tuesday 26 11 13, volume # 8, issue # 222

\ RAG MAMOUL an ADL PUBLICATION

Official Organ of the Armenian Democratic Liberal Party

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Is the White House so Scared of Turkey

That it Won't Even Hang a Rug?

By: J. DANA STUSTER

Tuesday, 26 November 2013 Volume # 8, Issue # 222

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In 1926, Vartoohi Galezian -- a 15-year-old refugee from the genocide in Armenia -- arrived at the

White House to pay a visit to President Calvin Coolidge. She had come to view the rug she and 1,400

other orphans living in Ghazir -- then part of mandate Syria, now in Lebanon -- had woven as a gift to

the United States in thanks for the humanitarian assistance provided to the refugees of the ethnic

cleansing of Armenians during World War I. In June 1995, the Ghazir rug, a huge, beautiful work

exemplary of the Middle East's legendary weaving traditions, was shown once more to Galezian and

her family, but it's now been more than 17 years since the White House has displayed what has come to

be known as the Armenian orphan rug. Now it is unclear when the rug will ever be shown again.

The rug is now caught in a tug-of-war with historians and Armenian advocates on one side pulling

for the rug to be displayed and the White House on the other, which seems reticent to release the rug

for an exhibit. Many suspect the White House of kowtowing to Turkey, which refuses to describe the

The Ghazir Rug

deaths of 1.5 million Armenians as a genocide and

objects to the display of Armenian artifacts -- and the

implicit acknowledgement of Turkey's responsibility

in the 20th century's first large-scale ethnic cleansing.

But the rug has powerful supporters, who are now

pushing a White House loathe to antagonise Turkey to

put the rug on display.

As strange as it sounds, the memory of a nearly

century-old genocide is now being litigated over the

future fate of a rug.

For a time, it looked like the rug would be shown

next month at a book launch event for a book about the

rug's history, but the White House declined to exhibit

it. "We regret that it was not possible to loan it out for

this event," Laura Lucas Magnuson, assistant press

secretary for the National Security Council, told

Foreign Policy. "Displaying the rug for only half a day

in connection with a private book launch event, as

proposed, would have been an inappropriate use of

U.S. government property, would have required the

White House to undertake the risk of transporting the

rug for limited public exposure, and was not viewed as

commensurate with the rug's historical significance."

But some suspect the decision was motivated by

political expediency as much as concerns about

finding the right setting for the rug. The rug is a

symbol of the expulsion of the collapsing Ottoman

Empire's Armenian population in 1915, which left 1.5

million dead and hundreds of thousands displaced -- an

event that most historians consider the first genocide

of the modern era. The devastating effects of the

deaths and displacement prompted the first concerted

effort at U.S. international humanitarianism with the

establishment of Near East Relief, an early precursor

to USAID. But Turkey adamantly denies that the


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ethnic cleansing meets the legal definition of genocide, which

requires that the effort to wipe out a population be "deliberate and

systematic," claiming instead that the Armenians were victims of

widespread upheaval in a country in turmoil. The use of the term

"genocide" -- and anything that draws attention to the deportations,

massacres, and death marches -- is a loaded political issue in

relations with Turkey.

"It is very hard to believe that politics doesn't have anything to do

with the White House's abrupt refusal to loan the carpet to the

Smithsonian" for the book launch, said Keith Watenpaugh, a

professor at the University of California, Davis, who has written

extensively about U.S. humanitarianism among Armenian survivors.

"This explanation strikes me as after the fact -- and not terribly

persuasive. Artifacts from official collections are brought out for

special occasions all the time. It is not unusual for meaningful pieces

of art or special documents to be displayed for short periods."

Watenpaugh has started a petition asking for the White House to

reconsider displaying the rug.

In a separate effort, 31 members of Congress have sent a letter to

the White House urging it to "release this American treasure for

exhibition" but have not received a response. "If the White House

doesn't release the rug to be shown at the Smithsonian, it's my

intention to put together an event on the Hill at which the rug could

be shown," Rep. Adam Schiff, a California Democrat and a co-

author of the letter, told FP by phone Thursday. That event, which

Schiff said could be held as soon as January, would focus on U.S.

humanitarian efforts and the "circumstances that led to the making of

the rug." As to whether he thought the White House's refusal to show

the rug was motivated by concerns over Turkish sensitivities, Schiff

noted that it would be evident if the White House changes its policy

for future events. "We'll see soon enough," he said.

Keith Watenpaugh

Rep. Adam Schiff


Regardless of the terminology involved, the rug has a fascinating history. It was woven by a girls'

orphanage in the town of Ghazir, about 20 miles north of Beirut, that housed 1,400 girls and was funded

through the sale of woven rugs and contributions from Near East Relief, a U.S. development charity that

provided support to Armenian refugees. The sprawling rug -- 11 by 18 feet -- contains 4,404,206 knots

and is intricately patterned with animals, plants, and arabesques. It was presented to President Coolidge

on December 4, 1925, in advance of a Near East Relief donation drive. The rug stayed in the White

House until Coolidge left office, at which point it went with him to Northampton, Mass. It was passed

down through the family and given back to the White House collection in 1982.

"The Ghazir rug is a reminder of the close relationship between the peoples of Armenia and the

United States," Lucas Magnuson wrote by email. It is also "a symbol of the immense generosity that the

American people once demonstrated to the children of the Middle East," Watenpaugh told FP. "It is a

superb work of art and a poignant reminder of a time when the relationship between America and the

Middle East was much different from today and built around education, humanitarian relief, and

cooperation. Today, as millions more children are suffering because of the war in Syria, we have the

right to remember that history and an obligation to rekindle our tradition of compassion."

But, for now, that history will stay locked away.

Washington, D.C., U.S.A.

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tuesday 26 11 13, volume # 8, issue # 222

Documents

armenian orphan rug

ghazir rug deaths

white house of kowtowing

armenian advocates

display of armenian

private book launch

rag mamoul

ethnic cleansing of