To Whom It May Concern,

My name is Austin Yeghishian and I am proud to say that I am an Armenian. Although I live in Los Angeles, I attend a Christian, Armenian school in order to always keep my home country first. At our school, we have learned about our country's dark past and the pain they’ve endured. In 1915, the Ottoman Turks started a genocide of the Armenian people, which lasted until 1918. 1.5 million Armenians died protecting their lands and loved ones. The Turks killed little boys and girls as well as women and even went as far as killing poets, musicians, artists, and more, all with the vision of erasing Armenia from history. But my strong ancestors didn't give up and emigrated to neighboring countries all across the Middle East.

Personally, my parents are Armenians raised in Lebanon and Iran; but this fact by itself shows that thousands of other families fled their homes and loved ones just for a small chance of survival. What the Ottomans did to the Armenians will never be forgotten and the lands they took and the families they shattered will never be fixed. My ancestors, the ones that trekked across the Syrian desert without any hopes of survival and not knowing if they would make another day, had one goal, which was that their children shouldn’t go through the same thing they had experienced.

This is still happening today as mothers and fathers are fleeing to America and other parts of the world so their children can live in a world of peace and happiness. My school and many other Armenian schools do everything in their power to teach us the priceless gift that our parents gave us. Since 1915, we've lost land and more importantly heritage. I've heard stories of families being torn apart and being relocated across the side of the globe. Think about it, your closest family all being in different parts of the world without you having any clue about it.

As heavy as the genocide was on Armenian people, then came the independence of Azerbaijan. Artsakh, or Nagorno-Karabakh, had been full of native Armenians for thousands of years, but when Azerbaijan became its own nation, they became the owners of Artsakh. Yes, a land that had been under Armenian power for thousands of years had been given to Azerbaijan in the blink of an eye. Since then the Azeris have started wars over reclaiming “their” land, which had resulted in hundreds, if not thousands of young Armenian men dying. Singers and writers are fighting on the front lines, even the president of Artsakh, Arayik Harutunyan is putting his life on the line to encourage others to protect their country, a natural leader you would ask me. So tell me, what other leader would do the same? Many believe the Armenians are the aggressors of the current war, if so why do they have a budget of 40 billion dollars and Azerbaijan and Turkey have a combined budget of 200 billion dollars? On October 10, Azerbaijan and Armenia were to have agreed to a ceasefire, so why is Azerbaijan still fighting? When BLM riots broke out across the country, thousands of dollars of looting took place, but they still got the justice they wanted. So the time that my people are rioting, peacefully mind you, no one will speak up for them? All my people want is peace, all they want is for the world to understand what they went through and to get the justice they really deserve. This is why I urge you to tell your friends and family and everybody you know to learn what Armenia has gone through so that you can help strengthen our voice and to achieve the goals my ancestors started.

---Austin Yeghishian, 8th

To Whom It May Concern,

My name is Nare Khechanyan and I’m 13 years old. I live in the United States, but I was born and grew up in Armenia. I was 9 years old when we moved to the United States. Though I live here, I didn’t forget my motherland and culture. For centuries my homeland Armenia suffered attacks of terroristic and invading countries like Azerbaijan and Turkey. The Armenian Genocide was committed in 1915. The whole population of Western Armenia was dislocated, and 1.5 million Armenians were killed. My ancestors were among them. The whole world closed its eyes to the Genocide in 1915; the powerful countries didn’t even respond. And my heart can’t accept that history is repeating itself. The Turkish-Azeri army is attacking helpless and innocent people without having mercy on women, children, adults, and even disabled people. With the same method, Turkish-Azeri terrorists are committing the same genocide in full view of the world. A small Armenia with a population of 3 million people is fighting against 90 million Turkish-Azeri terrorists. As a consequence, we are losing our young generation, the future of our homeland. As the head of the great states, I ask you on behalf of myself and my country, to help my nation, to help them get free from such aggressor countries. I live in your country and consider it my second homeland. Please don’t close your eyes to this because we need you more than ever. I believe that the biggest dream of my small heart will not remain unanswered.

Sincerely,

Nare Khechanyan, 8th