April 24, 2001

PROCLAMATION: A Day of Rememberance of the Armenian Genocide

WHEREAS, the deaths of at least 1.5 million Armenians by the Ottoman Turks and the forced deprtation of countless others is remembered every year on April 24, since 1915, as Armenian Martyr's Day; and

WHEREAS, eighty-six years ago Armenians were forced to witness the slaughter of their relatives and the loss of their anscestral homeland; 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, the Armenian people have not received reparations for their losses; and

WHEREAS, people of Armenian descent have been strong, productive, contributing citizens in the many communities in which they reside in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts; and

WHEREAS, on April 24, 2001, Armenian families from across Massachusetts will gather to honor the 1.5 million Armenians who were massacred under the Ottoman Turkish government between 1915 and 1923;

NOW, THEREFORE; we the members of the Board of Selectmen, do hereby proclaim April 24, 2001, as "A Day of Rememberance of the Armenian Genocide" in the town of Brookline, and encourage all citizens to commend its observance.