ANCA-WR Condemns Rhetoric Undermining Constitutional Protections and Equal Justice Under Law

January 28, 2026

Los Angeles, CA – The Armenian National Committee of America – Western Region (ANCA-WR) condemns the recent statements and video released by CMS Administrator Dr. Mehmet Oz in which he associates alleged healthcare fraud in Los Angeles County with “foreign influences,” including “Russian-Armenian gangs,” and references Armenian identity, language, and community presence as markers of criminality. This rhetoric—especially when amplified by a senior federal official—undermines civil rights norms and fuels a climate of Armenophobia.

Let us be clear: fraud is a crime, and every proven fraudster—regardless of background—must be investigated and prosecuted under the rule of law. But the rule of law requires individualized suspicion and evidence, not insinuations based on language, culture, or ethnicity.

“Public officials carry a special responsibility to uphold both the letter and the spirit of the Constitution,” said ANCA-WR Chairman Oshin Harootoonian. “When enforcement rhetoric drifts toward ethnic generalizations, it weakens civil rights protections and puts entire communities at risk. Armenian Americans, like all Americans, deserve equal justice under law — nothing less.”

For Armenian Americans—whose families carry the living legacy of the Armenian Genocide and over a century of denial, erasure, and dehumanizing propaganda—this kind of messaging is not an abstraction. It mirrors patterns historically used to stigmatize Armenians as an “other,” justify exclusion, and incite hostility. When such rhetoric comes from a federal official,  tasked with safeguarding public health programs, it is especially dangerous: it risks converting a legitimate public integrity effort into a vehicle for stereotyping and collective blame and scapegoating. In addition, Dr. Oz’s public record on issues of direct and profound importance to Armenian Americans—including the denial of the Armenian Genocide and his direct ties to Turkey—makes it all the more imperative that his conduct as a federal official be scrupulously neutral, evidence-based, and free from ethnic generalizations.

ANCA-WR is deeply concerned that this framing is already functioning as publicly amplified hate messaging: it signals to the public that Armenian identity itself is suspicious; it encourages harassment of Armenian-American businesses and professionals; and it lays groundwork for discriminatory enforcement. This is the pathway by which stigma becomes hate incidents, and by which bias becomes civil-rights violations.

The United States Constitution and our civil rights tradition demand more. Equal justice under law forbids the government from treating race, ethnicity, national origin, or language as proxies for criminal suspicion. Federal officials have a heightened duty to ensure that enforcement is non-discriminatory, evidence-based, and respectful of the dignity and rights of all communities.

ANCA-WR calls on Dr. Oz and CMS to:

1. Immediately retract and correct rhetoric that links alleged fraud to Armenian identity, language, or culture, and issue a clear public statement affirming that investigations will be evidence-based and non-discriminatory.
2. Cease public insinuations about identifiable community businesses absent verified, individualized evidence and due process.
3. Commit to civil-rights compliant enforcement, including safeguards against ethnic profiling and language-based targeting.
4. Engage community stakeholders to repair the harm caused, restore trust, and ensure anti-fraud efforts protect patients without endangering targeted communities.

ANCA-WR reiterates: Armenian Americans are proud contributors to California and to the United States. We will not accept collective blame, racially coded narratives, or government communications that fuel Armenophobia and put our community at risk.

We stand ready to support rigorous, lawful anti-fraud enforcement—focused on conduct, evidence, and accountability—while defending the civil and human rights of our community and all communities.

ANCA-WR notes that numerous Members of Congress have consistently spoken out against hate speech, ethnic profiling, and discrimination targeting Armenian Americans and other minority communities. Statements and actions from these offices underscore the bipartisan expectation that federal enforcement remain evidence-based and fully compliant with civil rights protections.

 

Rep. Gavin Newsom, Rep. Laura Friedman, Rep. Brad Sherman, Rep. Luz Rivas, CA Governor Candidate Ian Calderon, CA State Senator Sasha Renée Pérez,