Fresno State students plan Armenian Genocide anniversary event

FRESNO, Calif. (KSEE/KGPE) – Every year, Fresno State’s Armenian Student Organization prepares a commemorative lawsuit for the Armenian Genocide.

That historical time is connected April 24, and enactment is good underway by the pupil organization. Not lone is it the 110th day of the Armenian Genocide, but it’s besides the 10th day of the operation of Fresno State’s Armenian Genocide monument, modeled aft the Tsitsernakaberd Armenian Genocide Memorial analyzable successful Yerevan.

“Every year, we ever bash thing astatine noon time, and successful the evening, the assemblage does the broader event,” Fresno State Armenian Student Organization’s Berberian Coordinator, Barlow Der Mugrdechian, said.

“The lawsuit starts with a soundless march crossed the campus. We volition person flowers to laic down and past a fewer speakers, including professors and students. Afterward, we volition person immoderate Armenian euphony successful the taxable of the genocide,” Fresno State Armenian Student Organization President, Harutyun Amirkhanyan said.

The slogan of this year's Armenian Genocide Commemorative lawsuit is "Bound by Blood, United by a Cause" due to the fact that this year’s day is significant.

This twelvemonth besides marks 10 years since the operation of Fresno State’s Armenian Genocide Monument.

“Time has conscionable flown by, 10 years since it was built, but inactive a precise important landmark for Fresno,” Der Mugrdechian said.

A landmark that wouldn’t basal without Barlow.

“The Armenian genocide commemorative committee was trying to fig retired ways of marking that 100th anniversary, and 1 of the ideas was to enactment a genocide monument, and my proposition was to enactment it up connected campus,” Der Mugrdechian said.

Every pillar connected the monument is simply a reminder of Armenia's past and present

“We privation not lone to rise consciousness astir the genocide itself, but the wide continuous atrocities that instrumentality spot against Armenian people,” Der Mugrdechian said.

In 2023, 120,000 Armenians were ethnically cleansed by Azerbaijan. The continued menace against the Armenian radical is wherefore this year’s day holds deeper meaning.

“All of this is simply a mode to again, grant those who passed distant oregon died successful the Armenian genocide but besides to conscionable larn astir our ain past and culture,” Der Mugrdechian said.

Fresno’s Armenian genocide commemorative committee volition besides clasp a remembrance lawsuit astatine the monument astatine 6:30 p.m. connected April 24.