Delaware State Senate
April 22, 2015
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DELAWARE STATE SENATE
148th GENERAL ASSEMBLY
SENATE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION NO. 15
A RESOLUTION RECOGNIZING THE 100TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE ARMENIAN GENOCIDE.
WHEREAS, during the Armenian Genocide of 1915-1923, one million five hundred thousand men, women, and children of Armenian descent, and hundreds of thousands of Assyrian and Greek descent, lost their lives at the hands of the
Ottoman Turkish Empire in its attempt to systematically eliminate the Armenian race, while hundreds of thousands had
become homeless and stateless refugees; and
WHEREAS, April 24, 1915, is globally observed as the commencement of the Armenian Genocide; and
WHEREAS, By 1923, these crimes against humanity not only resulted in the killing of unprecedented numbers of
innocent peoples, but also had the consequence of permanently removing all traces of the Christian Armenians and other
targeted peoples from their historic homelands of more than three millennia, and enriching the perpetrators with the lands
and other property of the victims of these crimes, including the usurpation of several thousand churches; and
WHEREAS, by consistently remembering and forcefully condemning the atrocities committed against the Armenians, and honoring the survivors as well as other victims of similar heinous conduct, we guard against repetition of
such acts of genocide and provide the American public with a greater understanding of history; and
WHEREAS, the United States is on record as having officially recognized the Armenian Genocide in the United
States government's May 28, 1951, written statement to the International Court of Justice regarding the Reservations to the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, through President Ronald Reagan's April 22, 1981, Proclamation No. 4838, and by Congressional legislation including House of Representatives Joint Resolution 148 adopted on April 8, 1975, and House of Representatives Joint Resolution 247 adopted on September 10, 1984; and
WHEREAS, even prior to the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, the United
19 States has a record of having sought to justly and constructively address the consequences of the Ottoman Empire's intentional
20 destruction of the Armenian people, including through Concurrent Resolution 12 adopted on February 9, 1916, Resolution Apr 22, 2015
359 adopted on May 11, 1920, and President Woodrow Wilson's November 22, 1920, decision entitled, "The Frontier between
Armenia and Turkey"; and
WHEREAS, in response to the Genocide and at the behest of the President Woodrow Wilson and the U.S. State
24 Department, the Near East Relief organization was founded and was provided unprecedented complete access to all U.S.
government documents and files concerning the plight of Christian minorities; and
WHEREAS, Near East Relief's efforts, with the active participation of the First State, resulted in delivering 117
27 million dollars of assistance between 1915 and 1930, including the delivery of food, clothing, and materials for shelter, setting
up refugee camps, clinics, hospitals, and orphanages; and
WHEREAS, the generous philanthropy of the American people directly resulted in the salvation of the Christian
Armenian and Assyrian refugees nation from being completely annihilated by the Genocide by saving more than one million
refugees, including more than one hundred thirty thousand orphans through their humanitarian assistance; and
WHEREAS, Delaware is home to a small, but vibrant Armenian-American community who have enriched our state
through their leadership and contribution in business, agriculture, academia, government, and the arts; and
WHEREAS, Armenians in Delaware, and throughout the world, have not been provided with justice for the crimes
perpetrated against the Armenian nation despite the fact that a century has passed since the crimes were first committed, but
remain resolved and their spirit continues to thrive a century after their near annihilation; now, therefore; and
WHEREAS, April 24, 2015, will mark the centennial anniversary since the commencement of the Armenian
Genocide.
NOW, THEREFORE:
BE IT RESOLVED by the Senate of the 148 40 th General Assembly of the State of Delaware, the House concurring
therein, that:
1. The Delaware General Assembly hereby designates the year of 2015, as "Delaware Year of Remembrance for
the Armenian Genocide of 1915-1923." 2. This resolution recognizes the 100th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide and acknowledges the criminal
mistreatment of the Christian Armenians, Assyrians, and Greeks by the government of the Ottoman Turkish Empire as an issue of international and historic significance that requires a resolution based on truth and justice.
3. The Delaware General Assembly urges the Republic of Turkey to acknowledge the facts of the Armenian
Genocide and to work toward a just resolution.
4. The Delaware General Assembly shall call upon the citizens of the State of Delaware to recognize the 100th
anniversary of the Armenian Genocide and honor the memory of the 1.5 million people who died as a result.
5. The Delaware General Assembly respectfully calls upon the Congress and the President of the United States to
act likewise and to formally and consistently recognize and reaffirm the historical truth that the atrocities committed against
the Armenian people constituted genocide.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a suitably prepared copy be mailed to The Armenian Prelacy of New York.
SYNOPSIS
This Concurrent Resolution recognizes the 100th Anniversary of the Armenian Genocide.
AUTHOR: Sen. Lopez