The views expressed in this article are solely those of the student journalist and do not necessarily reflect the views of The CSArtisan or CSArts-SGV.
Have you heard about the blockade in Artsakh? You probably haven’t, which is why we need to raise awareness and educate the people around us. It is crucial for the community to recognize the tragic impacts of this blockade on the Armenian people of Artsakh. Azerbaijan is responsible for the blockade in Artsakh. This oppression of Armenia and Artsakh has existed for too many decades. Turkey and Azerbaijan have teamed together to ethnically cleanse all of Armenia and Artsakh from Armenians.
This blockade ran for 9 months and cut Armenians off from the rest of the world and from getting any resources from outside, such as food, medical supplies, and more. Azerbejian even blocked the Lachin Corridor, which is also known as the lifeline of people living in Artsakh. It is the only way people living in Artsakh could get resources. This caused starvation and medical complications, and many innocent people died because of this. The constant refusal of Azerbaijan to lift the blockade violates basic human rights. They are continuing this oppression of Armenians from the Armenian Genocide in 1915, where 1.2 million Armenians were killed at the Ottoman Empire’s hand. Which is a genocide that Turkey has refused to admit they were responsible for, and spent thousands of dollars to cover it up by paying journalists and news channels to report the Armenian Genocide never happened.
Last month, Azerbaijan bombed Artsakh using drones and missile strikes, bombing civilian areas like schools and churches, while their soldiers destroyed cultural sites and artifacts. Azerbaijan soldiers have even gone as far as posting videos of them shooting innocent civilians and destroying graves while laughing. Armenians are being killed by Azerbaijan and Turkey for the reason of them being Armenians. This ethnic cleansing of the people in the Armenian land of Artsakh by Azerbaijan(which is backed by Turkey) needs to end. Turkey and Azerbaijan have targeted Armenians solely based on ethnic hatred. And now, for the first time in 5,000 years, no Armenians remain in Artsakh. It is time to recognize these events and end them so there can be peace in the region.
How does this relate to us today? Los Angeles has the largest Armenian population in the U.S. Armenian students at CSArts in the Armenian Student Union (ASU) have been doing everything in the hopes of saving their ancestral land and preventing another genocide.
How can you help?
The club is available for anyone to join; it’s for anyone who is interested in helping and advocating for this issue. ASU has been sending emails to government officials in hopes of flooding their inboxes until they have no choice but to help. Any student here that is interested in joining will be an amazing help in making a difference. Simply by reading this article, more people have been educated so this event in history is remembered.
ANCA is an organization working to get the U.S. to help its Armenian community and sanction the Azerbaijan government for its crimes. On its website, you can access emails you can send to show your support.
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