BILL NUMBER: SJR 23 CHAPTERED BILL TEXT RESOLUTION CHAPTER 21 FILED WITH SECRETARY OF STATE MAY 14, 2012 ADOPTED IN SENATE APRIL 19, 2012 ADOPTED IN ASSEMBLY MAY 10, 2012 INTRODUCED BY Senator Simitian (Principal coauthors: Senators Berryhill, De León, Liu, and Wyland) (Principal coauthors: Assembly Members Achadjian, Charles Calderon, Fuentes, Gatto, and Portantino) MARCH 26, 2012 Relative to the Armenian Genocide. LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST SJR 23, Simitian. Armenian Genocide: day of remembrance. This measure would designate April 24, 2012, as "California Day of Remembrance for the Armenian Genocide of 1915-1923." It would memorialize the Congress and the President of the United States to act likewise to commemorate the Armenian Genocide. WHEREAS, One and one-half million men, women, and children of Armenian descent were victims of the brutal genocide perpetrated by the Ottoman Empire from 1915 to 1923, inclusive; and WHEREAS, The Armenian Genocide and massacre of the Armenian people have been recognized as an attempt to eliminate all traces of a thriving and noble civilization over 3,000 years old; and WHEREAS, To this day, revisionists, including the Republic of Turkey, still deny the existence of these horrific events; and WHEREAS, By consistently remembering and openly condemning the atrocities committed against the Armenians, California residents demonstrate their sensitivity to a need for constant vigilance to prevent similar atrocities in the future; and WHEREAS, Recognition of the 97th anniversary of this genocide is crucial to preventing the repetition of future genocides and educating people about the atrocities connected to these tragic events; and WHEREAS, On this 97th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide, it is also appropriate to remember, honor, and thank those righteous ethnic Turks and Kurds who, often at risk to their own lives, lent aid, comfort, and assistance to ethnic Armenians seeking to escape the genocide; and WHEREAS, Armenia is now a free and independent republic, having embraced democracy following the dissolution of the Soviet Union; and WHEREAS, California is home to the largest population of Armenians in the United States, and those citizens have enriched our state through leadership in business, agriculture, academia, medicine, government, and the arts, and they are proud and patriotic practitioners of American citizenship; now, therefore, be it Resolved by the Senate and the Assembly of the State of California, jointly, That the Legislature of the State of California hereby designates April 24, 2012, as the "California Day of Remembrance for the Armenian Genocide of 1915-1923;" and be it further Resolved, That the State of California respectfully memorializes the Congress of the United States to act likewise to commemorate the Armenian Genocide; and be it further Resolved, That the Secretary of the Senate transmit copies of this resolution to the President of the United States, Members of the United States Congress, the Governor, and Armenian churches and commemorative organizations in California.