Seven years ago today, I was in the sacred space known as Tsitsernakaberd, or the Armenian Genocide Memorial, in Yerevan. The rain had eased. What remained were tears streaked downward the 12 slabs of basalt stone. Shaped like a circular pyramid representing the rebirth of the Armenian nation, the wet stone rose inward, protecting the eternal flame, an unending sign of mourning.
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Today marks the 107th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide. As more world leaders decry the horrific events occurring today against Ukraine people as war crimes and Genocide, how depressed I felt only a few weeks ago in Ukraine.
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On that day, too, I was saddened. Tens of thousands of Armenians on the centennial of remembrance, much of the world still afraid to use the word genocide even a hundred years later.
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I also felt hope and love. Choir voices just outside the memorial, endless arrival of flowers. Only the sounds of shuffling footsteps and whispers on that cold afternoon in 2015. This Sunday, like every April 24th, is a reminder for all of us to remember...
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#armenia#yerevan#april24#ArmenianGenocideMemorial#flowers#rain from the @natgeo story, Ghostlands @viiphoto
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I made a short documentary film for National Geographic, “The Armenian Massacre Still Haunts Its Last Survivors 100 Years Later”. The link to this film is on my Instagram bio.