Gordon compares Vietnam War to genocide

A state senator received a sharp rebuke from some of his colleagues on the Senate floor Thursday after he compared the Vietnam War to genocide.

Senate Majority Leader Ken Gordon’s comments came during discussion on a resolution in remembrance of the Armenian Genocide of the early 1900s. Gordon said it was important to remember the genocide and how all genocides are preceded by an attempt to dehumanize the targeted group.

He then mentioned the Holocaust, the campaigns against American Indians and the Vietnam War and quoted an ethnic slur that American soldiers called the Vietnamese people.

“People can't kill other people in large numbers who they think are human beings,” Gordon, a Denver Democrat, said.

His comments brought swift condemnation from several Republicans.

“The Vietnam War was a war that may have been ill-advised or not, but it was not a genocidal act against the Vietnamese people,” Sen. Shawn Mitchell, R-Broomfield, said. “… I resent your attribution of that motive to American soldiers.”

Sen. Steve Ward, a Littleton Republican who earlier this year returned from Iraq after serving there as a colonel in the Marines, also took issue with Gordon.

“I think frankly there are a few hundred thousand Americans who are owed an apology,” he said.

And Sen. Mike Kopp, another Littleton Republican and an Army veteran, said it was wrong to think that soldiers take killing lightly.

“We are sent to combat fields and kill, if necessary, in order to defend this great nation,” Kopp said later.

Gordon returned to the lectern later in the discussion and apologized, saying his statements were short-sighted and that he didn’t mean to stir controversy.

“I did not mean to insult any American soldiers,” Gordon said. “I honor their service.”

The Armenian Genocide was carried out by the Ottoman Empire during and after World War I. An estimated 1.5 million Armenians were killed.

Both the House and the Senate passed the resolution Thursday, designating the day as Colorado Day of Remembrance of the Armenian Genocide.

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