For Armenians around the world, "April," to quote Eliot, is indeed "the cruelest month." On April 24, 1915, the Turkish government launched a genocidal campaign of deportation and extermination, effectively ending the millennia-old Armenian presence in eastern Turkey. Amazingly, to this day Turkey denies the genocide. And the U.S. goes along with this charade. A recent Congressional resolution recognizing the genocide was withdrawn under White House pressure. The administration cited national security concerns.

Peter Balakian
Peter Balakian, historian, poet, and professor at Colgate University, is the author of the award-winning "Black Dog of Fate" and "The Burning Tigris," and translator of "Armenian Golgotha."