Walkers
Complete More Than a Quarter of The 215 Mile March For
Humanity
Merced, Calif.,
April 6, 2005 - California
marchers, walking in solidarity with the 1.5 million victims
of the Armenian Genocide on its 90th anniversary, passed
the 80-mile point and arrived in Merced Wednesday.
The determined group of 14 Armenian youth
from Pasadena, Walnut, San Fernando Valley and Fresno
sleep in church halls and eat from a lunch truck accompanying
them on their 19 day trek. As a way to focus on why they
are marching, every morning a marcher tells the story
of a family member who survived the Genocide.
The selfless youth plan on walking to
Sacramento, where they will join a large rally at the
Capitol Building, organized to thank the California state
legislature and those of 35 other states for officially
recognizing the Armenian Genocide.
An interesting addition to the group of
marchers, ranging in age from 18 to 27, is the participation
of Sanan Shirinian and Zabel Ekemekjian.
Shirinian is a 16 year junior at a private
Armenian high school in Los Angeles. She worked tirelessly
to take 20 days off school not so she can take a vacation
but to do her part for her cause.
“My great grandparents were survivors
of an attempt to kill all Armenians,” said Shirinian.
“I decided to walk so I can let the world know about
the wrongs the Turks did against my ancestors and to bring
justice to an unpunished crime.”
Ekmekjian, whose father survived the Genocide,
is a 63-year-old grandmother from Moraga, Calif. who felt
that she must use her own body to raise awareness about
the crimes committed against her father and his family.
“Our family was split apart because
of the Genocide,” said Ekmekjian. “I have
never met my aunts and my cousins, I know they exist and
that they live in Iraq, but I don’t know who they
are because they lost contact with my father after escaping
the massacres.”
Defying sore muscles, blistered feet,
and aching legs, the marchers will continue to walk an
additional 150 miles, rain or shine, until they arrive
at their destination on April 21.
The Genocide began in 1915 and lasted
for more than six years, claiming the lives of more than
1.5 million men, women and children. While many nations
recognize and condemn the crime committed against the
Armenian people, the Turkish government has denied it
for the past 90 years.
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For more information about the March
For Humanity, the marchers, their shelter, and pictures,
please visit www.marchforhumanity.org.
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