(Clockwise from top left) Adam Schiff, Eric Garcetti, Gavin Newsom, and Steve Zimmer are four elected officials that will be participating in March For Justice on April 24, 2017 from Pan Pacific Park and ending at the Turkish Consulate in Los Angeles.
LOS ANGELES—The Armenian Genocide Committee announced on Sunday the line-up of elected officials that will be marching with the collective voice of the Armenian community on April 24, 2017. Lieutenant Governor Gavin Newsom, Congressman Adam Schiff, Los Angeles City Mayor Eric Garcetti, and Los Angeles Unified District School Board President Steve Zimmer will join marchers alongside other elected officials and leaders of the Armenian community, and voice their support in calling for the recognition of the Armenian Genocide and the demand for justice.
March for Justice will take place on Monday, April 24, 12 p.m. from Pan Pacific Park to the Turkish Consulate in Los Angeles.
Lieutenant Governor Newsom, a staunch supporter of the Armenian Cause, has consistently expressed his commitment to the just resolution of the Armenian Genocide. As Mayor of San Francisco, and throughout his tenure as Lieutenant Governor, his advocacy for a fair, just, and comprehensive resolution of the Armenian Genocide has been based off a foundation of truth and justice. He has called on Congress and the President of the United States to properly recognize the Armenian Genocide numerous times.
Congressman Adam Schiff has been a vocal advocate of the Armenian Genocide on Capitol Hill. His work as a veteran legislator who has consistently and unequivocally called on the Republic of Turkey, fellow members of Congress, and members of the federal government to recognize the Armenian Genocide has made him a strong ally of the Armenian community on capitol hill. His unwavering support of the Armenian cause is coupled with legislative efforts on these efforts.
Mayor Eric Garcetti has been a strong and passionate advocate for the Armenian Community of Los Angeles. As the councilmember representing Little Armenia, Garcetti has always been a great friend and a strong supporter on issues of concern to the Armenian-American community. His many accomplishments include consistently calling upon the U.S. Government to recognize the the Armenian Genocide, helping initiate the sister-city partnership between Los Angeles and Yerevan, advocating for city council to add Armenian language to election ballots and materials, and providing funding to support programs and projects of many community based organizations.
Steve Zimmer has spent seventeen years as an educator and counselor to Armenian students, developing a high level of understanding of the issues and concerns that are important to his Armenian students and their communities. Since taking office, Steve has demonstrated his ability to implement new policies that advance the interests of his Armenian students and to also uncover corrupt charter schools that are funded by taxpayer dollars, such as the Fethullah Gulen associated charter schools.
The Armenian Genocide Committee (AGC) was established to steer and coordinate the multifaceted commemorative activities for the Armenian Genocide and is composed of eighteen (18) Armenian organizations. The Armenian Genocide marks one of the 20th century’s greatest crimes against humanity. In 1915, the Turkish Government began a premeditated and systematic campaign to dispossess the Armenian population from its ancestral homeland and annihilated 1.5 million defenseless men, women, and children in furtherance of its Pan-Turkic plan to ensure Turkey is exclusively for Turks. Turkey must finally acknowledge its responsibility for the Genocide and make appropriate moral, financial, and territorial restitution, as mandated by the fundamental norms of international law and civilized society. The March for Justice on April 24, 2017 and affiliated events will call attention to this crime against humanity, provide a concrete list of demands from Turkey, and push for proposed legislation with U.S. law-makers.