Thanks, Valley officials, for recognizing ISIL’s genocide
Our Valley congress members — Jim Costa, Jeff Denham, Devin Nunes and David Valadao — are to be commended for supporting HR 220, a congressional measure that seeks to prevent future crimes against humanity by acknowledging the ongoing genocide committed by ISIL against ethnic/religious minorities as well as the genocidal campaign of the Ottoman Turkish Empire (1915-23).
Additionally, Costa, Nunes and Valadao condemned the attacks by bodyguards of Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on peaceful protests in Washington, D.C., Such resolutions and attacks are often seen (perhaps understandably) within the context of the Armenian vs. Turkish conflict, and yet the issues involve more than just these two peoples.
Similar to the intolerance shown by ISIL, the Ottomans violently reacted to diversity/dissent within its empire, resulting in the state-sanctioned massacres of Greeks, Assyrians, and Serbians along with Armenians in the early 20th century. Among those attacked in Washington included human rights advocates protesting Erdogan’s authoritarian regime and crackdown on free speech.
Raffi Mouradian, Fresno
This story was originally published May 31, 2017 at 11:46 AM with the headline "Thanks, Valley officials, for recognizing ISIL’s genocide."