In what ways were women targeted as women, and men as men, during the genocide? In this ‘in conversation’ event, Anna Aleksanyan and Becky Jinks will explore how viewing the genocide from the perspective of gender can generate new insights and understandings of the genocide. Using recent research to go beyond the usual discussion of the murder of the men and sexual violence against women, the conversation will also explore victims’ agency, forced marriages, the gender of children, and aftereffects beyond the end of the genocide.
Dr. Rebecca Jinks, Historian of Comparative Genocide & Humanitarianism (Royal Holloway, University of London) and Chair of the Board of Trustees at the Armenian Institute, London. Rebecca’s current research project is a study of ‘genocidal captivity’, using her previous research on the reintegration of Armenian women ‘absorbed’ into Turkish, Kurdish, and Arab households during the genocide.
Anna Aleksanyan is a Ph.D. candidate at the Strassler Center for Holocaust and Genocide Studies at Clark University. Her dissertation explores gendered aspects of the Armenian Genocide in the experiences of its female victims. Before starting her Ph.D., Anna worked at the Armenian Genocide Museum-Institute as a researcher for seven years. She received her BA and MA in History at Yerevan State University. She is currently an adjunct lecturer at the American University of Armenia.