Florida Senate - 2013                                    SR 1878
       
       
       
       By Senator Latvala
       
       
       
       
       20-03835A-13                                          20131878__
    1                          Senate Resolution                        
    2         A resolution recognizing April 24, 2013, as Armenian
    3         Martyrs Remembrance Day.
    4  
    5         WHEREAS, 1.5 million men, women, and children of Armenian
    6  descent were victims of the genocide perpetrated by the Ottoman
    7  Empire in 1915 and thereafter, and
    8         WHEREAS, the killing of the Armenian people was
    9  accomplished by the systematic destruction of Christian
   10  churches, schools, libraries, art treasures, and cultural
   11  monuments in an attempt to eliminate all traces of a noble
   12  Christian civilization with a history of more than 3,000 years,
   13  and
   14         WHEREAS, United States Ambassador to the Ottoman Empire,
   15  Henry Morgenthau, Sr., stated, “Whatever crimes the most
   16  perverted instincts of the human mind can devise, and whatever
   17  refinements of persecutions and injustice the most debased
   18  imagination can conceive, became the daily misfortunes of these
   19  devoted people,” and
   20         WHEREAS, contemporary newspapers, including the New York
   21  Times, ran headlines including “Tales of Armenian Horrors
   22  Confirmed” and “Million Armenians Killed or in Exile,” and
   23         WHEREAS, each year, Armenian Americans and Armenians
   24  throughout the world honor those who perished from 1915 to 1923,
   25  and 43 other states have passed resolutions and commemorations
   26  honoring the memory of Armenians who were victims of the Ottoman
   27  Empire in 1915 and thereafter, and
   28         WHEREAS, we must all do our best to raise awareness about
   29  the Armenian genocide, not only because it is an undeniable
   30  chapter of world history, but because learning more about this
   31  unconscionable tragedy will help us better understand the
   32  necessity of eliminating hatred from our own communities, and
   33         WHEREAS, Floridians are strong in their belief that all
   34  people should condemn crimes committed against any culture or
   35  people in order to prevent similar atrocities in the future, and
   36         WHEREAS, Armenian-Americans living in Florida have greatly
   37  enriched our state through leadership in business, agriculture,
   38  academia, government, and the arts, NOW, THEREFORE,
   39  
   40  Be It Resolved by the Senate of the State of Florida:
   41  
   42         That we recognize April 24, 2013, as “Armenian Martyrs
   43  Remembrance Day” in Florida and commemorate the sacrifice of the
   44  Armenian martyrs from 1915 to 1923.