April 24th of 1915 marked the start of the massacre of over 1.5 million Armenians by Turkey during World War I. It was not until over a century later, on Saturday, May 1, 2021, that the U.S formally recognized the mass murder as a “genocide”. President Biden is the first U.S leader to recognize the event. Previous administrations had avoided making a formal declaration out of fear of worsening relations with Turkey, an important ally in the Middle East. The statement comes as part of a campaign promise that Biden made a year ago on the annual commemoration day of the genocide to recognize the…