Articles
Cambodian Genocide Memorial
A Lasting Tribute
As per Cambodian Culture & Tradition, Cambodians strongly believe that they should commemorate, pay respect, and pray for the soul of the dead, and their ancestors.
In Cambodia, from 1975 to 1979, nearly two million Cambodians died (1) from the atrocities of war, starvation, and extreme political ideology. Each life was sacred and deserving of its fulfillment. This appalling history joins a global, ongoing history of injustice, violence, and suffering. Still, we, survivors of the Cambodian genocide, commemorate our beloved dead, lost to inhumanity, in the hope that we may all achieve the peace and freedom from oppression every human life deserves.
To honor and remember those who lost their lives during the Khmer Rouge period and after, the Cambodian Community Day of Woodbridge has joined a partnership with Ratanaransi Buddhist Temple of Nokesville, Virginia, and a group of Cambodian enthusiasts in the DMV (DC, Maryland, Virginia) metro area to build a genocide memorial at Ratanaransi Buddhist Temple.
The Cambodian Genocide (CG) Memorial is a dedicated place where the Khmer Rouge survivors and others may come to commemorate our beloved dead, lost to inhumanity. It is a symbol of hope that we may all achieve through peace and freedom every human life deserves. It exposes the ultimate cost of oppression and extremism that the future generation must avoid.
The high-level conceptual design of the CG Memorial includes a small main monument flanked by a brick wall on both sides. At this moment, we are preparing documents to file a construction permit from Prince William County, Virginia. The project will span several years, and when finished, it should be like the picture below.
The main monument (below) will be adorned with Khmer art similar to the one found at the Banteay Srey temple in Cambodia.
We will engrave the name of the victim on each brick (sample below) of the wall. When people donate a certain amount of money, they are entitled to have the names of their loved ones engraved. Alternatively, people could reserve a block of bricks as approved by the CG Memorial committee, and have the block engraved on an all-weathered plaque.
All pictures (above) are for the planning illustration only. The final look may slightly differ. For more details and the most updated information, please visit the CG Memorial website.
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(1) References
Cambodia 1975–1979 - United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
https://www.ushmm.org/genocide-prevention/countries/cambodia/cambodia-1975
Cambodian genocide | Description, Killing Fields, & Facts | Britannica
https://www.britannica.com/event/Cambodian-Genocide
Yale University Cambodian Genocide Program | Genocide Studies Program
https://gsp.yale.edu/case-studies/cambodian-genocide-program
Cambodian genocide - Wikipedia
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cambodian_genocide
University of Minnesota
Cambodia | Holocaust and Genocide Studies | College of Liberal Arts
https://cla.umn.edu/chgs/holocaust-genocide-education/resource-guides/cambodia#:~:text=Lasting%20for%20four%20years%20(between,following%20the%20Cambodian%20Civil%20War