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Armenian Assembly of America Hosts Armenian Genocide Symposium in South Florida
On Saturday, March 14, the Armenian Assembly of America (Assembly) hosted an Armenian Genocide symposium entitled “A Century of Genocide: The 1915 Armenian Genocide and Its Lasting Impact,” during the Assembly’s Annual Members Weekend in South Florida. Over 80 Assembly members, friends, and guests attended the educational presentations and lively question and answer session.
The symposium featured Dr. Rouben Adalian, Director of the Armenian National Institute (ANI) in Washington, DC, Dr. Rosanna Gatens, Director of the Center for Holocaust and Human Rights Education (CHHRE) at Florida Atlantic University (FAU) in Boca Raton, Florida, and Hannibal Travis, Professor of Law at Florida International University (FIU) College of Law in Miami, Florida. The panel was moderated by Assembly Trustee and South Florida community leader Marta Batmasian.
Armenian Assembly of America Board of Trustees President Carolyn Mugar provided welcoming remarks and introduced Marta Batmasian. Batmasian introduced the panel to the audience and recognized members of the audience who have been researching and teaching about the Armenian Genocide in South Florida.
Batmasian introduced Dr. Adalian who presented the topic of “The Armenian Genocide as a Prototype of 20th Century Mass Killings,” detailing the primitive yet effective template of mass killing that was developed by the Ottoman Turkish government. He showed images from the digital exhibit “The First Deportation: The German Railway, the American Hospital, and the Armenian Genocide,” which took the audience back in time to a pivotal location of the deportations. Adalian brought to life the experiences and activities of Dr. Wilfred D. Post who administered the American hospital in Konya, a major station along the Berlin-Baghdad rail line which became the site of a large deportation camp. In defiance of the Ottoman ban on photography of deportees, Dr. Post captured what may have been some of the earliest pictures of deported Armenians.
Next, Batmasian introduced Dr. Gatens who discussed “The Impact of the Armenian Genocide on Holocaust Education.” She discussed how the CHHRE at FAU had been working for years to advance Armenian Genocide education on campus and throughout Palm Beach County. Gatens drew parallels between the Jewish and Armenian experiences and highlighted challenges faced in educating the general public about the crime of genocide.
Professor Hannibal Travis gave the final presentation on “The Armenian Genocide as a Political Act and International Crime.” He discussed the illegality of the crime of genocide under international law, including cases where the charge of genocide was applied retroactively. Travis gave an in depth account of crimes against humanity that have been heard in international courts and discussed avenues for Armenian efforts in this context.
Following the presentations, Batmasian opened the floor for questions. Several were asked of the panel leading to a lively and wide-ranging discussion. Armenian Assembly of America Executive Director Bryan Ardouny gave closing remarks and announced the launch of an online petition calling on President Barack Obama to affirm the Armenian Genocide in his upcoming statement commemorating the 100th anniversary. After the symposium, guests were invited up to view a brand new exhibit entitled “Iconic Images of the Armenian Genocide,” that was on full display during and after the discussion.
“We were pleased to bring this expert panel together for the South Florida community,” stated Bryan Ardouny. “The Assembly is grateful to Dr. Adalian, Dr. Gatens, Professor Travis, and Mrs. Batmasian for their insight and compelling presentations,” Ardouny said.
Additional photographs from the Assembly’s Armenian Genocide Symposium in South Florida are available on the Assembly’s Facebook page here.
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.
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Photo Caption 1: (L-R) Dr. Rouben Adalian, Marta Batmasian, Hannibal Travis, Dr. Rosanna Gatens.
Photo Caption 2: Program speakers at the Assembly’s Armenian Genocide Symposium in South Florida.
(Photographs by Bedo Der-Bedrosian on behalf of the Armenian Assembly of America)
Dick Barsamian Band to Perform at Armenian Assembly Dinner in Florida
Assembly Dinner and Dance Will Take Place in Boca Raton March 14, 2015
WASHINGTON, DC – The Armenian Assembly of America (Assembly) is pleased to announce that Dick Barsamian, Leon Janikian, Mike Gregian, and John Arzigian will perform live Armenian music at this year’s dinner and dance, capping off the Assembly’s annual members weekend in Boca Raton, Florida.
“We’re excited to feature live, traditional, and contemporary Armenian music for our members and friends as we gather for dinner and dancing on the last evening of the Assembly Annual Members weekend,” stated Assembly Fellow Trustee Michael Haratunian.
The Assembly’s annual members weekend will kick-off with a complimentary welcome reception on Friday, March 13 at 7:00 PM with select hors d’oeuvres and open bar. Author Irene Vosbikian will present her new book BEDROS at the welcome reception and sign copies that will be available for purchase with all proceeds benefiting the Assembly. On Saturday, March 14, guests are invited to a complimentary continental breakfast at 9:00 AM, with the annual trustees and members meeting starting at 10:00 AM. Lunch will be served between 11:30 AM to 12:30 PM for $35.00. The Assembly’s Armenian Genocide Symposium featuring Dr. Rouben Adalian, Dr. Rosanna Gatens, and Hannibal Travis, will take place from 1:00 PM to 3:00 PM. The symposium is free and open to the public and online registration is available here. On Saturday night, guests are invited to a cocktail reception at 6:00 PM, followed by a dinner and dance with live music at 7:00 PM. Tickets to the Saturday cocktail reception and dinner dance are available for $100 per person.
In addition, sponsorship opportunities for the Assembly’s Annual Members Meeting are still available at the Gold ($2,500), Silver ($1,250), and Bronze ($750) levels. Bronze sponsors will receive access to the welcome reception, breakfast, symposium and two tickets to the Saturday dinner dance. Silver sponsors will receive access to all events for two people. Gold sponsors will receive access to all events for four people.
All events of the Assembly’s annual members weekend will be held at the Marriott Hotel at Boca Town Center, 5150 Town Center Circle, Boca Raton, FL 33486. Guests that are traveling from out of town should call (561) 392-4600 to reserve a room at the Armenian Assembly’s reduced rate of $169.00 per night. To register for the annual members weekend please contact Assembly South Florida Regional Council Chair Carol Norigian at southflaaa@gmail.com.
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.
Assembly to Hold Armenian Genocide Symposium at Annual Members Meeting in Florida
Symposium Will Take Place in Boca Raton on Saturday, March 14, 2015
WASHINGTON, DC – The Armenian Assembly of America (Assembly) is pleased to announce the speakers for the Armenian Genocide Symposium that will take place during the Assembly’s Annual Members Meeting weekend in Boca Raton, Florida, March 13-14, 2015. Entitled, “A Century of Genocide: The 1915 Armenian Genocide & Its Lasting Impact,” the symposium will feature Dr. Rouben Adalian, Dr. Rosanna Gatens, and Hannibal Travis.
Dr. Adalian will present on the topic “The Armenian Genocide as a Prototype of 20th Century Mass Killings.” Dr. Gatens will discuss “The Impact of the Armenian Genocide on Holocaust Education,” and Hannibal Travis will present “The Armenian Genocide as a Political Act and International Crime.” Assembly Trustee Marta Batmasian will moderate the discussion.
The Symposium will take place on Saturday, March 14, 2015 from 1:00 PM to 3:00 PM.
Dr. Rouben P. Adalian is the Director of the Armenian National Institute (ANI) in Washington, DC. He is the editor of The Armenian Genocide in the U.S. Archives 1915-1918 and its accompanying Guide and associate editor of the Encyclopedia of Genocide. Adalian is also the author of From Humanism to Rationalism: Armenian Scholarship in the Nineteenth Century and Historical Dictionary of Armenia and has contributed to Genocide in Our Time; Studies in Comparative Genocide; America and the Armenian Genocide; and Centuries of Genocide: Critical Essays and Eyewitness Accounts. He is a specialist on the Caucasus and the Middle East, and has taught at a number of universities, including George Washington University, Georgetown University and Johns Hopkins University. He received a Ph.D. in history from the University of California, Los Angeles.
Dr. Rosanna M. Gatens is the Director of the Center for Holocaust and Human Rights Education (CHHRE) at Florida Atlantic University (FAU) in Boca Raton, Florida. Dr. Gatens is a specialist in the social and intellectual history of Germany, especially during the era of the Weimar Republic and the Third Reich. Dr. Gatens has written about the collapse of academic freedom in German universities during the 1920s, the anti-fascist and anti-militarist campaigns of the German League for Human Rights during the interwar years, and racism as a component of National Socialism. Her research and writing in the area of Holocaust education focuses on the effectiveness of particular teaching and learning strategies for high school and college students. Dr. Gatens is a member of the Florida Task Force on Holocaust Education and a member of the Save Darfur Coalition of South Palm Beach.
Hannibal Travis is a Professor of Law at Florida International University (FIU) College of Law in Miami, Florida. He has published widely on Ottoman Turkey’s Christian genocide, freedom of expression, religious freedom in the contemporary Middle East, and human rights in Africa. Travis wrote the first comprehensive legal history of genocide in the Middle East and North Africa, entitled Genocide in the Middle East: The Ottoman Empire, Iraq, and Sudan. His second book, entitled Genocide, Ethnonationalism, and the United Nations: Exploring the Causes of Mass Killing Since 1945, undertakes the first in-depth exploration of the causes of genocide and politicide using the U.N. archives.
The Assembly’s Armenian Genocide Symposium will be held at the Marriott Hotel at Boca Town Center, 5150 Town Center Circle, Boca Raton, FL 33486 on Saturday, March 14, 2015 from 1:00 to 3:00 PM. Guests that are traveling from out of town should call (561) 392-4600 to reserve a room at the Armenian Assembly’s reduced rate of $169.00 per night.
Online registration for the Symposium is available here. For additional information please contact Assembly South Florida Regional Council Chair Carol Norigian at southflaaa@gmail.com.
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.
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