Monday, August 8, 2022
No Result
View All Result
Asbarez.com
NEWSLETTER
ՀԱՅ
  • Home
  • Top Stories
  • Community
  • Arts & Culture
    • Art
    • Books
    • Music
    • Theatre
    • Critics’ Forum
  • Op-Ed
    • Editorial
    • Opinon
    • Letters
  • Columns
    • By Any Means
    • My Turn
    • Three Apples
    • Community Links
    • Critics’ Forum
    • My Name is Armen
    • Living in Armenia
  • Videos
  • Sports
  • Home
  • Top Stories
  • Community
  • Arts & Culture
    • Art
    • Books
    • Music
    • Theatre
    • Critics’ Forum
  • Op-Ed
    • Editorial
    • Opinon
    • Letters
  • Columns
    • By Any Means
    • My Turn
    • Three Apples
    • Community Links
    • Critics’ Forum
    • My Name is Armen
    • Living in Armenia
  • Videos
  • Sports
No Result
View All Result
Asbarez.com
ՀԱՅ
No Result
View All Result

Colorado Unveils Sardarapat Armenian Memorial Highway Signs

by Contributor
October 2, 2018
in Armenia, Community, Featured Story, Latest, News, Top Stories
4
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

DENVER, Colo.—In celebration of Armenian survival and independence, several dozen elected officials, Armenian-American leaders and community activists attended the official unveiling of the Sardarapat Armenian Memorial Highway sign in Centennial, Colorado on September 29.

In April 2018, the Colorado House of Representatives and the State Senate unanimously passed House Joint Resolution 18-1019 that designates a portion of a major state highway – Arapahoe Road – in the Centennial State in honor of the heroic May 28, 1918 Sardarapat Battle that paved the way to the establishment of the independent Republic of Armenia. The legislative authorization of the highway sign was initiated and spearheaded by the Denver office of the Armenian National Committee of America Western Region and ANCA-Colorado. Upon passage of HJR 18-1019, ANCA partner Armenians of Colorado (AOC), Colorado’s oldest Armenian-American organization, sponsored the highway signs.

The sign unveiling ceremony included an opening prayer by Reverend Father Arsen Kassabian, Pastor of St. Garabed Church of Las Vegas, remarks by Congressman Mike Coffman, State Senator Dominick Moreno, State Representative Cole Wist, City of Centennial Councilmember Mike Sutherland, the chairwoman of the ANCA Western Region Nora Hovsepian, and the Board President of Armenians of Colorado (AOC) Sona Hedeshian, and was closed with a singing of the song Sardarapat. The master of ceremonies was Simon Maghakyan, long-time AOC activist and the ANCA Western Region’s Denver- based Community Development Coordinator for 18 states.

In addition to program speakers, several other elected officials, including State Representative Paul Rosenthal and Arapahoe County Commissioner Nancy Sharpe, were in attendance. Visiting from Los Angeles, ANCA-Western Region’s Los Angeles-based Board members Sako Berberian and Joseph Kaskanian, as well as former Executive Director Elen Asatryan, were also present. While unable to attend the ceremony, Andy Karsian of the Colorado Department of Transportation was acknowledged for his help in guiding the process of seeking authorization for the highway designation.

In his opening remarks, Maghakyan welcomed all attendees, previewed the program, and gave a brief background on the May 1918 Battle of Sardarapat (also spelled Sardarabad) that established the independent Republic of Armenia. “Turkey had destroyed Western Armenia but that was not enough. The Turkish army came for the tiny corner of Armenia that had survived. Surrounded on all sides, Armenians had no escape routes. There was only one choice – to die with dignity. They fought, many died, but they won,” remarked Maghakyan. The 1922 United States of America Congressional Record account of the battle was quoted as praising Sardarapat as the reason for which “[Armenians] took their place among the nations of the world, the only nation in all this great struggle that won their independence by the sword on the field of battle, unaided and unassisted by any ally, a feat wholly unequalled by that of any other people of this century.”

WATCH THE CEREMONY

At the end of his speech, the Master of Ceremonies drew comparisons between the Battle of Sardarapat and the recent Velvet Revolution in Armenia: “When AOC and ANCA announced the resolution that was passed in April establishing the Sardarapat Armenian Memorial Highway, we announced it in support of the revolution in Armenia. So in some ways we are not only celebrating the survival at Sardarapat but also the truly-democratic Armenia that has become a beacon of hope for all freedom-loving people across the world.” The speaker also repeated his April 18 statement on the inevitability of the Spring 2018 Velvet Revolution’s victory and its resonance with centuries of struggle against repressive regimes:

“Authoritarianism may be the new norm, but Armenians won’t settle for a leader who wishes to stay in power beyond two terms. A red line has been crossed for the people who have outlived caliphs, sultans, and tsars. Dynasties – even competent ones – have no home here.”

Following the opening remarks, State Representative Cole Wist – the champion of the Sardarapat Armenian Memorial Highway resolution – was introduced. Rep. Wist spoke to the reasons for the importance of celebrating Sardarapat in Colorado. “This battle against all odds paved the path for the creation of the Republic of Armenia. A universal inspiration to fight for one’s rights, [it is] a reminder to us of the power of the human struggle and the power of the human spirit; when we look to each other and find strength in each other,” remarked Rep. Wist.

Before concluding his speech, Rep. Wist invited all present elected officials, ANCA and AOC board members, and other special guests to unveil the sign. All attendees erupted in cheers and applause upon the unveiling of the eastbound Sardarapat Armenian Memorial Highway sign on Arapahoe Road, east of interstate 25, one of the busiest intersections in Colorado. The westbound sign, located more than 4 miles away on Arapahoe Road, is immediately west of the Arapahoe-Parker Road intersection, one of the most-traveled areas in the states. Both signs were installed earlier in September by the Colorado Department of Transportation.

Once the Sardarapat Armenian Memorial Highway sign was unveiled, Rep. Wist mentioned his own extended family’s connection to Armenian history. “We lost 1.5 million men, women, and children in a brutal genocide perpetrated by the Turkish regime… As we think of all the people who made [the Sardarapat highway] happen, my thoughts turn to my wife’s family who lost family members in the Armenian Genocide.” Rep. Wist concluded his remarks as follows: “In the spirit of always fighting for your family, always fighting for your faith, and always fighting for your freedom, we proudly dedicate the Sardarapat Armenian Memorial Highway.”

The next speaker, Congressman Mike Coffman, reiterated the importance of the Sardarapat Battle in world history, as well as recalled the recent developments in Armenia. “What I hope the [highway] sign will do is spark an interest… in the genocide of the Armenian people perpetrated by the Ottoman Empire because what we don’t understand in history we are bound to repeat…. As your Representative, I work shoulder to shoulder with the Armenian organizations in our nation’s capital as well as with the Armenian Ambassador to make sure that the American people stand shoulder to shoulder with the people in Armenia. And I am so proud of the government [in Armenia] for having a peaceful transition of power – the Velvet Revolution… I am so impressed with the Armenian people here and across America, and their commitment to remembering the history of their ancestral country and their commitment to helping the people of Armenia. God bless you on this wonderful day when we celebrate the [Sardarapat Armenian Memorial Highway] sign,” remarked Coffman.

Following Congressman Coffman’s address, ANCA-Western Region chair Nora Hovsepian underscored the do-or-die nature of the Battle of Sardarapat then congratulated the Armenian community’s successful efforts and partnerships. “We are truly happy and proud to be here with you on this wonderful occasion. This may be just a small sign on a highway for some people but it’s really a symbol of so much more than that. It’s a symbol of victory. It’s a symbol of survival. It’s a symbol of rising up out of the ashes of the Armenian Genocide… The remnants of the Armenian people rose up and valiantly fought against the final onslaught of Turkish troops who were trying to complete what had been started as their attempt to annihilate our nation. With that victory they established the first independent Republic of Armenia ….. And if that had not happened, the world map would have been very different today, and we would not have been here to continue to make our claim for justice for our People,” remarked Hovsepian. “This sign is also a symbol of partnership and collaboration… I am especially proud of the collaboration between AOC and ANCA-Colorado and the important work that you do together, including having established the joint Capitol Hill office and this highway sign…. May your community continue to thrive, may your partnership continue to flourish, and may you find new and wonderful projects and successes in the future,” concluded Hovsepian.

State Senator Dominick Moreno, who was one of the two primary Senate sponsors of the Highway resolution, then spoke of the importance of supporting the Armenian community. “It’s been my honor to carry the resolution and now I get to see the fruits of that labor here with the [Highway] sign recognizing the Armenian community… It’s been my honor to carry the resolution to recognize the Armenian Genocide every year in the Armenian legislature,” remarked Sen. Moreno. “I really appreciate you all and your advocacy, and for reminding us of the ties that Armenian and Colorado share, our common values of freedom and democracy, and a recognition that we value diversity and that we know when people of different faiths and ethnicities and languages live alongside each other, it makes our communities stronger. Thank you so much for all that you do and I look forward to a long and valued relationship with the Armenian community,” concluded the Senator.

Councilmember Mike Sutherland then welcomed the addition of the Highway in the City of Centennial. “District 3 is honored to have a portion of the highway go right through the district to the east of here. I have learned a lot in the last 5-6 months about the Armenian community and we couldn’t be more honored and pleased to be part of this memorial and this community… Thank you so much for everything you do for the City of Centennial and the State of Colorado,” remarked Councilmember Sutherland.

In her closing remarks, AOC Board President Sona Hedeshian spoke about the community’s past, present and future, and encouraged the youth to volunteer in local and national Armenian-American organizations. “We accomplished this today because people worked really hard and made it happen, inspired by the people before us… Next year we celebrate the 40th anniversary of Armenians of Colorado, Inc. As a community of immigrants, we overcame obstacles…. We are proud as a community for our achievements – the Colorado State Capitol Armenian Memorial Garden, our partnership with ANCA and establishing our joint office, the successful Armenian school – we just started the second year – and of course today we celebrate the Sardarapat Armenian Memorial Highway Sign,” remarked Hedeshian. She then called on the young attendees to “draw inspiration from our achievements by becoming more involved” in community organizations in Colorado. “My message to you is – do not sit on the sidelines; support the churches, get involved with the ANCA, volunteer at our events… the success of one is a success for all of us,” concluded Hedeshian.

The unveiling ceremony was concluded with a singing of the famous song Sardarapat, which was composed in 1968 by Edgar Hovhannisyan and written by the celebrated Soviet Armenian poet Paruyr Sevak.

Following the unveiling ceremony, many of the present elected officials and organizational leaders were treated to a lunch reception by Gevorg Saribekyan from the local Diocese Parish of the Armenian Apostolic Church.

Championed by the Colorado House Assistant Minority Leader Cole Wist of Centennial and co-primed by fellow Representative Jeff Bridges and State Senators Dominick Moreno and Jack Tate, House Joint Resolution 18-1019 designated the four-mile portion of Arapahoe Road between Interstate 25 and Parker Road – which connects Centennial and Aurora, two cities with large Armenian American populations – as Sardarapat Armenian Memorial Highway “in honor of Armenian Genocide survivors’ valiant contributions in creating the independent Republic of Armenia one hundred years ago.”

AOC was founded in 1979 and incorporated in June 1980 as a 501(c)3 non-profit cultural organization. Its purpose is to create a cohesive Armenian community and to further the understanding of Armenian history, culture, language, customs, and heritage. AOC actively supports issues and concerns of the Armenian-American community in Colorado as well as those identified within the Armenian Diaspora throughout the world.

The Armenian National Committee of America-Western Region is the largest and most influential Armenian American grassroots advocacy organization in the Western United States. Working in coordination with a network of offices, chapters, and supporters throughout the Western United States and affiliated organizations around the country, the ANCA-WR advances the concerns of the Armenian American community on a broad range of issues.

Contributor

Contributor

Next Post

ANCA Welcomes Social Security Administration’s Interest in U.S.-Armenia Totalization Agreement

Comments 4

  1. State of Emergency says:
    4 years ago

    Why in eastern Armenian?

    Reply
    • State of calm says:
      4 years ago

      Because Sardarapat is in Eastern Armenia.

      Reply
  2. State of Emergency says:
    4 years ago

    In the words of Christopher J. Walker, had the Armenians lost this battle, “It is perfectly possible that the word Armenia would have henceforth denoted only an antique geographical term.”

    Yet, amazingly the communists saw it fit to change the name to Hoktember in 1935 to honor the 1917 October Revolution.

    Reply
  3. Catherine Yesayan says:
    4 years ago

    Bravo, to Armenian community of Denver and all elected official to make this happen.

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recommended

Russia Again Blames Azerbaijan for Ceasefire Violation

In Response to Lavrov, Yerevan Says it Voiced Concerns about Russian Peacekeepers in 2021

2 days ago
U.S. Wants to Assist Armenia in Reforms

Blinken Discusses Karabakh with Pashinyan, Aliyev

2 days ago

Connect with us

  • About
  • Advertising
  • Subscribe
  • Contact

© 2021 Asbarez | All Rights Reserved | Powered By MSDN Solutions Inc.

No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • Top Stories
  • Community
  • Arts & Culture
    • Art
    • Books
    • Music
    • Theatre
    • Critics’ Forum
  • Op-Ed
    • Editorial
    • Opinon
    • Letters
  • Columns
    • By Any Means
    • My Turn
    • Three Apples
    • Community Links
    • Critics’ Forum
    • My Name is Armen
    • Living in Armenia
  • Videos
  • Sports

© 2021 Asbarez | All Rights Reserved | Powered By MSDN Solutions Inc.

Accessibility

Accessibility modes

Epilepsy Safe Mode
Dampens color and removes blinks
This mode enables people with epilepsy to use the website safely by eliminating the risk of seizures that result from flashing or blinking animations and risky color combinations.
Visually Impaired Mode
Improves website's visuals
This mode adjusts the website for the convenience of users with visual impairments such as Degrading Eyesight, Tunnel Vision, Cataract, Glaucoma, and others.
Cognitive Disability Mode
Helps to focus on specific content
This mode provides different assistive options to help users with cognitive impairments such as Dyslexia, Autism, CVA, and others, to focus on the essential elements of the website more easily.
ADHD Friendly Mode
Reduces distractions and improve focus
This mode helps users with ADHD and Neurodevelopmental disorders to read, browse, and focus on the main website elements more easily while significantly reducing distractions.
Blindness Mode
Allows using the site with your screen-reader
This mode configures the website to be compatible with screen-readers such as JAWS, NVDA, VoiceOver, and TalkBack. A screen-reader is software for blind users that is installed on a computer and smartphone, and websites must be compatible with it.

Online Dictionary

    Readable Experience

    Content Scaling
    Default
    Text Magnifier
    Readable Font
    Dyslexia Friendly
    Highlight Titles
    Highlight Links
    Font Sizing
    Default
    Line Height
    Default
    Letter Spacing
    Default
    Left Aligned
    Center Aligned
    Right Aligned

    Visually Pleasing Experience

    Dark Contrast
    Light Contrast
    Monochrome
    High Contrast
    High Saturation
    Low Saturation
    Adjust Text Colors
    Adjust Title Colors
    Adjust Background Colors

    Easy Orientation

    Mute Sounds
    Hide Images
    Virtual Keyboard
    Reading Guide
    Stop Animations
    Reading Mask
    Highlight Hover
    Highlight Focus
    Big Dark Cursor
    Big Light Cursor
    Navigation Keys

    Asbarez.com Accessibility Statement

    Accessibility Statement

    • www.asbarez.com
    • August 8, 2022

    Compliance status

    We firmly believe that the internet should be available and accessible to anyone, and are committed to providing a website that is accessible to the widest possible audience, regardless of circumstance and ability.

    To fulfill this, we aim to adhere as strictly as possible to the World Wide Web Consortium’s (W3C) Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.1 (WCAG 2.1) at the AA level. These guidelines explain how to make web content accessible to people with a wide array of disabilities. Complying with those guidelines helps us ensure that the website is accessible to all people: blind people, people with motor impairments, visual impairment, cognitive disabilities, and more.

    This website utilizes various technologies that are meant to make it as accessible as possible at all times. We utilize an accessibility interface that allows persons with specific disabilities to adjust the website’s UI (user interface) and design it to their personal needs.

    Additionally, the website utilizes an AI-based application that runs in the background and optimizes its accessibility level constantly. This application remediates the website’s HTML, adapts Its functionality and behavior for screen-readers used by the blind users, and for keyboard functions used by individuals with motor impairments.

    If you’ve found a malfunction or have ideas for improvement, we’ll be happy to hear from you. You can reach out to the website’s operators by using the following email

    Screen-reader and keyboard navigation

    Our website implements the ARIA attributes (Accessible Rich Internet Applications) technique, alongside various different behavioral changes, to ensure blind users visiting with screen-readers are able to read, comprehend, and enjoy the website’s functions. As soon as a user with a screen-reader enters your site, they immediately receive a prompt to enter the Screen-Reader Profile so they can browse and operate your site effectively. Here’s how our website covers some of the most important screen-reader requirements, alongside console screenshots of code examples:

    1. Screen-reader optimization: we run a background process that learns the website’s components from top to bottom, to ensure ongoing compliance even when updating the website. In this process, we provide screen-readers with meaningful data using the ARIA set of attributes. For example, we provide accurate form labels; descriptions for actionable icons (social media icons, search icons, cart icons, etc.); validation guidance for form inputs; element roles such as buttons, menus, modal dialogues (popups), and others. Additionally, the background process scans all of the website’s images and provides an accurate and meaningful image-object-recognition-based description as an ALT (alternate text) tag for images that are not described. It will also extract texts that are embedded within the image, using an OCR (optical character recognition) technology. To turn on screen-reader adjustments at any time, users need only to press the Alt+1 keyboard combination. Screen-reader users also get automatic announcements to turn the Screen-reader mode on as soon as they enter the website.

      These adjustments are compatible with all popular screen readers, including JAWS and NVDA.

    2. Keyboard navigation optimization: The background process also adjusts the website’s HTML, and adds various behaviors using JavaScript code to make the website operable by the keyboard. This includes the ability to navigate the website using the Tab and Shift+Tab keys, operate dropdowns with the arrow keys, close them with Esc, trigger buttons and links using the Enter key, navigate between radio and checkbox elements using the arrow keys, and fill them in with the Spacebar or Enter key.Additionally, keyboard users will find quick-navigation and content-skip menus, available at any time by clicking Alt+1, or as the first elements of the site while navigating with the keyboard. The background process also handles triggered popups by moving the keyboard focus towards them as soon as they appear, and not allow the focus drift outside of it.

      Users can also use shortcuts such as “M” (menus), “H” (headings), “F” (forms), “B” (buttons), and “G” (graphics) to jump to specific elements.

    Disability profiles supported in our website

    • Epilepsy Safe Mode: this profile enables people with epilepsy to use the website safely by eliminating the risk of seizures that result from flashing or blinking animations and risky color combinations.
    • Visually Impaired Mode: this mode adjusts the website for the convenience of users with visual impairments such as Degrading Eyesight, Tunnel Vision, Cataract, Glaucoma, and others.
    • Cognitive Disability Mode: this mode provides different assistive options to help users with cognitive impairments such as Dyslexia, Autism, CVA, and others, to focus on the essential elements of the website more easily.
    • ADHD Friendly Mode: this mode helps users with ADHD and Neurodevelopmental disorders to read, browse, and focus on the main website elements more easily while significantly reducing distractions.
    • Blindness Mode: this mode configures the website to be compatible with screen-readers such as JAWS, NVDA, VoiceOver, and TalkBack. A screen-reader is software for blind users that is installed on a computer and smartphone, and websites must be compatible with it.
    • Keyboard Navigation Profile (Motor-Impaired): this profile enables motor-impaired persons to operate the website using the keyboard Tab, Shift+Tab, and the Enter keys. Users can also use shortcuts such as “M” (menus), “H” (headings), “F” (forms), “B” (buttons), and “G” (graphics) to jump to specific elements.

    Additional UI, design, and readability adjustments

    1. Font adjustments – users, can increase and decrease its size, change its family (type), adjust the spacing, alignment, line height, and more.
    2. Color adjustments – users can select various color contrast profiles such as light, dark, inverted, and monochrome. Additionally, users can swap color schemes of titles, texts, and backgrounds, with over 7 different coloring options.
    3. Animations – epileptic users can stop all running animations with the click of a button. Animations controlled by the interface include videos, GIFs, and CSS flashing transitions.
    4. Content highlighting – users can choose to emphasize important elements such as links and titles. They can also choose to highlight focused or hovered elements only.
    5. Audio muting – users with hearing devices may experience headaches or other issues due to automatic audio playing. This option lets users mute the entire website instantly.
    6. Cognitive disorders – we utilize a search engine that is linked to Wikipedia and Wiktionary, allowing people with cognitive disorders to decipher meanings of phrases, initials, slang, and others.
    7. Additional functions – we provide users the option to change cursor color and size, use a printing mode, enable a virtual keyboard, and many other functions.

    Browser and assistive technology compatibility

    We aim to support the widest array of browsers and assistive technologies as possible, so our users can choose the best fitting tools for them, with as few limitations as possible. Therefore, we have worked very hard to be able to support all major systems that comprise over 95% of the user market share including Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, Apple Safari, Opera and Microsoft Edge, JAWS and NVDA (screen readers), both for Windows and for MAC users.

    Notes, comments, and feedback

    Despite our very best efforts to allow anybody to adjust the website to their needs, there may still be pages or sections that are not fully accessible, are in the process of becoming accessible, or are lacking an adequate technological solution to make them accessible. Still, we are continually improving our accessibility, adding, updating and improving its options and features, and developing and adopting new technologies. All this is meant to reach the optimal level of accessibility, following technological advancements. For any assistance, please reach out to