Thousands of supporters rallied to mark the 101st anniversary of the Armenian Genocide last week, holding vigils and marching to the Turkish Consulate at 6300 Wilshire Blvd. on Sunday.

As many as 60,000 people attended a Los Angeles rally marking the 101st anniversary of the Armenian Genocide last Sunday. (photo courtesy Rally for Justice)

Event organizer Rally for Justice estimates that more than 60,000 people attended the event in Los Angeles. The group is demanding full recognition, along with reparations and restitution, for the Armenian Genocide of 1915. That event saw the Ottoman government kill as many as 1.5 million ethnic Armenians.

Turkey, the successor state to the Ottoman Empire, has denied the use of the term “genocide” to describe the killings.

To date, 29 countries and international organizations such as the United Nations have recognized the killings as genocide. While some United States government documents refer to the killings as such, the country has yet to official condemn it as such.

“With all that is happening in the region now, the U.S. must take the critical and necessary steps to hold Turkey accountable,” Rally for Justice spokeswoman Lynne Russo said in an email.

Despite the lack of official recognition, the event was supported by several politicians. Perhaps most prominently, U.S. Rep. Adam Schiff (D-California) attended and spoke at the Los Angeles demonstration. Schiff – who represents a district that includes a portion of city of Glendale, home to one of the largest Armenian communities in the United States – has previously spoken about genocide recognition on the floor of the House of Representatives.

Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti also voiced his support for the demonstration.

(photo courtesy Rally for Justice)

“In standing up for this annual commemoration, and against the violence of today, we bend the arc of history toward a truth that cannot be denied: The Armenian people have endured great suffering that deserves full and unqualified acknowledgment — and they should never stand alone in the demand for justice,” Garcetti said in a statement.

This year’s event took on added significance as Armenians face a fresh conflict.

The current dispute stems from the Nagorno Karabakh War, a conflict between ethnic Armenians and Azerbaijan that started in the late 1980s and ended in May 1994. Earlier this month, Azerbaijan military forces broke a 22-year-old stalemate and clashed with ethnic Armenians in Nagorno Karabakh, also known as the Artsakh Republic.

The early April attacks on the military bases in Nagorno Karabakh, as well as Armenia’s bordering villages, have killed both soldiers and civilians, and injured hundreds more.

Locally, the Western Diocese of the Armenian Church of North America tackled the issue at a community forum at the Taglyan Cultural Center in Hollywood on Monday.

Schiff, the ranking member of the House Select Committee on Intelligence, spoke at the event, highlighting the need for the U.S. to address the conflict.

Calling the situation a “tragedy for the civilians living there,” Schiff said he has been been pressing U.S. intelligence agencies and policy-makers about the importance of U.S. involvement in the conflict. Thus far, the U.S. State Department and other officials have taken a “neutral approach,” Schiff said at the event.

“Azeri aggression poses substantial additional dangers to regional security and stability, which is a message I’ve been [stressing] to senior administration officials at every opportunity,” Schiff said.

Schiff has cosponsored legislation that would place sanctions on Azeri officials who participate in human rights violations in Azerbaijan. He is also calling for the U.S. to cut off military assistance to the country and encourage other countries to do the same.

In addition to reevaluating its support for Azerbaijan, the U.S. should also consider boosting its support for Armenia and Artsakh, Schiff said.

“U.S. support for Nagorno Karabakh, while modest in amount and scope, can make a tremendous difference to those living in Artsakh, and I’m working in Congress to increase that support for mine clearing, education, health care and other humanitarian projects,” he said.

The Taglyan event also featured University of Southern California political science professor Richard Hrair Dekmejian, who has focused his research on national security issues, terrorism and Islamic studies, among other areas.

As an Armenian himself, Dekmejian said that the ethnic group needs a “miracle” in the form of unity among different factions. While political factors will be important, faith will have to play a key role, he said.

“The epicenter of this miracle has to be the Armenian church,” he said.

Mark J. Geragos, an Armenian-American criminal defense lawyer who introduced Dekmejian at the event, highlighted Armenia’s continued traditions of democracy and Christianity, a “narrative that… doesn’t get enough honor” considering its geographic location.

He also cited the Armenian Genocide as a political lesson that leaders have failed to heed. He said he sees pieces of Ottoman aggression in modern-day acts of terrorism by groups such as the Islamic State group, known as ISIS.

“All of that was torn straight from the pages of the Ottoman playbook,” Geragos said. “We keep making the same mistakes as a country and as a world.”