Armenian News – NEWS.am presents the shortened version of the article by the independent author Emily Schrader published in The Jerusalem Post. 

“Adolf Hitler is believed to have stated in 1939, “Who, after all, speaks today of the annihilation of the Armenians?” Likely unknowingly, Hitler demonstrated an important lesson that remains as relevant today as it was at the time: a failure to confront evil, enables evil.

This month marks 100 years since the official commencement of the Armenian Genocide – a dark chapter of human history which sadly we have yet to come to grips with. Despite overwhelming evidence, there are still those who deny that the Armenian Genocide occurred at all. 100 years later, no one has held the Ottomans – and their direct successor, Turkey – accountable for the unconscionable barbaric acts they committed. Shockingly, even countries such as Israel and the United States have yet to recognize this horrific event in human history that nearly eliminated the entire Armenian population.

We look back in history and say, “how could we not have known?” And yet, atrocities continue to occur all over the world…Why? Because we do not want to accept that evil exists – and even more so, that many human beings have an affinity for it. Evil is an unpleasant problem to address, as evidenced by the failure, for one hundred years, to recognize the evil of the Armenian Genocide.

Is it too much to ask, 100 years later, for recognition from the world’s major powers? Is it too much to demand that Turkey, which actually outlaws referring to the Armenian Genocide as a genocide, be held accountable for these unconscionable crimes against humanity? This refusal to own up to our mistakes only enables evil to flourish.

But we can stand up for what is morally right; whether it concern the past or the future. Though we may not want to believe in this day and age that any person or government is capable of such egregious crimes, we must always remember that evil is a very real threat – more than we can imagine.”