Univ. of California, Santa Barbara Associated Students Senate adopts resolution, stipulating UCSB to recognize Armenian Genocide

The 75th Associated Students Senate unanimously passed a resolution at its May 7 meeting urging UC Santa Barbara’s administration to honor April 24 as Armenian Genocide Remembrance Day, recognize the month of April as Armenian Heritage Month and condemn any denial of the Armenian Genocide.

The resolution details the background of the Armenian Genocide and examples of official recognition of the genocide. It was authored by Senator Noura Elkhatib, a fourth-year history and philosophy double major, and co-sponsored by former Senator Leiya Kadah, a fourth-year psychological & brain sciences major, and current Senator Nadine Malhis, a first-year chemistry major.

Between 1915 to 1923, an estimated 664,000 to 1.5 million Armenians living in the Ottoman Empire were killed under the rule of the Young Turk government, which sought to eliminate the Armenian identity through systematic mass executions, individual killings and inhumane conditions. Since the 1920s, April 24 has been observed by Armenian people and communities as a day of remembrance for the victims of the genocide. The month of April has come to be recognized as a time to celebrate Armenian culture and heritage.

Today, the Armenian Genocide is recognized by historians, organizations and governments including the United States Congress in Dec. 2019 and former President Joe Biden in April 2021. The government of the Republic of Turkey, which replaced the Ottoman Empire in 1923, has yet to recognize the genocide.

According to the resolution, student governments at UC Berkeley, UC Riverside, UC Irvine, UC San Diego, UC Santa Cruz and other universities in California have passed resolutions that support the recognition of the Armenian Genocide and condemn efforts of historial erasure.

The resolution is part of a larger effort spearheaded by various members of Armenian student organizations to raise awareness about the Armenian Genocide and Armenian heritage, including fourth-year political science alum Lilian Mkrtoumian from the Armenian Pre-Law Society and third-year biology major Andrew Kaypekian from the Armenian Student Association.

Mkrtoumian, Kaypekian and other Armenian students began their efforts by advocating at Associated Students senate meetings during the 2023-24 academic year, but faced some criticism from student groups. This led them to continue their efforts in the 2024-25 academic year.

“We really wanted to make sure that we didn’t affect any other groups on campus,” Kaypekian said. “Our efforts were just about making our voices heard and then not putting anybody else down.”

Mkrtoumian said she and other members from the Armenian student organizations attended senate meetings and delivered speeches to get the resolution written and passed.

“We spoke about the history of the genocide, history of the Armenian heritage, Armenian culture and then also why it’s important that a resolution such as this should be passed on campus,” Mkrtoumian said.

According to Mkrtoumian, a significant portion of the Armenian student population attended senate meetings in order to show their solidarity.

“There were at least 30 people in this small room, 30 Armenians. Considering the population of Armenians at UCSB, we don’t have that many,” Mkrtoumian said. “Many of them came out and supported [us]. It was really beautiful to see.”

Mkrtoumian said that she felt motivated to begin her advocacy after witnessing the growing Armenian student population on campus, which she observed through rising membership in Armenian student organizations.

“Our number one goal and priority as Armenians always is to share our history, share our culture and make our voices heard because as Armenians, in the past, we have faced a lot of struggles and hardships,” Mkrtoumian said.

Mkrtoumian said that it’s crucial for Armenian communities to spread awareness of their history and heritage in order to educate those who are uninformed.

“People do not acknowledge our past and our history, and that might not be the fault of the people,” Mkrtoumian said. “It’s just the fact that many larger institutions and organizations and even governments, countries as a whole, don’t recognize our past and our history.”

Mkrtoumian and Kaypekian’s efforts, as well as the efforts of other members of Armenian student organizations, led to the authoring of the resolution by Elkhatib, who reached out to Mkrtoumian after hearing her speeches.

Mkrtoumian said that the resolution is impactful because it will help to raise awareness on the issue of the Armenian Genocide.

“The more people that know about this forgotten moment in history, the more important and impactful it is,” she said. “We will feel like our voices are heard, and people [won’t be] turning a blind eye to this very, very difficult period.”

Although Mkrtoumian just graduated, she expressed hope for the future of UCSB’s Armenian community. She stated that progress has been made in working with university administrators to raise awareness on the Armenian Genocide, as well as Armenian history and heritage as a whole.

“As Armenians, every single one of our priorities is to take action and create some sort of change for our people,” Mkrtoumian said. “I know that it will eventually end up in official recognition by the administration of UC Santa Barbara.”