Knowledge Without Action The Case of Germany during the Armenian Genocide in the Ottoman Empire

September 18, 2017

A Conversation between Professor David Crowe and
Professor Richard Hovannisian.
Moderated by Jennifer Keene.

September 26 | 7PM
Wallace All Faiths Chapel | Fish Interfaith Center

The Armenian Genocide occurred under the cover of the Great War although evidence of what was occurring did not remain hidden. While the eyewitness accounts of genocide reported by the Allies are well known, far less so are the reports found within the foreign office records of Germany, Ottoman Turkey’s most important ally in World War I.

The detailed reports of German diplomats, missionaries, and businessmen describing the crimes they witnessed add a new dimension to our understanding of the Armenian genocide and pose disturbing questions about why knowledge may not be enough to stop genocide.

This conversation between two eminent historians and scholars of genocide will focus both on what was known and the consequences of that knowledge.

Dr. David Crowe is Presidential Fellow at Chapman University and Professor of Legal History at Elon Law and Professor of History Emeritus at Elon University. He is the author of Oskar Schindler: The Untold Account of His Life, Wartime Activities, and the True Story Behind the List, and many other books, including War Crimes, Genocide, and Justice: A Global History. Dr. Crowe has served on the Education Committee of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum and as president of the Association for the Study of Nationalities (ASN) at Columbia University. In 2016, Dr. Crowe donated his archive on Oskar Schindler, the largest in the world, to Chapman University.

Dr. Richard Hovanissian is Presidential Fellow at Chapman University, Professor Emeritus of History at UCLA, and Adjunct Professor of History at USC. He has published more than 30 volumes on Armenian history and culture. Among his works are Looking Backward, Moving Forward: Confronting the Armenian Genocide (2003) and The Armenian Genocide: Cultural and Ethical Legacies (2007). Dr. Hovannisian is the recipient of numerous awards and honors, including a Guggenheim Fellowship, and in 2007, the first “I Witness Award” of the Jewish World Watch.

Dr. Jennifer Keene is Chair of the Department of History in the Wilkinson College of Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences at Chapman University. Dr. Keene is a specialist in American military experience during World War I and currently serves as President of the Society of Military History. She has published three books on American involvement in the First World War: Doughboys, the Great War and the Remaking of America; World War I: The American Solder Experience and The United States and the First World War. Dr. Keen is an historical consultant on exhibits and films and is associate editor of the Journal of First World War Studies.