MDE was allowed to continue teaching facts on Armenian Genocide in public schools

PanARMENIAN.Net - In a major blow to Turkey's global campaign to suppress the truth about the Armenian Genocide, U.S. District Court Chief Judge Mark Wolf today ruled in favor of the Massachusetts Department of Education (MDE), allowing it to continue teaching the facts of the Armenian Genocide, and other crimes against humanity, in public schools across the Commonwealth as constitutionally protected government speech, reported the Armenian Assembly of America (Assembly).



"The Armenian Assembly appreciates the court's ruling in this matter. It sends a clear message to Turkey and its revisionist allies that history cannot be rewritten to further Ankara's state-sponsored denial campaign," said Assembly Board of Trustees Chairman Hirair Hovnanian. Carolyn Mugar, the Board's President, added, "Given the overwhelming historical and legal evidence documenting the incontestable fact of the Armenian Genocide, this ruling is a victory for all those concerned about genocide education and prevention."



Assembly Executive Director Bryan Ardouny noted that "today's decision is in keeping with a growing trend toward teaching genocide prevention with nearly every state, including Massachusetts, formally recognizing the Armenian Genocide. We want to thank the office of the Attorney General of Massachusetts for not backing down in this case."



The court's ruling preserves the teaching of accurate history, which is part of the official "Massachusetts Guide to Choosing and Using Curricular Materials on Genocide and Human Rights," prepared in 1999. In 2005, the Assembly of Turkish American Associations (ATAA), along with others, filed the suit against the Department of Education arguing that the Commonwealth violated the plaintiffs' First Amendment rights by removing materials from the curriculum that deny the events of 1915.



"In light of the fact that Turkey criminalizes honest discussion of the Armenian Genocide, it is especially ironic that Turkish denialists turned to U.S. courts in an attempt to twist freedom of speech in America," stated Assembly Board of Trustees Counselor Van Krikorian.