Columbia, SC – The city of Columbia, South Carolina honored the victims and survivors of the Armenian Genocide by issuing a mayoral proclamation declaring April 24, 2003, “A Day of Remembrance of the Armenian Genocide of 1915-1923,” reported the Armenian National Committee of America Eastern Region (ANCA-ER).
Members of the Armenian Cultural Society of South Carolina, chaired by Mr. Albert Korikian, had urged Columbia Mayor Robert Coble to issue the proclamation on the solemn occasion. Armenian Cultural Society member Chris Malseed hand delivered a letter to Mayor Coble asking him to properly commemorate the Armenian Genocide, as cities around the United States do every year on April 24.
The proclamation states, that “the Armenian genocide and massacres of Armenia people have been recognized as an attempt to eliminate all traces of a thriving and noble civilization over 3,000 years old. “It continues by stating that “the denial of the Armenian Genocide by the present-day Turkish government continues to antagonize the Armenian people concerning their own rightful place in history.”
“We applaud the great initiative of the Armenian Cultural Society of South Carolina to work with their local legislators to properly commemorate the Armenian Genocide,” stated ANCA Eastern Region Director Arin Gregorian. “We urge Armenian Americans across the Eastern United States to continue working on the federal, state and local level to continue to educate not only our communities, but also the general public about the devastating consequences of the Genocide and its ongoing denial.”
Columbia’s action mirrors a resolution adopted by both chambers of the South Carolina State Legislature commemorating the Armenian Genocide in 1999. The complete text of the Columbia, SC, proclamation follows.
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City of Columbia
A Proclamation
WHEREAS, One and one-half million men, women, and children of Armenian descent were the victims of the brutal genocide perpetrated by the Young Turk government of the Ottoman Empire from 1915-1923; and
WHEREAS, The Armenian genocide and massacres of Armenian people have been recognized as an attempt to eliminate all traces of a thriving and noble civilization over 3,000 years old; and
WHEREAS, The denial of the Armenian genocide by the present-day Turkish government continues to antagonize the Armenian people concerning their own rightful place in history; and
WHEREAS, By consistently remembering and openly condemning the atrocities committed against the Armenians, South Carolinians are highly sensitive to the need for constant vigilance to prevent similar atrocities in the future; and
WHEREAS, South Carolina is home to hundreds of Armenian families; and
WHEREAS, Armenian-Americans living in South Carolina have greatly enriched our State through their leadership in business, agriculture, academia, government, and the arts.
NOW, THEREFORE, I, ROBERT D. COBLE, Mayor of the City of Columbia, South Carolina, along with my fellow members of Columbia City Council, do hereby proclaim April 24, 2003, as “A Day of Remembrance of the Armenian Genocide of 1915-1923” in the City of Columbia.
Robert D. Coble
Mayor
