Los Angeles, CA – The Armenian National Committee of America-Western Region (ANCA-WR) welcomed a proclamation by Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa in remembrance of the Armenian Genocide. This came just days after the Mayor and the City Council of Los Angeles presented the Armenian American community of Los Angeles with a resolution recognizing the Armenian Genocide.

“The Mayor’s proclamation again signifies the deep commitment of the City of Los Angeles to the protection of human rights and to end the cycle of genocide,” stated Andrew Kzirian, Executive Director of the ANCA-WR. “The Mayor and the City of Los Angeles have served as a beacon of moral leadership to the rest of the country – all Angelenos should be proud of Mayor Villaraigosa and the City of Los Angeles,” he added.

The full text of the Proclamation is below.

The Armenian National Committee of America is the largest and most influential Armenian American grassroots political organization. Working in coordination with a network of offices, chapters, and supporters throughout the United States and affiliated organizations around the world, the ANCA actively advances the concerns of the Armenian American community on a broad range of issues.

Mayor Antonio R. Villaraigosa City of Los Angeles

Statement of Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa on Armenian Genocide Remembrance Day

Today – on the 92nd Anniversary of the beginning of the Armenian Genocide – the people of Los Angeles stand in solidarity with Armenians around the world in remembering the 1.5 million Armenian men, women and children barbarically killed by the Ottoman Empire.

Almost a century of history has removed the horrors of the genocide from our immediate collective consciousness. And yet as the assassination of Turkish-Armenian journalist Hrant Dink reminded us in January, the pernicious threat of genocide denial still openly thrives around the world.

As Mayor of America’s preeminent Armenian community, I urge all Angelenos to reflect not only on the vast scale and ruthlessness of genocide, but on the horror of the global silence under which it took place. Today I urge Angelenos simply to never forget.

April 24, 2007