Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and the California state Legislature
should be commended for officially declaring April 24 to be the
“California Day of Remembrance of the Armenian
Genocide.”
It is estimated that 1.5 million Armenians in the Ottoman
Empires died between 1915 and 1923 in a series of massacres and
forced relocations. But for decades, the Turkish government has
insisted that the deaths were a side effect of World War I and not
the result of a genocide.
The recognition of the Armenian genocide by the state of
California is an important step forward. But even more can be done:
California should translate its recognition of the genocide into
further action by developing a more in-depth genocide curriculum
for its K-12 system.
Genocides and ethnic conflicts are as complex as they are
terrible, and it is important for students to have the knowledge
they need to understand the various tragedies that litter human
history.