Saturday, March 13, 2010

PERIOD 7 - ARMENIAN GENOCIDE

Over the past week you have seen films and read articles about The Armenian Genocide. On Friday, you heard an insightful and informative lecture about this terrible event by Father Boghosian. First, what did you think of Father Boghosian's lecutre? Second, the last stage of Genocide is denial. Given everything you've heard, seen, and read about this event, what do you think should be done to make more people in the United States aware of the Armenian Genocide?

23 comments:

Allison Shea said...

Allison Shea
I thought that Father Boghosian's lecutre was very interesting. I think that he did a good job by saying that he did not dislike the Turks but he thought that it was only right for them to own up to what they did so that it would not happen again. I thought that it was neat that he has a picture of the survivors as well.
I think that the United States should start teaching about it in schools. I had heard about the Armenian Genocide in passing last year. But I think it is wrong that we have not really learned about such a massive killing. I think that the United States needs to be aware of what happened so that it does not happen again. I think the best way to make people aware is to teach about the Genocide in schools.

Jon Rohald said...

I liked Father Boggosian’s lecture very much. It made it much more real to hear about this horrible event firsthand. To me at least, the most touching part of the lecture was when he talked about his grandparents who lived through it and when he showed the picture of all the survivors. And I agree with Allison in that the Armenian Genocide should be taught. I think that education is one of the best ways to stop history from being repeated (in cases like this). Lots of people vaguely know that the Armenian Genocide happened, but very few people actually know what it is and what took place. I think that adding this to school curriculums and acknowledging it as a nation would bring it its appropriate recognition and all that comes with its recognition.

Ryan Santom said...

i was really amazed by Father Boghosian's lecture because it let me know more than what you hear about in books on it plus gave me a better understanding about how the armenians felt about this event. i think that the united states should go and make a building that has all of the info on this just like what they have for the holocaust and then have schools have once a year feild trips to it so the whole thing makes a better impact on how we think and behave so that in the future there will be no racism or hate to others and will help make sure no more genocides happen to any one else forever.

Robert DeArmond said...

After reading many articles and hearing a lecture about the Armenian Genocide, courtesy of Father Boghosian, I feel better informed about this terrible occurrence. Like Mr. Gallagher stated, Father Boghosian is intelligently insightful and I feel that if he really tried hard enough, he could have a great impact on swaying votes in favor of recognition of The Armenian Genocide in the Turkish government.

Mariane Leite said...

I already seen a bit of the Armenian Genocide before, but the reading and the lecture were in great importance for me. And it should have been for everyone else. Its horrifying what people with more power or simply by being ambitious in a bad way can do to other human beings. I dont have words to explain the feeling of all these events in our world, just make me think how can someone be so cold and think they are superior in any way? I have felt his superiority, but I dont understand why any person has the right to feel superior than other, and the fact that some do it is just terrible.

Unknown said...

I liked the lecture on Friday by Father Boghisian. I felt like he showed both sides of the issue fairly well too. I agree with Allison, in the fact that we should be taught about the Armenian Genocide as part of our history curriculum. We shouldn't have to learn about it in an elective, because some students ight never learn about it in that case.

Unknown said...

Osman Alnaal

I liked the lecture on Friday by Father Boghisian. I felt like he showed both sides of the issue fairly well too. I agree with Allison, in the fact that we should be taught about the Armenian Genocide as part of our history curriculum. We shouldn't have to learn about it in an elective, because some students ight never learn about it in that case.

Andrew La Belle said...

Father boghisian (sp) had quite an ingteresting story to tell. The way he approached the topic was compeling and interesting because it was so personal. I really feel like I learned a lot that I could never have gotten from a texgt book. Great speaker and id love to hear him more.

sara ortiz colon said...

Sara ortiz
I thought that Father Boghosian's lecutre was very interesting it caught my full attention i did not know anything about the armenian genocide until mr. Gallagher metioned it. it was very interesting seeing with my own eyes someone who's family has gone threw so much pain and lives to tell his families story i was very happy to learn about this

Allie Lonstein said...

I had not learned much about the Armenian Genocide so was interested to listen to Father Boghosian's lecture and learn about it in the videos. I think as said in the lecture it is not a good thing that most people are unaware of the mass killing but it is even worse that some people don't recognize Armenia as a nation.

Every genocide has its twisted portions of it. I was disgusted by the fact that the Armenians were forced to pay for a train ticket that would lead them to freedom when really it was a train ride that caused most of them to die.

Rachel Afshari said...

I thought Father Boghosian was an awesome speaker to have at Westborough High School. I thought his lecture was very insightful and powerful. He really made me understand the Armenian Genocide in a whole different way. I also found it inspiring how dedicated he is to his culture and letting the world know about his 0people where treated so horribly. I think having speakers like Father Boghosian at high schools around the United States and educate the young and then hopefully the Armenian Genocide will be recognized all over the world.

Rachel Afshari said...

Allison,
I agree with you completly. I thought it was really good of Father Boghosian to comment that he doenst hate the Turks and his intnetion is not to insult anyone, but he simply wants the Turks to own up to thier mistakes.

Unknown said...

Sanjiv Banavali
I thought Father Boghosian's lecture was very interesting and informative. I liked how he went into detail about his childhood and what went on during the Armenian Genocide. Also, I loved his voice it was so interesting and you could tell that english wasn't his first language.
I think that the Armenian Genocide should be implemented into the wolrd history cirriculam (freshman)because it does have a significance and it needs to be learned by students. I agree with Allison and John that the Armenian Genocide should be taught in school to make people aware of what happened.

Evan Pappazisis said...

Father Boghosian's lecture was extremely compelling. His efforts in conveying his message were extremely strong, saying that he holds no hatred towards the Turks, but feels it is necessary for them to own up to their crimes so history will not repeat itself.
The United States should start teaching about the Armenian Genocide in its schools. It is very wrong to ignore such a significant time in history, not giving the country of Armenia the recognition it deserves. The best way to prevent this from happening again is to inform the future generations of our country about the genocide.

Haemin Burke said...

Father Boghosian's lecture was hard to not enjoy despite the brick-like chairs in the library. It's one thing to watch movies and documentarys about events such as these, but hearing the words about the Armenian Genocide in person was a different experience than what I imagined it to be. When i first learned about this event it came as a shocking surprise becuase i never knew that such an occasian occured. People should become more aware about the Aermenian Genocide! I find such events as the Holocaust and the Aermenian Genocide a necessary part of our history because as segregation continues on we need to show the world the possibly horrific outcomes that may result from the continuation of segreation. I really hope he comes again next year for the on coming seniors!

Rachel Saltzman said...

I thought Father Boghosian's lecture was very informative and captivating. I agree with what Haemin said- it is so different to see someone's experience told from them first-hand, not just from a documentary or article. For me, he made the Armenian genocide so much more real and less abstract- since he was personally affected by it, I think it had a much great effect on me. I liked how he showed us the photograph of his family and pointed out how no one was smiling- seeing those faces really caught my attention.
To make people more aware of the genocide, I think it needs to be taught more in depth starting in atleast middle school. I hadn't heard of the Armenian genocide until 9th grade- if it was engraved in our minds earlier, we'd be more aware of it and recognize it more today.

Madison McGourty said...

i was utterly shocked by the realization of the armenian genocide. i did not know it even excisted until this past week. i think that the world should know exactly what happened in the past and should be aware of every death and evil crime commited as part of the genocide.

Emily Madson said...

I really enjoyed Father Boghosians lecture, seeing how the genocide affected someone first hand really brings more meaning and makes me more interested in the topic. I also really like how he wanted people to know he wasn’t spreading hate and that he didn’t dislike anyone because of the genocide, he just wanted to spread knowledge and have the genocide be recognized. Like a lot of people I believe that the way to make people aware of the genocide is to teach it in schools and make sure people know what happened.

Zach Yanoff said...

I thought Father Boghosian was a very god speaker and thought that his story was very interesting to hear. Before this class I had never heard about the Armenian Genocide and I think it should be taught because it was a horrible thing in history. I beleive it should be taught so everyone is made aware of the horrific event.

Paul Driscoll said...

I thought that Father Boghosian's lecture gave an interesting perspective on the Armenian Genocide. His indirect relation with the genocide showed how the next generation of Armenians were effected by the tragedy.
The issue concerning our current governemnt's acceptance of this event seems to be a very sticky situation. The answer lies in educating the general public on the matter. Our public school system, not the national governemnt, should be held responsible for relaying this information

Kelly Reilly said...

I agree with Allison that it was interesting that Father Boghosian didn't have hatred for the Turkish based on things that their grandparents or great-grandparents did to his ancestors; he only hopes that they can be able to admit to what did happen, not to take blame, but rather to acknowledge the persecutiona dn wrongdoing of the past. It is obviously important to include all accepted facts about history in history classes in order to make a comprehensive view of history as a whole. Unless this is implemented as a regular and consistent part of the curiculum, I don't think that it will be very effective to only talk of the genocide in classrooms; I think there needs to be some acknowledgment on an international, political level in order to offer the Armenians any real closure or retribution.

Robert DeArmond said...

I also agree that it is a great idea that Father Boghosian does not hold a grudge against the Turks. He is very classy.

Robert DeArmond said...

I agree that Father Boghosian is a very classy man. His being able to not bare a grudge against the Turkish government is unbelievable.