In the Shadow of Genocide: Female Perpetrators of the Armenian Genocide
Oct 8 5 p.m.
Sproul Rooms, International House
Abstract
Women are often imagined as victims of war and genocide rather than participants in violence. Yet the genocides of the twentieth century challenged this assumption, revealing that women could also play important roles in persecution and mass killing.
This talk explores a largely overlooked aspect of the Armenian Genocide: the involvement of Turkish women in violence against Armenians. Drawing on Armenian survivors’ testimonies and memoirs, alongside other historical sources, it examines the many ways women participated—from spreading hatred and encouraging violence to looting, abduction, and, in some cases, direct killing. The evidence also points to forms of organized and institutional involvement that deserve further investigation.
By bringing women perpetrators into the story, this talk offers a more complete understanding of how genocide is carried out. It also invites us to rethink common assumptions about gender, violence, and responsibility during one of the twentieth century’s defining atrocities.
Speaker’s Bio
Dr. Edita Gzoyan is a lecturer at the American University of Armenia and Editor-in-Chief of the International Journal of Armenian Genocide Studies. She holds a PhD in International Relations from Yerevan State University and an LL.M. from the American University of Armenia. Her research focuses on the history and legal dimensions of the Armenian Genocide, humanitarian responses and refugee assistance, gender-based violence, forced child transfer, and the post-genocide recovery of Armenian women and children.