By A. Taylor
Let's talk Turkey.
You know, that country, that one that stretches from the Middle East to Europe, bridging the physical East-West divide. Barack Obama made headlines last week when he made a two-day visit there, fulfilling a campaign pledge to visit a Muslim country during his first 100 days in office.
Modern Turkey has been a strategic ally of the United States since the end of World War II. It has the largest military in NATO after the U.S. and is arguably the only Muslim democracy in the Middle East.
The country's borders are also geopolitically important, with neighbors such as Iraq, Syria and Iran, all three of which were included in George W. Bush's "axis of evil."
To Turkey's east are the Caucus states, where a war erupted between Georgia and Russia last summer, and to the west are Greece and Bulgaria, both members of the European Union.
In fact, Turkey is a candidate for European Union membership; this a little more than 50 years after Mustafa Kemal Atatürk founded the modern Turkish Republic, which he based on a strict adherence to secularism and Westernization.
You may have heard about the phenomenal history of the Turks' Ottoman ancestors.
The Ottoman Empire, which at once spanned three continents, collapsed after its poisonous alliance with the losers of World War I.
In the period between its collapse and the founding of the modern Turkish Republic in 1923, there existed a chaotic anarchy on the frontiers of Anatolia.
Millions of Armenians, who were once part of the Ottoman Empire, were killed or displaced during this period.
Some argue that the Turkish majority carried out genocide against Armenian communities at the time.
One such person, my own congressman, Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), has gone as far as to introduce legislation in the U.S. House of Representatives that would recognize the events particularly during the year 1915, as "genocide" under U.S. law.
While I agree that the events in eastern Anatolia during 1915 likely included genocide of Armenians, and that the events should be remembered based on factual evidence, I oppose congressional action of the matter. Schiff's bill, H.R. 252, sets a very dangerous precedent in the role that the U.S. Congress engages in foreign policy-making.
Why?
For starters, Congress shouldn't legislate history.
History should be written by historians, not by politicians seeking re-election. If Congress is so concerned about writing history into law, then why not start by owning up to our own blood-stained past?
Our own government slaughtered and displaced countless Native Americans. So why not start by legislating those facts before we determine foreign nations' histories?
Secondly, Turkey is a vital U.S. ally, and we should not deliberately strain our relationship with its government. The Turks are a vital partner in the Middle East, and we cannot afford to lose their partnership.
Thirdly, Turkey and Armenian are holding normalization talks as The Beacon went to press this week.
Some diplomats have even indicated that the Turkish-Armenian border (currently closed) could re-open within a matter of weeks.
It's not too hard to guess why Schiff presented his bill. His district is home to more Armenian-Americans than any other congressional district in the country. Schiff cares about their votes, not their history.
If he or you truly care about the events of 1915 and wish to pay tribute to those who died, then take some time to read the history for yourself on April 24 Armenian Genocide Remembrance Day.
But don't let politicians decide what happened for you. Our government has enough to deal with before it sticks its neck in the business of other nations and strains our international friendships.
Exploiting tender foreign relations for political gain is a dangerous precedent for Congress to take part in.
If President Obama wants to fulfill another campaign pledge, then he should oppose the bill and truly usher in an era of a new kind of politics in America.
A. Taylor is a junior political science major
