'Never again' cannot become empty words
While April 24 commemorations are always solemn occasions, the events held in April 2024 took on a more urgent tone following the ethnic cleansing of Artsakh in September 2023 and ongoing threats against the Republic of Armenia. A series of events were held in Toronto to remember and honour the victims. The annual commemoration event was held in the main hall of the Armenian Community Centre on April 21 and was attended by representatives from all levels of government.
Master of Ceremonies Veronique Aynedjian and Armenian National Committee of Canada President Shahen Mirakian delivered the message that Armenia cannot afford for the words 'never again' to become hollow rhetoric. It is because the Armenian Genocide was successfully denied for so long that Azerbaijan was emboldened to employ parallel means of starvation, dehumanization, historical distortion and cultural destruction in emptying Artsakh of its Armenian inhabitants. These same means are now being directed against the Republic of Armenia.
Mirakian shared some history, uncovered in the Ararat Monthly publications of the Georgetown Boys, about what may well have been the first commemoration of the Armenian Genocide in Canada in the 1920s.
Minister Filomena Tassi, Liberal Member of Parliament (MP) for Hamilton West-Ancaster-Dundas, delivered the message from Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. Minister Stan Cho, Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario (PC) Member of Provincial Parliament (MPP) for Willowdale, delivered the message from Premier Doug Ford, and Councillor Josh Matlow delivered the message on behalf of Mayor Olivia Chow. Toronto-Armenian PC MPP Aris Babikian also addressed the crowd.
(Photos: Sako Production and Khoren Mardoyan)
Markham Mayor Frank Scarpitti attended in person to deliver his heartfelt remarks. Tom Rakocevic and Adil Shamji spoke on behalf of the Ontario NDP and Liberal parties, respectively. Ontario Green Party leader Mike Schreiner, who represents Guelph in the Ontario legislature, was at the Armenian Community Centre in Cambridge, Ontario, to mark the occasion. Toronto District School Board (TDSB) Trustee Shelley Laskin and Toronto Catholic District School Board Trustee Angela Kennedy underscored the importance of genocide education. Representatives were joined on stage by their colleagues.
Throughout the event, there was a call to action for governments and individuals alike to confront all forms of denial and oppression.
On April 23, the annual candlelight vigil was revived in a new form. Before the COVID-19 pandemic, it had become customary to hold the vigil before the Ontario Legislative Assembly building at Queen's Park. This year, the AYF Canada "Simon Zavarian" Chapter brought the event to the Forest of Hope in Ashton Meadows Park in Markham, which has been dedicated to the victims of the Armenian Genocide since 2015. The bilingual program reinforced the will of the Armenian youth to keep the Armenian culture and language alive, whether in the diaspora or the homeland. The event featured a model of the Tsitsernakaberd Genocide Memorial, where attendees placed flowers and candles at sunset. The youth pledged not to stay silent as Armenia's neighbours threaten a new genocide.
