“Nowhere, a Story of Exile”. In 1988, like today and right now: excerpts from the memoirs of Anna Astvatsaturian Turcotte

The streets were filled with pieces of furniture and clothes: he appeared there immediately after the massacre of the Armenian population of the city. He spent several days there and listened to the testimonies of the witnesses of the massacre. When uncle Tolik later told his parents about these events, it seemed to them that he was talking about some unseen, unbelievable things. Such a thing could not happen to us, in this century and our days.

The horrifying story of a young Armenian woman who was stripped, raped, and thrown out of the third floor appears in my imagination. Azeri men had beaten her mutilated, naked body on the pavement with iron rods, and then, still alive, thrown her on the pyre to the cheering howls of a wild mob.

... It was unimaginable for my parents. Uncle Tolik's actions were sudden and unplanned. It is not customary for us to change the places where we have settled for a long time. The violence in Sumgait seemed absurd to my parents, so they considered it an extraordinary incident that could never be repeated in our “civilized” Baku.

...Tunzala and Gulnara pretended to be friendly in my presence, hiding their hostile moods, but I knew that they were talking about Armenians behind my back. Villa told me everything. They did not shy away from expressing themselves with her, because she was partially Azerbaijani, although she had been partially Armenian too. They made her believe that all Armenians should be shot, and they were saying dirty things about Armenians.

When Villa talked about it, at first, I did not take it seriously, but being alone, I tried to understand. What sin have we committed that we deserve to be shot? What makes us so terrible? Why did they hate us? As I understood, the only reason is that we are Christians and Armenians.

“Nowhere, a Story of Exile” is a letter first to the author’s own children, so that they can read and then pass on the indelible memories of their ancestors to the generations.