In a new PSA, Cher says the presidential election and the coronavirus pandemic have been “distracting people from the ethnic cleansing” of Armenians in Artsakh.
Cher, who’s Armenian herself, is urging the U.S. to intervene in the armed conflict between ethnic Armenian and Azerbaijani forces, who are fighting over the disputed region of Nagorno-Karabakh.
“The pandemic, election and other important issues in the world are distracting people from the ethnic cleansing campaign removing Armenian civilians from their ancestral home in Artsakh,” the singer says in the PSA.
Cher continues, “Azerbaijan has attacked Armenia with the assistance of Turkey; given the history of Armenians and Turkey and the genocide, the records of human rights violations, it is time to cut and impose sanctions on these countries.”
The legendary singer further asks, “With all the needs within our own country, why do we send American taxpayer dollars and sell weapons to these authoritarian regimes? Outrage isn’t enough, raising awareness isn’t enough. Contact your representatives now and demand action. Tell them that it must stop now.”
At the end of the PSA, which was released by the Armenian General Benevolent Union, Cher calls on people to send “desperately needed aid” to the Armenian Fund.
Eric Esralian, a producer and activist who organized the PSA, told the Hollywood Reporter that both he and Cher are calling on the U.S. to cut off aid and weapon sales to Azerbaijan, but not to intervene militarily.
“Now that the election is over, I’m hoping that we can reactivate our legislators,” said Esralian.
As we’ve noted in the past, Kim Kardashian is another Armenian celebrity who’s repeatedly spoken out about the Armenian genocide. Back in 2015, the reality star wrote an op-ed for Time magazine, in which she criticized Barack Obama for failing to use the word “genocide” while addressing the conflict in Armenia.
Watch Cher’s PSA above, via YouTube.
The post Cher Warns in New PSA: We Can’t Let Other Issues ‘Distract People from the Ethnic Cleansing Campaign’ of Armenians first appeared on Mediaite.
