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Florida Armenians Meets With Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan in Washington
Taniel Koushakjian, Serzh Sargsyan, Bryan Ardouny
Last week, Florida Armenians Managing Editor Taniel Koushakjian sat down with Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan during his trip to Washington, D.C. Sargsyan travelled to the U.S. to attend the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in New York City where he delivered an impassioned speech about the need for international condemnation of Azerbaijan military attacks against Armenia and Nagorno Karabakh that has recently claimed several lives, including three Armenian female civilians, in the last few weeks.
From New York, President Sargsyan, accompanied by Foreign Minister Eduard Nalbandian, Presidential Chief of Staff Vigen Sargsyan, and Armenian Ambassador to the U.S. Tigran Sargsyan, travelled to Washington, D.C. for a series of meetings with Armenian American community leaders. Koushakjian shared with Sargsyan activities of the Armenian community in Florida marking the 100th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide. Koushakjian explained that Florida is one of 43 states that has acknowledged the 1915 Armenian Genocide by Ottoman Turkey, which was last proclaimed by former Governor Jeb Bush in 2006. Although Florida recognizes the Armenian Genocide, it does not have an official curriculum mandated by the state to teach the Armenian Genocide. Sargsyan inquired if the presidential candidate was aware of his strong record on the Armenian Genocide, which Koushakjian assured him was the case.
In that regard, Koushakjian talked about efforts by Florida Armenians and the Armenian Assembly of America to advance Armenian Genocide education in the Sunshine State despite lack of a state mandate. For instance, in April of this year Koushakjian presented an Armenian Genocide exhibit entitled “Iconic Images of the Armenian Genocide” at the Holocaust Museum of Southwest Florida (HMSWFL). In the lead up to the presentation, the Turkish Consulate in Miami wrote a threatening letter to the HMSWL objecting to the presentation and demanding it be canceled. Koushakjian explained to Sargsyan that Armenian Genocide denial exists around almost every street corner in America and that grassroots efforts promoting genocide education are vital to ensuring a future free of mass atrocities.
Taniel Koushakjian meets Armenia’s President Serzh Sargsyan
In addition, Koushakjian thanked Armenia’s Foreign Minister Eduard Nalbandian for his efforts to confront and assist with the Syrian refugee crisis. To date, Armenia has absorbed close to 20,000 refugees, the majority of which are the most vulnerable communities: Armenians, Assyrians, Yezidis, and other religious minorities. In addition to Armenian government efforts, Nalbandian has raised the cause of the Syrian peoples’ plight to the international community on several occasions this year alone. Koushakjian informed Nalbandian that Florida Armenians would do everything they can to inform the American public that Armenia is the last Christian safe haven in the Middle East.
In the afternoon, the Florida Armenians attended a luncheon on Capitol Hill hosted by the International Raoul Wallenberg Foundation (IRWF) and the Congressional Caucus on Armenian Issues in honor of President Sargsyan. House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Ed Royce (R-CA) gave remarks and introduced President Sargsyan. “For years, the International Raoul Wallenberg Foundation has been a leading voice promoting awareness of the Holocaust and other genocides throughout history, and the Foundation has called upon all of us to have the courage to stand against such despicable brutality in the future,” stated Chairman Royce. “As the leader of a people who survived the first genocide of the twentieth century, President Sargsyan is well aware of the need for that courage. We must continue to speak the truth about the Armenian Genocide and learn its bitter lessons in order to help others who are targeted,” Royce said.
Taniel Koushakjian and Serzh Sargsyan on Capitol Hill
The luncheon featured remarks by special guest Robert M. Morgenthau, grandson of U.S. Ambassador to the Ottoman Empire Henry Morgenthau, who received an award from IRWF Chairman Eduardo Eurnekian and co-founder Baruch Tanembaum for his efforts advancing Armenian Genocide recognition.
On Thursday, October 1, President Sargsyan concluded his visit to Washington with a presentation at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.
Florida Armenians Jacksonville Reporter Headed to Washington, DC
By Taniel Koushakjian
FLArmenians Managing Editor
Florida Armenians is pleased to announce that Jacksonville based reporter Janna Mosinyan has landed a new position in our nation’s capital as in intern with KPMG.
Earlier this year, Mosinyan received her Bachelor of Art degree from the University of North Florida in Political Science and Public Administration. Recently, she returned from an internship with the U.S. State Department in Luxembourg.
Janna Mosinyan in Luxembourg, Summer, 2015.
According to Mosinyan, her time at the U.S. Embassy of Luxembourg was “an experience of a lifetime.” “During my internship I worked with a tight-knit political and economics team, which gave me a hands-on experience in my field,” Mosinyan said. Her duties included assisting U.S. diplomats with delivering diplomatic initiatives to Government of Luxembourg officials on topics ranging from Russia sanctions to Ukraine to the Iran nuclear negotiations. Among her accomplishments, Mosinyan also contributed to the drafting of a three-year agriculture biotech outreach strategy for the U.S. Embassy in Luxembourg, which was selected by the State Department and approved for $12,000 in funding.
While currently interning at KPMG in Washington, DC, Mosinyan plans to attend graduate school in the fall in pursuit of a career in the U.S. Foreign Service. Florida Armenians congratulates Janna Mosinyan on her achievements and wishes her great success in the future.
Florida High School Students Visit the Armenian Assembly of America
High School Students from Palm Beach County Learn About Armenian History, Human Rights, and the Armenian Genocide
WASHINGTON, DC – Last month, the Armenian Assembly of America (Assembly) hosted a group of high school students and educators from Palm Beach County, Florida for a presentation and discussion on Armenian history, human rights, and the Armenian Genocide. Nineteen students and eight teachers travelled to the nation’s capital to meet with various human rights groups and anti-genocide organizations to deepen their understanding of genocide and crimes against humanity. The group was sponsored by inSIGHT Through Education, Inc., a Florida non-profit that uses the lessons of the Holocaust and genocide to fight prejudice and bigotry and to encourage tolerance, acceptance and respect. In addition to the Assembly, the student group also visited Congress and the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum.
Dr. Rouben Adalian, Director of the Armenian National Institute (ANI), provided a briefing to the group and presented the exhibit “Witness to the Armenian Genocide: Photographs by the Perpetrators’ German and Austro-Hungarian Allies.” The exhibit includes ten posters with a detailed timeline, a color-coded map geographically matching the photographs with their location, and seven pages displaying 34 captioned historic photographs depicting the deportations, massacres, and concentration camps.
“The Palm Beach County students were already aware of the importance of addressing current human rights issues,” stated Dr. Adalian. “That made our discussion on the Armenian Genocide that much more informed, as they detected the patterns of discrimination and intolerance that can lead to gross violations forewarning of a genocidal outcome,” Dr. Adalian said.
The students were accompanied by educators Maureen Carter, Maureen Holtzer, Frances Kennedy, Tawny Anderson, Bryan Sandala, Tonisha Cook, Holocaust survivor Frieda Jaffe, and President of inSIGHT Roz Lewy.
Taniel Koushakjian, Assembly Communications Director, also addressed the group and discussed the role of the Assembly in educating the public as well as elected officials about human rights and the Armenian Genocide. “It is important that Holocaust and Genocide education begin at the high-school level and it is encouraging to see my home state and county lead in that effort,” said Koushakjian, a life-long Floridian and graduate of the Palm Beach County public school system.
Established in 1972, the Armenian Assembly of America is the largest Washington-based nationwide organization promoting public understanding and awareness of Armenian issues. The Assembly is a non-partisan, 501(c)(3) tax-exempt membership organization.
Florida Armenians 