Last Wednesday, candles illuminated the dim Alumni Lounge in memory of the millions who died 100 years ago. Amnesty International, in collaboration with STAND, organized a poignant vigil to commemorate victims of the Armenian Genocide—an atrocity which began around this time of year in 1915.

The co-presidents of Amnesty International, Shikha Chandarana ’17 and Christa Caggiano ’17, began by asking all attendees to stand in a circle and hold their plastic candles in the air. A number of students who had prepared remarks for the vigil then proceeded to speak in sequence.

Rebecca Ottinger ’15, who is half-Armenian, explained how her great-grandparents had fled from the Ottoman Turks—the genocide’s perpetrators—during the heart of the Genocide. She told the story of how a Muslim family hid her great-grandmother and ultimately enabled her and her family to escape Armenia. Ottinger then recited a poem titled “Vigil for Darfur” by Sabina Carlson which illustrated the incomprehensible nature of the massacre.

Michael Abrams ’15 and Chandarana then both read eyewitness accounts of individuals who observed the terrors of the genocide. The storytellers graphically described the torture and mistreatment undergone by the Armenian Christians.

Vardges Tserunyan ’17, born in Armenia, then presented some facts about the Armenian Genocide to the students in the room. He stated that the genocide began in 1914 and reached its peak in 1915. By its conclusion, the Ottoman Turks had murdered approximately 1.5 million Armenian Christians—at the time about three-quarters of the population.

Tserunyan then discussed the ongoing phenomenon of Armenian Genocide denial and its lasting effects on the Armenian people. He explained how, for many years, the Turks and Soviets (who maintained a close alliance with each other) persecuted individuals who spoke up about the genocide. He posited that these nations, among many others, refused to recognize the incidence of the genocide because they wanted to avoid having to pay territorial and financial reparations for the estimated $46 billion of damage. He explained how, to this day, Turkey’s government argues that the deaths of 1.5 million Armenians were unintentional and that the massacres were simply an unfortunate consequence of World War I.

Tserunyan mentioned that it was not until 1965, 48 years after the genocide’s end, that the Armenians organized a protest against the Soviet government demanding that it officially recognize the Armenian Genocide. He stated that this protest marked the beginning of a worldwide movement to recognize the genocide, with Uruguay being the first nation to formally recognize the event. He commended Pope Francis for his condemnation of the Armenian Genocide on April 12 and the European Parliament’s subsequent recognition of the genocide three days later. Tserunyan did, however, express his disappointment in the United States and Turkey, who to this day still refuse to officially recognize the Turks’ culpability in perpetrating the genocide.

The room then focused its attention on Samuel Hagop Chakmakjian ’17. Samuel, born to an Armenian family, explained how all eight of his great-grandparents were Ottoman Armenians, seven of whom lived in Armenia at the time of the genocide. He also spoke about how his parents, grandparents and great-grandmother frequently told him stories about the atrocities his relatives experienced.

Chakmakjian shook his head as he voiced his frustration with the international leaders who refuse to recognize the genocide. “The leaders who refuse to recognize the Armenian Genocide don’t understand that these memories still follow us around. What we call the ‘Great Catastrophe’ follows us into every room. The book is never actually closed,” he articulated.

Caggiano then read Pope Francis’ statement from April 12, where he openly recognized and condemned the Armenian Genocide, calling it the “first genocide of the 20th century.” This was followed by two minutes of silence in commemoration of the victims who perished.

Following the service, the event coordinators served an authentic Armenian dinner, which they said was purchased from an Armenian market in Cambridge.