The Committee of Union and Progress Book Launch Hosted by Tekeyan Cultural Association

Staff Report

Prof. Barlow Der Mugrdechian, Berberian Coordinator of the Armenian Studies Program at Fresno State, discussed the newly published book, The Committee of Union and Progress: Founders, Ideology, and Structure, at a special presentation and kinetson on Saturday, November 6, 2021. The Committee of Union and Progress is volume 13 in the Armenian Series of The Press at California State University, Fresno. The special event was co-sponsored by the Tekeyan Cultural Association Metro Los Angeles chapter and took place at the Tekeyan Center in Altadena.

Master of Ceremonies Mihran Toumajan introduced some of the special guests in attendance at the event including H.E. Ambassador Dr. Armen Baibourtian, Consul General of the Republic of Armenia in Los Angeles and His Eminence Archbishop Hovnan Derderian, Primate of the Western Diocese of the Armenian Church. In their remarks both Ambassador Baibourtian and Archbishop Derderian congratulated Prof. Der Mugrdechian, who was a co-editor of the book, together with Dr. Ümit Kurt and Ara Sarafian.

A cultural program preceded the main speaker. Fourth-grader Arev Bardakian from the St. Gregory Hovsepian School of Pasadena recited Vahan Tekeyan’s poem “Մայրենի Լեզու” [Mother Language]; fifth-grader Ella Markarian recited Jaques Hagopian’s poem “Խօսէ՛ Հայերէն” [Speak Armenian!]; and seventh-grader Anthony Kassardjian recited Vahan Tekeyan’s “Տաղ Հայերէն Լեզուին” [Ode to the Armenian Language] poem. Mrs. Liza Manoyan of the St. Gregory Hovsepian School was recognized for her dedicated teaching of the Armenian language.

Prof. Der Mugrdechian began his remarks by giving an overview of the contents of the book, which includes an “Introduction” by Ümit Kurt and five chapters: “The Unionist Regime: Ideology in Command,” by Raymond H. Kévorkian; “Ziya Gökalp, Duumvir,” by Hans-Lukas Kieser; “When Revolutionaries Must Govern: The Vicissitudes of ARF-CUP Relations” by Dikran Kaligian; “The Post-Revolutionary Period in Aintab and the Curious Case of Necmeddin Bey, by Ümit Kurt; and “Homeland and Nation Revisited: A Discourse Analysis of the Memoirs of Young Turks,” by Duygu Coşkuntuna.

Although there is some knowledge of the Committee of Union and Progress, it remains an enigma today due to the lack of sources. Most of the CUP deliberations were conducted in secret and those archives have yet to be found. Prof. Der Mugrdechian emphasized this fact to point out how the new book focuses on some aspects of the CUP that have been little studied.

Three aspects of the CUP, its foundation, ideology, and structure, are all explored in the book. The role of ideology was particularly important in the transformation of the party from 1908 until the outbreak of World War I in 1914.

The CUP view on power and how or if it should be shared with minorities in the Ottoman Empire would shape their future decisions and ultimately the decision to embark upon the Armenian Genocide. The question of “Ottomanism” and how it was to be ultimately interpreted by the CUP was to have far-reaching consequences.

“A truly enlightening presentation. There is so much more to genocide history than what we are generally taught. In learning about the Committee of Union and Progress, we are offered deeper insight into how the geopolitical landscape of that time continues to echo today in our current and future plight,” said Tekeyan Cultural Association Committee member Talene Hachikian.

The afternoon presentation concluded with the traditional wine ceremony, where Prof. Der Mugrdechian poured wine on a copy of the book, as an expression and wish of success and good luck.

The new book is available at: http://www.abrilbooks.com/books/history/organizations/committee-of-union-and-progress-the.html or at the NAASR bookstore: https://naasr.org/products/committee-of-union-and-progress-the-founders-ideology-and-structure?_pos=1&_sid=498d83da0&_ss=r.