Hawaii State Senator Will Espero (left) and Artur Artenyan with a signed resolution recognizing the Armenian Genocide
HONOLULU, Hawaii—Hawaii’s State Senate last week unanimously passed a resolution recognizing the Armenian Genocide and declaring April 24 as a day of remembrance and commemoration of the Armenian Genocide.
“The Senate joins the House of Representatives, Hawaii’s Armenian-American community, and all Armenians worldwide in recognizing and honoring those who were killed and persecuted during the Armenian genocide, and urging people throughout the world to never forget these horrific crimes against humanity,” the resolution reads.
Hawaii State Senators who introduced the bill, including Suzanne Chun Oakland, Donovan Dela Cruz, Will Espero, Breene Harimoto, Les Ihara Jr., Lorraine Inouye, and Russel Ruderman, were present with Armenian American community member Artur Artenyan at the signing of the resolution into law. The full text of the resolution is below.
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S.R. NO. 33 THE SENATE STATE OF HAWAII TWENTY-EIGHTH LEGISLATURE, 2015 MAR 1 0 2015
SENATE RESOLUTION DECLARING APRIL 24 AS A DAY OF REMEMBRANCE IN RECOGNITION AND COMMEMORATION OF THE ARMENIAN GENOCIDE OF 1915.
WHEREAS, during the chaos of World War I between the years 1915 and 1923, approximately 1,500,000 Armenian men, women, and children living within the Ottoman Empire’s borders were killed in a brutal genocide; and
WHEREAS, hundreds of thousands of Armenians were forced to flee to foreign countries after being stripped of their possessions, national identities, and homeland; and
WHEREAS, documented as the first instance of genocide in the twentieth century, the Armenian genocide remains unacknowledged by the Republic of Turkey to this day; and WHEREAS, even though over 90 years have passed since these mass killings took place, present-day atrocities continue to resonate throughout the world; and
WHEREAS, it is every person’s responsibility to recognize the brutal slayings of so many innocent individuals, remember their suffering, and vow to help prevent future occurrences of genocide; and
WHEREAS, each year, Armenians throughout the world honor those who perished in the first genocide of the twentieth century, and the world community should join in recognizing and commemorating the Armenian genocide to ensure that this inhumanity is never forgotten; and
WHEREAS, with H.R. No. 192, H.D. 1, the House of Representatives of the Twenty-fifth Legislature of the State of Hawaii declared April 24 as a day of remembrance in recognition and commemoration of the Armenian genocide during the Regular Session of 2009; now, therefore,
BE IT RESOLVED by the Senate of the Twenty-eighth Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2015, that this body declares April 24 as a day of remembrance in recognition and commemoration of the Armenian genocide; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Senate joins the House of Representatives, Hawaii’s Armenian-American community, and all Armenians worldwide in recognizing and honoring those who were killed and persecuted during the Armenian genocide, and urging people throughout the world to never forget these horrific crimes against humanity; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a certified copy of this resolution be transmitted to the Executive Director of the Armenian National Committee of America Western Region.