Dr. Michael Rubin during US Congressional Hearing: “Genocide denial perpetuates genocide”

WASHINGTON D.C. — During a congressional hearing on Thursday, Dr. Michael Rubin, senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute and director of policy analysis at the Middle East Forum, delivered a stark warning: Turkey’s persistent refusal to acknowledge the Armenian Genocide is far more than an insult to history, it serves as a blueprint for continuing oppression of religious minorities.

Blueprint for Oppression

“Genocide denial perpetuates genocide,” Dr. Rubin declared, his voice resonating through the hearing room. He painted a chilling portrait of a nation whose official revisionism not only whitewashes the mass killings of 1915–1923 but also establishes the ideological framework for new campaigns of cultural erasure.

“Turkey even has the audacity to demand that each Ecumenical Patriarch [of Constantinople] be a Turkish citizen,” he asserted. “That’s equivalent to saying that Pope Leo XIV shouldn’t be recognized as Pope because he’s an American.”

Dr. Rubin highlighted the shuttered Halki Seminary — closed by Ankara for fifty years — as a symbol of this strategy. “Without the Halki Seminary … the Greek Orthodox Church cannot train priests domestically,” he warned. He emphasized that if President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan continues to keep the seminary closed, Orthodox Christianity in its historic birthplace may disappear before its bicentennial in 2035.

He drew a stark parallel to the recent near-destruction of the 1,700-year-old Armenian Christian community of Nagorno-Karabakh earlier this year, warning that these actions reflect a broader pattern of cultural and religious erasure.

“Genocide denial perpetuates genocide.”

In a powerful moment before Congress, Dr. @mrubin1971 exposed how Turkey’s denial of the Armenian Genocide isn’t just historical revisionism, it’s a dangerous blueprint for ongoing oppression.

Watch his urgent call to confront truth with… pic.twitter.com/n7DoJhpeJl

— Armenian Assembly (@ARAMAC_DC) June 10, 2025

From Historical Atrocity to Modern Persecution

Dr. Rubin reminded lawmakers that, before World War II, Germany’s acknowledgment of the Holocaust and its investment in public education helped confine neo-Nazi ideology to society’s margins. “In Turkey, however,” he argued, “denial means that the ideology of intolerance and hatred that catalyzed the Armenian Genocide remains legitimate and mainstream, embraced not only by Erdoğan but by Turkey’s elites.

He cited the recent pardon and public celebration of the assassin of Hrant Dink, the Turkish-Armenian journalist murdered in 2007, as a chilling example of this ongoing intolerance.

Dr. Rubin urged Congress to use its leverage in trade and defense agreements. The US must not repeat the mistake of separating human rights from trade policy, as was done with China, he insisted. Instead, it should hold Turkey to the highest standards.

He also called for formal studies — commissioned through the Government Accountability Office or the Congressional Research Service — to examine how Turkish educational curricula depict Armenians, Greeks, Syriacs (Arameans–Assyrians–Chaldeans), and other historic Christian communities.

ANCA-Backed Legislation Aims to Educate

Armenian American advocacy groups are working swiftly to translate the momentum from the recent hearing into concrete legislative action. The Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA) has endorsed H.R. 2585, a bill introduced in the U.S. House by Representatives Dina Titus (D-NN-1), David Valadao (R-CA-21), Ted Lieu (D-CA-33), and Gus Bilirakis (R-FL-12).

The proposed legislation allocates $10 million over five years to develop and distribute educational materials for American students about the Ottoman-era genocides of Armenians, Greeks, Assyrians, Chaldeans, Syriacs, Arameans, and Maronite Christians that occurred between 1915 and 1923.

“Honoring the truth of these tragedies is essential not only for historical accuracy but also to help prevent future atrocities,” ANCA Executive Director Aram Hamparian stated. ANCA’s grassroots network has already mobilized thousands of letters to Congress, urging lawmakers to advance the bill before the summer recess.

Test for US Policy

The hearing comes at a critical juncture in US–Turkey relations. Ankara has increasingly aligned itself with Russia and Iran on regional security issues, even as the Trump Administration seeks Turkey’s cooperation on immigration enforcement and energy transit corridors. Human rights advocates argue that any strategic partnership with Turkey must be contingent on demonstrable progress in religious freedom and human rights.

Turkey has objectively crossed the line into terror sponsorship, Dr. Rubin asserted, referencing Ankara’s tolerance of Hamas operations on its soil and its escalating rhetoric against Israel’s Jewish citizens. If the State Department’s designation of state sponsors of terror is to have any credibility, it must include Turkey, argued Dr. Rubin.

Looking Forward

As Congress considers the ANCA-backed education bill and broader measures to link human rights benchmarks to US trade and security cooperation, Dr. Rubin’s words highlight a timeless truth: confronting falsehoods about the past is both a moral obligation and a practical necessity to protect vulnerable communities today.

For millions of Armenians and other descendants of Ottoman-era Christian minorities, acknowledging their ancestors’ suffering is not merely symbolic. It marks a crucial step toward accountability, reconciliation, and the enduring aspiration that “never again” becomes more than just a slogan.