April 24 marks the 110th anniversary of the Armenian genocide, where the Turkish Ottoman Empire brutally massacred 1.5 million of 2 million Armenians living in Eastern Turkey.

My grandmother was an Armenian genocide survivor; I write this in her honor.

The resolution recognizing the Armenian genocide passed through bipartisan support in 2019. Six years later, the Republican party betrayed the memory of the survivors in confirming Mehmet Oz to lead Medicare and Medicaid. The Republicans knew Oz is an adamant denier of the Armenian genocide, he retains his Turkish citizenship, served in the Turkish military, and has numerous financial ties to Turkey.

But that didn’t stop their betrayal as they unanimously voted to confirm Oz. Shame on Senator Ted Cruz (R-Texas), who co-authored the Menedez-Cruz resolution recognition of the Armenian genocide, and Senator Marsha Blackburn (R-Tennessee), who co-authored the Armenian Genocide Education Act.

And to add insult to injury are the Armenians who voted for Trump in 2024. They also knew that Trump backed Oz when he ran against John Fetterman in 2022.

I’m disgusted, but not surprised by the betrayal of the GOP-led Senate. But for Armenians to throw caution to the wind and blindly vote for Trump is an absolute disgrace. And these backstabbers will show up for the April 24 church services meant to honor our survivors of the Armenian genocide. When you betray your own people, you’ve dishonored our survivors. You are no better than the Turks who denied this unconscionable genocide.

My grandmother, along with all of our departed genocide survivors are surely rolling over in their graves. We were warned in previous anniversary services that we have no living survivors. And the grandchildren, great grandchildren, etc. are to ensure no one ever forgets the Armenian Genocide.

And that’s EXACTLY what the Armenians who voted for Trump did — they ignored all the heinous acts of depravity and cruelty as one and a half million Armenians were savagely butchered.

My grandmother recounted seeing a Turk stab a pregnant woman in the stomach with a bayonet. She said when the baby cried, the Turk threw the baby up in the air and chopped it like a head of lettuce. She recounted how the river turned red with the blood of all the Armenians the Turks killed. She was haunted by these images her entire life. She had PTSD, long before it’s DSM-V diagnosis. She died a few months before her 99th birthday in April 2004. May God rest her soul.

She can no longer speak out against those who betrayed all the genocide survivors. However, I will speak for her, because this betrayal would not go unnoticed by her. She would’ve raised far more hell than I ever could on her behalf.

My grandmother, at 80, attended the 1985 Washington, D.C. march for a National gathering of Armenian genocide survivors. At 92, she accompanied Armenian high school students to a U of M Ann Arbor meeting where the Board of Regents were approached by the Turks with a sum of over $1million to institute a Turkish studies program. My grandmother couldn’t stomach the lies, burst from her seat, and screamed at the genocide deniers: “You’re nothing but bloodthirsty animals, you have the blood of 1.5 million Armenians on your hands!” She said the Turks wouldn’t meet her vexing glare, but stared at the ground. The regents did not grant the Turkish studies program.

All who betrayed our survivors must atone for their sins. Adolf Hitler’s Holocaust justification was, “Who remembers the poor Armenians?” The Armenian genocide denial, caused more genocides.

Karen Mouradjian, JD, is a Macomb County resident.