Megi Hakobjanyan

About the author

On April 23 a monument dedicated to the victims and survivors of the Armenian Genocide was unveiled near the “Fresno” University at Fresno State, California. Designed by Fresno architect Paul Halajian, the monument will embody symbols of cultural meaning to the Armenian people. Its principal components, a series of pillars, are arranged in a circular pattern and angled inwards, reminiscent of the Armenian Martyrs Monument (Tzitzernagapert) in Armenia. Each of these nine pillars symbolizes something: 6 of them symbolize the six provinces of Western Armenia that were annihilated, the 7th one symbolizes Cilicia, the 8th one stand for the Armenian Diaspora and the last 9th stands for the Armenian Republic. The basis of pillars is made of Tufa stone brought from Armenia. The incomplete halo is set above on top of the pillars, symbolizing both the fracture left by the Genocide and the unity of the Armenian people. The water falling down the pillars symbolizes the idea of eternity.