From tragedy to change - Armenian, Chaldean, Greek, and Jewish communities remember

Edmund Burke once wrote, “Those who don’t know history are doomed to repeat it,” a sentiment shared by students, groups, and professors here in Vanier College lecture hall, who have come together in an effort to reach younger generations who may not know history to the extent they should.
From sites of memory, to social transformations, and even denia, albeit state or individual, a few of York’s student associations gathered, not only to offer a series of lectures on the topic of genocide, but to ask the question, a question posed to this generation of descendants, how should we remember?
The event, sponsored by the Centre for Human Rights, Department of Political Science, and the Department of Sociology, brought students of various ethnicities together.
Yarjanek Bedros, president, Armenian Students’ Association at York University, wanted to host an event of this kind since April, around the commemoration of the 100th year since the Armenian genocide. However, due to the strike, they were unable to have the event in April.
“This year, we started working with all the clubs. The Chaldeans were the first ones we started to work with,” says Bedros.
“We also started to work with Hillel, Hasbara, and Hellenic Students’ Association at York and it was something we all wanted to do, something we’ve all been through. That’s why it worked out perfectly fine.”
Bedros wanted to focus on groups who experienced genocide under the Ottomans, which is the Armenians, the Chaldean group, and the Greeks.
Also, there are many similarities between the Holocaust and the Armenian genocide, he adds.
“It (the Holocaust) happened not too long after and happened in very similar fashion, so these are all groups that you can relate to.”
“Geographically, they are not exactly in the same area, but they have all experienced similar stuff. Of course, it builds unity between the groups. My main goal working on this was to show unity.”
Different groups working together all for one goal, Bedros adds. It’s all to raise awareness of genocide and to show that you may not be from the same place, but we’ve all experienced similar issues and we’ve all wanted to have the same goal. That is, to be an advocate for genocide awareness.

On the topic of how these new generations move forward, Bedros says, “First of all, you can’t turn away from history, and you have to be able to educate people.”

“The Armenian diaspora are all over the world, but one thing that we all have in common is our language. This is also common among the other groups who work with us.”
“There is a common language that holds them together and that’s the main thing that helps us move forward, but we can’t move forward unless we acknowledge the past. It’s very important for us to educate people on the past, to be able to solve past problems, in order to be able to move on and resolve current issues.”
Christina-Elizabeth Ioannides, president, HSA, like other groups, was approached by the ASA to help brainstorm ideas on how to deal with such a sensitive topic, as well as to do so in a respectful manner to all the other associations and other cultural groups here at York.
“We contacted speakers and then organized the event around the topic. We originally wanted it to be around Remembrance Day to have some sort of overlap. However, office space was not available so we delayed it a little bit,” she says. “In the end, I think it was a great success and we got our message across and we did so in very respectful manner I think.”
“I think the title itself,” says Ioannides, “‘trauma to change’ is a very moving statement so we wanted to commemorate everything that happened, remembering everything between all the different ethnic groups from genocide, and then moving forward and addressing everything.”
It’s turning a negative into a positive, she adds. They move forward by gathering together and supporting each other.

“As you look around, all these different ethnicities are coming together and talking about their similarities. And I think that’s how we can [move forward], by coming together.”

Ariella Daniels, president, Hasbara at York, says the event was planned by like-minded student organizations who represent different people who share a tragic past of persecution and genocide.
The purpose of this event was to bring awareness to the common histories of the Armenian, Chaldean, Greek, and Jewish nations who have been victimized, singled out, and maltreated, she adds.
“From trauma to change is a lecture of hope and unity, a call for students to come together and advocate for a future of peace and coexistence, where humanity stands by the phrase ‘Never Again’ to its truest form.”
“Hasbara at York represents a community who supports the Jews’ right to self-determination in their homeland, Israel,” says Daniels.
“We stand in solidarity with our partners and strive to work with them to bring dialogue and education to students at York University.”
James Toma, president, Chaldean Canadian Students Association, says it shows that when a group of people have a common cause, nothing can stop them from reaching a goal.
“This goes for all students, not just for me. I am a Chaldean, a native Iraqi. We experienced a genocide in 1915, so did the Armenians and Greeks. This allowed us to work with each other due to a common struggle.”
Overall, many students of all ethnic backgrounds attended and most said the same thing, “I didn’t know this happened.”
Toma says when he hears such remarks, he feels that he, somewhat, did a good job in raising awareness.
“It’s important for all people to know these things, especially genocide, a group of people that have been killed, raped, and the list goes on for certain criteria about their nation, which in the case of the Chaldeans was their religion, Christianity. People have an obligation to recognize this and that group of people should be protected if tried again.”