Resolution 3127, the Darfur Peace and Accountability Act of 2006, in which Congress calls events unfolding in Darfur genocidal and recognizes the need for U.S. and international involvement in Darfur. In April, 2006, the resolution was received in the Senate and referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations.
Edward said that he and his fellow walkers have received a variety of responses to their project. "Lots are appalled, and want to learn how to help," he said. "Some are indifferent. But part of indifference is just not knowing, and that is what our project is about."
A media kit provided by the walkers quotes Martin Luther King Jr., "Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly."
The walkers' support bus is emblazoned with the quote by British statesman and philosopher Edmund Burke: "All that is needed for evil to triumph is for good men to do nothing."
"Genocide is an important issue," Ed said. "It deserves more attention."
Donate time or money to the cause, Hosmig said. Help fund-raise. Send web faxes available on the Journey for Humanity Web site: journeyforhumanity.com
"Do the most simple thing," she said. "Tell some one."
"Journey for Humanity" walkers and organizers believe: "Only when people acknowledge the genocides of the past and really acknowledge and understand what genocide looks like, is there a possibility of stopping the current genocides and preventing the next ones."
Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.
Connie Jo Discoe/McCook Daily Gazette
By Connie Jo Discoe
Regional Editor
One step after the other ... one day and 30 miles at a time, six young people are making their way across America, celebrating their freedom to do so and, at the same time, remembering and honoring those who have lost their freedoms, and their lives.
The mission of the walkers' organization, "Journey for Humanity," is to raise awareness of genocide -- the deliberate and systematic annihilation of a racial, political or cultural group -- the genocides of the past and those occurring even now.
"Genocide -- crimes against humanity -- is going on today, as we talk and as we walk," said Vahe Abovian.
Vahe joins Hasmig Tatiossian, Edward Majian, Sarkis Nazaryan, Albrik Zohrabyan and Levon Sayadyan in a 3,300-mile trek across America -- from Los Angeles to Washington, D.C. -- to tell people about the vitally important issue of genocide. "It keeps happening," said Hosmig Tatiossian, "because we don't learn from it."
Journey for Humanity recognizes seven occurrences of genocide in recent history:
* 1915-1923, "The Armenian Genocide," by the Ottoman Turkish Government, during which more than one-half of the Armenian population (about 1.5 million) people was killed. Approximately 750,000 Assyrians and about one million Greeks also lost their lives.
* 1933-1945, "The Holocaust" by Nazi Germany, in which two out of three Jews living in Europe were killed by 1945. Also targeted and killed were Soviet prisoners of war, Gypsies, homosexuals, the physically handicapped and mentally disabled.
* 1975-1979, "The Cambodian Genocide," in which the Pol Pot Regime tried to "purify" Cambodia of western culture, city life and religion, and more than 25 percent of the country's population died of starvation, overwork and execution. All those considered to be part of the "old society" -- intellectuals, former government officials and Buddhist monks -- were murdered.
* 1992-1995, "The Bosnian Genocide" by Bosnian Serbs, during which more than 200,000 Bosnian Muslims were systematically murdered, men and boys were deported to concentration camps and civilians were gunned down by snipers in the city of Sarajevo.
* 1994, "The Rwanda Genocide," during which Hutu militia, armed with machetes, started a campaign of murder of the ethnic Tutsi population. One-tenth of the country's population -- an estimated 800,000 people -- was murdered during the campaign of terror.
* 2003-today, "The Darfur Genocide" by the Sudanese government and a militia group known as "Janjaweed." Since February 2003, government-sponsored militias have conducted a calculated campaign of slaughter, rape, starvation and displacement against the African population of Darfur. It is estimated that 400,000 people have died due to violence, starvation and disease, that more than 2.5 million have been displaced and about 200,000 have fled the border to Chad.
The Journey for Humanity cross-country trek hopes to make people aware of such crimes against mankind, but also of the denial of genocide. Edward said, "The Armenian genocide is being denied, even 91 years later."
Although many countries around the world have declared the mass murders, rapes, torture and mutilations in Armenia genocide, the current Turkish government denies that a genocide occurred.
The United States and President George W. Bush have declared the situation in Darfur as "genocide."
Vahe said that too many people feel that, "the crimes are too far from us. It doesn't affect us. But as human beings, everyone is either a victim or a survivor of crimes against humanity."
He continued, "We have to realize as we enjoy our homes and our families, that people are being killed."
Hosmig said that complacency and not standing up against genocide allows it to continue to happen.
What can someone half-a-world away from genocide do about it? It's the people's responsibility, Hosmig said, to elect only public officials who stand up against genocide, and support legislation that recognizes the atrocities of genocide, such as:
* H.Con.Res. 19 in 2005, which called for the United States to observe the 60th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz (January, 2005) and honor all victims of the Holocaust. It also called for teachers to educate students about Auschwitz and stress the importance of the collective responsibility of humanity to ensure that what happened at Nazi death camps is never allowed to happen again.
* H.Con.Res. 146 in 2005, which honors the victims of the Cambodian genocide and welcomes the establishment of an international criminal tribunal to bring its perpetrators to justice.
* H.Con.Res. 195 in 2005, which commemorates the victims of the Armenian Genocide and calls for the government of the Republic of Turkey to acknowledge the culpability of its predecessor state, the Ottoman Empire, for the genocide.
* House Resolution 3127, the Darfur Peace and Accountability Act of 2006, in which Congress calls events unfolding in Darfur genocidal and recognizes the need for U.S. and international involvement in Darfur. In April, 2006, the resolution was received in the Senate and referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations.
Edward said that he and his fellow walkers have received a variety of responses to their project. "Lots are appalled, and want to learn how to help," he said. "Some are indifferent. But part of indifference is just not knowing, and that is what our project is about."
A media kit provided by the walkers quotes Martin Luther King Jr., "Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly."
The walkers' support bus is emblazoned with the quote by British statesman and philosopher Edmund Burke: "All that is needed for evil to triumph is for good men to do nothing."
"Genocide is an important issue," Ed said. "It deserves more attention."
Donate time or money to the cause, Hosmig said. Help fund-raise. Send web faxes available on the Journey for Humanity Web site: journeyforhumanity.com
"Do the most simple thing," she said. "Tell some one."
"Journey for Humanity" walkers and organizers believe: "Only when people acknowledge the genocides of the past and really acknowledge and understand what genocide looks like, is there a possibility of stopping the current genocides and preventing the next ones."
Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.
posted by Vahe Balabanian at 6:07 AM
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