Anniversary of the Armenian Genocide and Near East Relief

Blogs across the Smithsonian will give an inside look at the Institution’s archival collections and practices during a month long blog-a-thon in celebration of October’s American Archives Month. See additional posts from our other participating blogs, as well as related events and resources, on the Smithsonian’s Archives Month website.

Transit advertisement published by the American Committee for Armenian and Syrian Relief, 28 x 53.5 cm.
From the Princeton Poster Collection, Archives Center, National Museum of American History

Every year seems to have its notable “round-number” anniversaries—the fifth, tenth, twenty-fifth, or fiftieth anniversaries of more or less significant historical events.  Last year, for example, was the fiftieth anniversary of the National Museum of American History, and a number of special events commemorated it.  I was honored to serve as curator for a special photographic exhibition about the Museum’s history and development as part of the observance.  Although the Museum is an important member of the Smithsonian family, one of the great museums of the world, and a significant interpreter of  American history and culture, its fiftieth anniversary was more akin to a birthday to be celebrated than as a reminder of an important historical event.

Sadly, milestone historical events per se are often catastrophic.  For example, 2015 is the tenth anniversary of the devastating storm Katrina.  It is also the hundredth anniversary of the Armenian Genocide by the Ottoman Turks during World War I, and April 24 was observed by Armenians around the world as Genocide Remembrance Day.  Although this program and the policies which produced it remain controversial in Turkey, most historians believe that mass killings of Armenians, Greeks, and Assyrians were deliberate and planned.  When I visited Turkey two years ago, a well-known academic denier of the genocide narrative gave me a signed copy of his book, in which he argues that the Armenians were simply subjected to a forced march because they were thought to be collaborating with Turkey’s enemies, and that such a forced deportation during wartime unavoidably involves hardships.

Poster published by the American Committee for Armenian and Syrian Relief, 1917.
From the Princeton Poster Collection, Archives Center, National Museum of American History  

One can commemorate this crisis and all its misery, but one can also celebrate the groundswell of humanitarian aid which occurred as a result of it.  On April 3 this year a special Friday colloquium was added to the schedule of the NMAH Tuesday Colloquium, which I coordinate for the Museum.  The speaker was Shant Mardirossian, the Chairman of the Near East Foundation.  His message was to celebrate the philanthropic and humanitarian aid which the Genocide inspired, rather than to concentrate on the horrors of the Genocide itself.   Shant related how the American Committee for Armenian and Syrian Relief was established in 1915 just after the deportations began; it was a charitable organization intended to relieve the suffering of the peoples of the Near East and was supported by Henry Morgenthau, Sr., American ambassador to the Ottoman Empire.  Between 1915 and 1930, ACRNE distributed humanitarian relief to locations across a wide geographical range, eventually helping around 2,000,000 refugees.  Also known as “Near East Relief,” this program was supported by President Woodrow Wilson.  It was an important landmark in the history of American humanitarian aid and philanthropy.  As the Museum is currently studying American philanthropic history to inspire new collecting and programming initiatives, this story is especially timely.

Poster published by the American Committee for Armenian and Syrian Relief, ca. 1915, 47.5 x 31 cm.
From the Princeton Poster Collection, Archives Center, National Museum of American History

I supplemented Shant’s presentation with images of posters advertising relief efforts and soliciting contributions from the period.  These materials are part of the Archives Center’s Princeton Posters Collection.  Most posters in this international collection are directly related to war, and are patriotic in nature.  Others attempt to bolster the courage and morale of civilians on the home front.  It might be argued that the posters shown here, which seek financial and humanitarian aid to civilians suffering from the ravages of war, are “hidden” within graphic materials which promote militarism and violence.

Card published by the American Committee for Armenian and Syrian Relief, ca. 1917, 7.5 x 11 cm.
From the Princeton Poster Collection, Archives Center, National Museum of American History

David Haberstich

Curator of Photography, NMAH Archives Center