238) Armenian Sponsored Lecture, Turkish-Americans Were There! & Religious Freedom & Harmony as Revealed by Seven Candles - Edward Tashji

Commentary by Edward Tashji

It's tragic how many Armenians are so blinded by hatred that they prefer to live in the past, and deny themselves the joys of their roots. Not all Armenians are like that. Some Armenians prefer concentrating on their emotional attachments to the old country. These Armenians know Turkish music, food and language form as much a part of their identities as anything else, and don't appreciate being ostracized by the larger, more hateful Armenian group. They feel they are robbed of their precious past and cherished memories, . . and resent the domineering attitude of the other group.

I'm a big fan of Edward Tashji, who has the guts and the love to come right out and declare where he stands. In his own words, this "Armenian-American has become 'famous,' (he said with all humility), within the Turkish community, while becoming "infamous", (he said with deep regret), within the Armenian community." Also, in his words... he is : "An American born of an Armenian mother and a Syrian-Orthodox father (.) He is the younger son of parents who had been born in Ottoman Turkey, became eye-witness to the conflagration of the First World War in their beloved homeland, and as a result, their destiny brought them to the land where millions had emigrated."



An Armenian Sponsored Lecture, and Turkish-Americans Were There!




Hilmar Kaiser... "Genocide Scholar"


On the evening of January 29, 1999 — a lecture sponsored by the New York Armenian Students Association and The Armenian Club of NYU- was presented in the Loeb Student Center, at New York University, in New York City. The invited speaker was Mr. Hilmar Kaiser, who is described as: “...a historian specializing in German-Ottoman relations and the Armenian, (so-called) Genocide. He is currently working at the Armenian Research Center, at the University of Michigan...“ The lecture was titled: “Ottoman Elites and the Armenian, (so-called), Genocide”. No other speaker was in attendance, and at the conclusion of the one hour lecture, questions were welcomed from the audience. First, let us begin with a few specifics:

Based upon a visual estimate, the audience numbered about 75 people, which included about 35-40 persons representing the Turkish-American community. With the exception of my wife and myself, our entire group was comprised of our young ladies and gentlemen, for whom the Federation and our entire community owes a debt of gratitude and congratulations for their magnificent behavior and intelligent questions submitted to the speaker. If I attempt to mention names, I will certainly overlook many for whom I have the deepest affection and profound respect. Among our organizations represented: students and young people from the Young Turks Cultural Aid Society, the Intercollegiate Turkish Students Society, (ITSS), other organizations as well as our Federation. (Our numbers were unexpected, and as a result, the expressions of amazement on Armenian faces equaled the astonishment of the speaker.

At the outset, the speaker urged the audience to keep an “open mind” and rather than resort to emotional outbursts, an “intellectual” discourse would be more desirable.


From Mr. Kaiser‘s opening comments it became evident that he was not about to adhere to his own suggestion for an impartial discourse. Had he intended to be impartial, he would not have been invited by his Armenian hosts. When an Armenian questioner had referred to him as “professor”, Mr. Kaiser responded that he was not a professor; not that that would have made a difference since many pseudo-intellectuals are motivated by their own personal agenda. His lengthy speech described his view that Germany had conspired with Ottoman authorities to annihilate the Armenian people. It appeared he had traveled extensively throughout Turkey, gathering information for his “research”. He made a poor attempt at naming in Turkish Ottoman cities and officials. With terms such as, “Turkish criminals”, “Turkish crimes against children”, and Turks described as, “pathological rapists”, any semblance of an “intellectual” discourse became non-existent! His tirade continued to the pleasure of the Armenians; and though he was an ethnic German, he was very critical of the Germans during the First World War. He had not anticipated our Turkish youth, and as a result many of his responses were ineffectual. His poor attire and shoulder length hair had to be a disappointment, to his Armenian hosts.

Mr. Kaiser


In response to many questions from both groups, Mr. Kaiser would reply: “That was not an area of my research!” His “research” revolved around 1915 but NOT 1890 or any other period pertinent to Turkish-Armenian history. I was amazed when he referred to the “Dashnaksagan” group, but he “forgot” to mention it was the murderous revolutionary entity established in 1890! Could it be he felt the Armenian revolution was not significant??! Toward the end of the lecture, a young man from our group stood up and said: “I am a member of the Young Turks," and while he proceeded to ask his question, the speaker became very alarmed, since he had spoken about “The Young Turks Movement” during the Ottoman period. Another of our youth shouted to Mr. Kaiser: “He is the reincarnation of the Young Turks!” On both sides of the room there followed uproarious laughter!

...What was most interesting was not what (the speaker) said, but what he DID NOT say!




Very early in the lecture I had asked a question, and after the moderator would not allow me to speak further, voices from our group demanded: “Let him speak! Let him speak!” The speaker and every Armenian in the room were on the verge of shocking disbelief when in a clear and audible voice, I had revealed my Armenian-Syrian Orthodox background. Just before the lecture was closed, one of our young men stood up and resolutely requested I be allowed to make a final comment. Mr. Kaiser must have been intrigued — to say the least — by this Armenian who with his Armenian wife was seated among these “reincarnated” Young Turks. Though one minute was requested, our generous speaker granted me two minutes. I referred to a so-called Talat Pasha telegram which had been fraudulently published by Aram Andonian. On the forged “document” Andonian had written at the top of the page the word: “Bismillah”. I revealed that no official Ottoman document had this word printed on it. The speaker looking at me intently, nodded his head affirmatively. When I added that the forger Andonian had dated the fake telegram according to the Gregorian calendar instead of the Moslem calendar, the “learned” speaker while nodding his head affirmatively, added: “He was off by thirteen days!” I made comments about the following names: Mark Bristol, Yarrow, and Barton. With each comment the speaker continued to nod his head. He knew well of what I was speaking, and what was most interesting was not what he said, but what he DID NOT say!

While looking at the Armenian audience, I concluded: “For how long will these young people suffer the consequences of ancient hatred?! It is enough already, it is enough!” An applause
was heard from our side. Two items need to be
briefly referred to: An elderly Armenian lady and a young Armenian girl approached me with favorable comments. The second, my wife told Mr. Kaiser: You broke the rules that's why you were removed from the Ottoman archives! With my deep appreciation to our beloved young people, I say: Our work continues!!



The above is a report (dated February 3, 1999) from the Federation of Turkish American Associations



ADDENDUM:

A visitor who was at this very event sent the following pictures; thank you.




Edward Tashji addresses Mr. Kaiser, from
the audience; Mr. Kaiser is seen below,
sitting behind the table.




Holdwater Comments:





Is Hilmar Kaiser the
reincarnation of Johannes
Lepsius, in terms of German-
Turkish friendship?


I recently read Mr. Kaiser photocopied some 3,000 records from the Ottoman archives. I don't know what rules he might have broken, but it is possible people with an agenda can do unethical things to documents not in support of their cause. Those like Kaiser and Ara Sarafian complain they were kicked out of the archives... implying the authorities were worried that they would discover something and would prefer to "cover up"... however, it's important to keep in mind that these partial people... whose primary purpose is to sling mud... were allowed in the archives in the first place. You can read more about the ins and outs in Ottoman Archives are Fully open.

Here is what Arpik Paraghamian wrote of the subjective genocide scholar, in an article from an Armenian site entitled, "Hilmar Kaiser Raises New Legal Issues Through Study of Armenian Genocide":

Stolen property and reparations to the survivors and descendants of those martyred during the Armenian Genocide of 1915 was the focus of a lecture by Hilmar Kaiser during his fourth visit to Fresno State on November 6, 2000.

Kaiser, a doctoral candidate at the European University Institute in Florence, Italy, spent four years studying Turkish archives on this topic. Kaiser said he tried to collect all the information he possibly could before he was kicked out for his persistent visits in 1995.

Kaiser found not only proof that the Ottoman government had planned, organized and monitored the deaths of 1.5 to 2 million Armenians in 1915 and specified instructions on their deportation, but also that the Turks had settled Muslims onto Armenian property, without allowing Armenians to sell their land.

Wow. So he actually found PROOF. Sounds pretty ground-breaking. This is the golden fleece pro-Armenian genocide enthusiasts have been enthusiastically seeking. I wonder... what this proof can be?

If this fellow spent all that time in the Ottoman archives, why would he deliberately avoid all the counter-evidence he surely must have come across? What would motivate such dishonesty?

He gets a job at Dennis Papazian's Michigan-Dearborn university, the Armenian-loving institution that gave another pseudo-scholar, Taner Akcam, his first break. Meanwhile, Kaiser goes around giving these Armenian "Genocide" talks, making a name for himself. Interesting.

Estimates of the Ottoman-Armenian population


Meanwhile, he displays his scholarly worth by declaring 1.5 million to 2 million Armenians died, which would have meant a negative number of Armenians would have survived, based on "impartial" pre-war population estimates, rarely exceeding 1.6 million as the total number... especially since Armenians concede one million Ottoman-Armenians survived. In order for Hilmar Kaiser's curious conclusion to be true, 2.5 million to 3 million Armenians would have had to be living in the Ottoman Empire. 3 million was the worldwide estimate, and there were already over a million living in Russia... before the war broke out.

In another article (from Arakel Arisian) entitled, "Adana Massacre Topic of Kaiser Talk in Fresno," we learn more:

One such tragedy which has gone unnoticed is the Adana Massacre of 1909, which was the murder of 25,000 to 30,000 Armenians and a precursor to the Armenian Genocide of 1915 where 1.5 million were killed. Hilmar Kaiser, a scholar-in-residence at the University of Michigan-Dearborn, is an authority on the Adana Massacre of 1909.

This is the area where I first learned of Mr. Kaiser... he is supposed to be an expert regarding the Adana period. From the rest of this particular article, it sounds like the Armenians were helpless victims... and there is no mention that the rebelling Armenians "fired the first shot," as they did in 1915. the dishonesty is appalling. A preliminary look at the Adana period may be found in my analysis of Peter Balakian's book, "The Burning Tigris": Adana.

According to "The Armenian File": The Patriarchate gives the number of dead as 21,300 based on the investigation it carried out. The Edirne representative, Babikian Efendi, had prepared a report to be submitted to the Assembly. He gave the number of dead as 21,001. Note these numbers are from Armenian sources of the period, both likely exaggerated. Who is coming up with the 25,000-30,000 figures? Since the article is based on Hilmar Kaiser, I suppose it would be safe to assume these are figures Mr. Kaiser supports. Why would Kaiser offer ridiculously high figures not even supported by Armenian sources of the period?

Dr. Dickran Kouymjian, Director of the Armenian Studies Program, commented in his introduction, " What makes Hilmar Kaiser's work so very important is that he is passionately involved in the material and he has a very strong moral sense."

Yep. One-sidedly offering false history is the very essence of morality, all right.

---

It's tragic how many Armenians are so blinded by hatred that they prefer to live in the past, and deny themselves the joys of their roots. Not all Armenians are like that. Some Armenians prefer concentrating on their emotional attachments to the old country. These Armenians know Turkish music, food and language form as much a part of their identities as anything else, and don't appreciate being ostracized by the larger, more hateful Armenian group. They feel they are robbed of their precious past and cherished memories, and resent the domineering attitude of the other group.

I'm a big fan of Edward Tashji, who has the guts and the love to come right out and declare where he stands. In his own words, this "Armenian-American has become 'famous,' (he said with all humility), within the Turkish community, while becoming "infamous", (he said with deep regret), within the Armenian community." Also, in his words... he is : "An American born of an Armenian mother and a Syrian-Orthodox father (.) He is the younger son of parents who had been born in Ottoman Turkey, became eye-witness to the conflagration of the First World War in their beloved homeland, and as a result, their destiny brought them to the land where millions had emigrated."



Religious Freedom and Harmony as Revealed by Seven Candles





In this section, I have attempted to honestly reveal to the readers of The Turkish Times, factual information pertaining to Turkish- Armenian history, and my profound involvement in this subject with a perspective unlike any other. The unique feature of each offering is that the author is the son of Armenian and Syrian Orthodox parents. I do not wish to he repetitive, but for the reader who has “met” us here for the first time. I felt this much of our introduction would be appropriate.

The date of the event described in this article is not of major significance, but that indeed it did take place brings to public attention one important page of Turkish history. It is a page which reveals irrefutable evidence to the harmony and freedom shared by all ethnic and religious entities within the Ottoman Empire, extending to the present times in the Republic of Turkey.

May I take you back to Sunday. December 4, 1994 — when a memorial service had taken place at the Turkish Center in New York City. The members of the American Association of Jewish Friends of Turkey, Inc. had gathered to honor the sacred memory of Mr. Louis Levy — President of the AAJFF — who had passed away on November 3, 1994.

Representing the Federation of Turkish-American Associations. my wife and I had participated in the memorial tribute to our beloved friend. As the date had coincided with the Jewish celebration of Chanukah, at the speaker’s table a beautiful menorah had been placed. At the conclusion of the statements made by the pro-tem president, Professor David F. Altabe, prayers were recited n Hebrew, celebrating Chanukah. During the service, the candles on the menorah had been lighted. When two candles renamed unlit, I was invited to the table to light the sixth candle! Every person in the audience of close to two hundred people knew we were born of Christian parents from Ottoman Turkey. I struggled not to become emotional for this magnificent gesture. I spoke a few words, and as one candle had remained unlit, I proceeded to escort from the audience, Mrs. Esen Behen, a Turkish Muslim lady, to light the final candle. As she brought a flame to the remaining candle, a resounding applause filled the room. The glittering simple candles, more than representing the significance of the Holy Day, served as an illumination of a monumental beacon to brotherhood among peoples of different faiths. Indeed, the faithful of Jewish, Christian, and Moslem faiths joined inseparably by the cultural root — in the soil of Turkey!

Because of the date, I had decided to include the above narrative in our Christmas greetings to the mayor of New York City, and to the President a.s well.

The following is taken from a letter from the mayor of New York City, Mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani — dated January 3, 1995: “... Thank you for your kind holiday greeting. I extend my condolences for the loss of Mr. Louis Levy, President of the American Association of Jewish Friends of Turkey. His memorial service was blessed by the expression of mutual respect among Jewish, Christian, and Muslim communities..’ And in response to my Christmas greetings — on behalf of the Turkish-American community — to the President, the White House wrote in part: “…Thank you so much for your warm holiday greetings. I was moved by your story of the memorial service for Louis Levy...” The letter concluded with the signature of Bill Clinton. The exchange of letters was published in the Winter 1994-1995 issue of the AAJFT Newsletter. Receiving the responses from the President and the mayor surely pleased me, just as many other letters from these respective offices have in the past. But NOT because these politicians would remember the name of the person who had written to them initially, but rather because they would remember the Turkish-American community! Indeed, the “power of the pen” remains an instrument of immeasurable value. The choice we are obliged to make, however, is whether our written — or spoken — word is factual or not; defamatory or irrefutable. In all matters pertaining to Turkish history and culture, from my perspective, the American media continues to be blatantly anti-Turkish. It is for this reason The Turkish Times continues to be an indispensable source of accurate information.

Dear reader, Just as many events have done, the most memorable services described above took me back to my youth, when my saintly mother would reveal to me many facts pertaining to her childhood in Balikesir, (Ottoman) Turkey: "My son, every morning when we used to hear the 'ezan,' (the Moslem call to prayer) from the minaret, we always blessed ourselves by making the sign of the cross." When I had reacted with confusion, since she was Christian, she would reply, “My son, that was never a problem. The beautiful call to prayer was for everyone who believed in the one God of all mankind!’ In the illumination of seven candles on a menorah, l found myself in the land of my parents — the land of all religions, all ethnic groups, practicing their respective faiths according to their own beliefs and customs. The land of my ancestors: The Republic Of Turkey! I seem to recall the first pilgrims who came to the “new world” had come to these shores to establish such a religious freedom. There are factors of Turkish history which remain unknown to most Americans, and when next we “meet,” I will offer you additional facts (such a nice word, isn't it?) which will reveal the falsification of Turkish culture taking place to this day. Facts will correct the distortions. Until then.... (now how shall I conclude...?), of course, our work continues!

Edward Tashji

I am Called: "Turk Dostu" — A "Friend of Turks"

The Turkish Times

March 1, 1998
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© Holdwater
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