BY GAREN YEGPARIAN
This is one of those good/bad news situations.
The online talk show (formerly a radio program) named “The Young Turks” (henceforth TYT to save ink and pixels) hosted by Cenk Uygur and Ana Kasparian has belatedly come clean regarding the Armenian Genocide. You can hear it yourself on this May 13th YouTube posting. The program is ideologically left wing
The main host, Uygur, had been on the record as a denialist since at least his college days when he published his views. As recently as February 2012, he was still on the same track when avoided straightforwardly recognize the Genocide when he spoke at the California Democratic Party convention.
Based on the comments made by Kasparian on the YouTube video clip, this was not the first time that TYT had recognized the Genocide. If this is so, I’m disappointed not to have learned of it sooner. But then, I was certainly not going to watch, and thus support, a show hosted by a Turk who was a denialist and an Armenian who willingly worked beside and with that Turkish denialist.
So far, so good, right? It’s great that a somewhat popular media personality, and a Turk at that, stopped his denial of the Genocide. But it’s not that straightforward. First, he introduced the topic of properly recognizing the Armenian Genocide. But it was only a teaser. He wanted to debunk rumors spreading online about TYT that he described as “wildly inaccurate” – and I have to say they are! Supposedly, TYT is controlled by Qatar (stemming form an advertising deal they had a few years ago); that TYT is owned by George Soros (stemming from TYT belonging to a grouping of media outlets, some others of which had gotten Soros funding), and that Uygur was secretly a Republican (because he had gotten a loan, since repaid, from Buddy Roemer, a Louisiana governor who switched parties from Democratic to Republican). Remember, TYT is a left-wing program!
Why is all this relevant? Notice what Uygur did, he pushed a hot issue on which he has been excoriably wrong, to the back burner. Sure, his acceptance of the reality of the Genocide was emphatic, citing seven (if I didn’t miscount) examples of ridiculous lines of Turkish denial and other aspects of utterly false Turkish “history” he had been taught.. His explanation of why he had been a denier (basically, his Turkish upbringing and childhood schooling) even makes a lot of sense. But it wasn’t front-and-center.
After Uygur is done, Kasparian chimes in with a sob-story of how right wingers have used her ascribed denial of the Genocide for political gain. Then she complains that this has led to serious threats against her and her family, given that she lives in Los Angeles. While that’s not a pleasant position to be put in, her assertion that it is ridiculous to be labeled a denier when she is an Armenian rings hollow. The old saying – “Lie down with dogs, wake up with fleas” comes to mind.
For years she worked with an unrepentant Genocide denier. Isn’t it reasonable for people to associate the same vileness with her?
All of which brings us to the most important point. Great, a denialist Turk has come around. Maybe the up-to-now-Quisling Armenian even helped make that happen. Also nice. But what about the name of the program? The Young Turks. If Uygur and Kasparian expect ot be taken seriously, if they expect us to really believe that this isn’t a sham, that the pressure from progressive circles finally became too much, then THE NAME OF THE PROGRAM HAS TO CHANGE!
It is utterly unacceptable to continue to sanitize a group of Genocide perpetrators, the Young Turks of the 19-20th centuries. The excuse is, you might recall, that initially, since the Young Turks were trying to reform the Ottoman Empire, their name became a synonym for people trying to make positive changes. Well, we saw how that turned out. History has spoken and the use of “Young Turk” in a positive sense can only mean one thing, a whitewash.
So let’s flood Uygur and Kasparian with e-mail, tweets, Facebook messages, old-time letters, and any other means you can think of calling upon them to dump that disgusting name into the incinerator (not just the dustbin) of history!
I agree.
NO ONE HAS THE RIGHT TO DENY THE TRUTH OF THE ARMENIAN GENOCIDE, SO HE ADMITS THAT THERE WAS AN ARMENIAN GENOCIDE HE HAS TO GO INFRONT OF HIS PEOPLE AND TELL THEM THE TRUTH IN ORDER TO CLEAN HIS NAME HE SHOULD RIGHT A BOOK AND TELL THE TRUTH.
IN REALITY THE NAME THE YOUNG TURKS IS AN EVIL ENTITY TO THE ARMENIANS AND THE ENTIRE WORLD THAT RECOGNIZES THE ARMENIAN GENOCIDE BECAUSE THE YOUNG TURKS THAT RULED TURKEY DURING WORLD WAR ONE SIDED WITH GERMANY AS A WAR ALLY AND COMMITTED THE ARMENIAN GENOCIDE AND THE GENOCIDE OF THE OTHER CHRISTIAN MINOROTIES, SO UYGUR SHOULD CHANGE THIS EVIL NAME OF HIS PROGRAM. ALSO HE SHOULD DO A DNA TEST TO FIND OUT IF HE HAS ARMENIAN OR GREEK BLOOD. I BET THAT HE HAS MINORITY BLOOD!!!!!!
I would not consider this a “baby step.” This is very coherent, bold and persuasive statement by a Turk. I think he deserves more credit than you have given him in this article.
This woman whines about her treatment yet she has “partnered” with this phony for years. I can’t comprehend ever willingly partnering with someone like Uygur, who by his own admission was a genocide denialist.. What did she think Armenians were going to assume???
THE YOUNG TURKS IS A CURSED NAME I AM SURE MANY ARMENIANS AND CHRISTIANS HAVE CURSED THE EVIL SATANIC YOUNG TURKS TALAT,ENVER AND JEMAL AND THEIR PARTY AND QUESLINGS AS THEIR CHILDREN,WOMEN AND MEN WERE BUTCHRED INFRONT OF THEIR EYES,THEY WERE DRIVEN FROM THEIR THOUSANDS OF YEARS OLD HOMES AND LANDS THEIR PROPERTY,WEALTH,CHILDREN AND WOMEN STOLEN NEVER TO RETURN TO WERE THEY BELONG, ANNA SHOULD DO THEY RIGHT THING AND RESIGN UNLESS THERE IS A NAME CHANGE.IT WAS NOT ONLY GENOCIDE IT WAS ALSO A LAND GRAB THEY STOLE OUR LANDS. AS MY GRANDPARENTS SAID(HAZAR ANIZIAL ELLAN AN TURKER VOR HERAMAN DOOVEEN VORPES HAYEROON CHARTEN AZVAZ ERENS JEHANAM NEDEH VORBESEE HAYEROON SAVEH ESGAN))A THOUSAND CURSES UPON THE TURKS THAT GAVE THE ORDERS TO SLAUGHTER THE ARMENIANS ,MAY GOD THROW THEM IN HELL SO THEY CAN FEEL THE PAIN AND SUFFERING OF THE ARMENIANS. THE NAME YOUNG TURKS HAS NO PLACE IN THE MODERN WORLD AS WELL AS THE NAZI NAME.
The argument presented by Garen Yegparian is one that brings to mind “Looking at a gift horse in the mouth.” So many Armenians like him do not understand how to achieve progress on the Genocide issue. For example, now that the strong Israeli opposition party, Blue and White, is firmly behind Genocide recognition, when is the Jewish synagogue Sheikh Mordecai going to be restored in Yerevan? Aliyev builds massive synagogues in Baku and we do nothing.
LETS BE REALISTIC ISRAEL OR THE US WILL NEVER RECOGNIZE THE ARMENIAN GENOCIDE IT IS ONLY A POLITICAL TOOL FOR THEM TO WIN FAVORS FROM TURKEY OR TO PUT PRESSURE ON TURKEY. THEY DO NOT GIVE A DAM ABOUT JUSTICE ONLY ECONOMIC GAIN SIMPLE AS THAT.ISRAEL AND THE US ARE USING BAKU FOR THEIR OWN INTRESTS.
It has often been said that in world politics there are no permanent alliances, only interests. Who would have thought that Turkey and Russia could ever embrace? So easy to assume that the interests that predicated the US and Israel to manipulate Genocide recognition will remain in perpetuity. A tectonic shift is occurring. Armenia has already begun to shift gears in response to this tectonic shift with initiatives toward Georgia, Greece, Cyprus, Egypt, and even Israel. We should grasp the changing situation and not become mired in the past.
The emotional reactions posted here will not achieve the changes that we want to see. It is ludicrous for us to demand recognition on moral grounds when every month more of our people are arrested for criminal activities in the US. Only thoughtful international plans that reflect geo-political realities will bring the desired results.
I first heard radio comments credited to the TYT last week and was shocked that NPR supported them with air time. Every time that TYT is mentioned they should include clear brief words that admit the truth of the 1915 Genocide…TYT which apologizes for the 1915 Genocide and massacres before and after.
Thx for bringing this matter before your readers.
Leilani@mangerian.com
The US has recognized the Armenian Genocide as a “genocide” in numerous ways, but NOT as a State Dept. POLICY.
Do we have to go thru this again?
Please folks, visit Armenian-genocide.org.