[Congressional Record Volume 154, Number 66 (Thursday, April 24, 2008)]
[House]
[Page H2663]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         THE ARMENIAN GENOCIDE

  (Mr. COSTA asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute.)
  Mr. COSTA. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to commemorate the 93rd 
anniversary of the Armenian Genocide, which, sadly, was the first 
genocide of the 20th century, a template for a cycle of genocide that 
continues to occur to this day.
  The Armenian Genocide involved the issue of man's injustice to 
mankind. It continued to occur throughout the 20th century, as we know, 
in the Holocaust, Cambodia, Rwanda, Bosnia, and now in Darfur.
  Growing up in Fresno, California, as we proudly say, the land of 
William Saroyan, I heard many stories as a young man from the 
grandparents of our neighbors, the Kezerians, the Koligians and the 
Abramhian families, about being forced to leave their homes and farms, 
the stories of long marches and systematic murders. They believe it was 
the first genocide of the 20th century, and ladies and gentlemen of the 
House, I believe it was too.
  Genocide is not something that can simply be swept under the rug and 
forgotten. The United States cannot continue its policy of denial 
regarding the Armenian genocide, and I encourage that we once again 
reconsider the passage of H. Res. 106 to recognize the Armenian 
genocide.

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