System of a Down‘s Serj Tankian had some choice words for former US president Donald Trump after his administration used its final time in office to sign an agreement with Turkey that Tankian believes erases his native Armenia’s cultural heritage.
Yesterday, Tankian took to social media to share a post by the Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA) on Facebook criticising the Trump administration for, in their final hours, signing “a disastrous bilateral U.S.-Turkey Memorandum of Understanding granting Turkey legal rights over the vast religio-cultural heritage of the region’s indigenous peoples and other minority populations.”
Tankian added his own commentary, slamming Trump for the move.
“Thanks Trump. In your last minute you decided to grant Turkey my people’s indigenous cultural heritage including ancient churches and stone crosses as a reward for them trying to exterminate us. Never seen a president suck so much cock,” he wrote.
Thanks Trump. In your last minute you decided to grant Turkey my people’s indigenous cultural heritage including ancient…
Posted by Serj Tankian on Tuesday, January 19, 2021
Tankian has long been vocal about his feelings towards Trump. In June, the singer criticised the former President for hiding out in a White House bunker as protests following the death of George Floyd took place outside the building. He also blasted fans of System of a Down who were also Trump supporters, calling them “hypocrites”.
Tankian has also long been an outspoken activist when it comes to Armenia. Last year, Tankian reunited with his System of a Down bandmates for their first new music since 2005 album Hypnotize, releasing the singles ‘Protect the Land’ and ‘Genocidal Humanoidz’.
The band – whose members are all of Armenian descent – recorded the songs to raise awareness and funds amid conflict in their cultural homeland of Artsakh amid conflict in the region prompted by attacks from Azerbaijan and Turkey. The band were able to raise hundreds of thousands of dollars for the Armenia Fund, an organisation that provides humanitarian relief in the region.
It was recently announced that a new documentary about Tankian’s intersecting passions for music and activism, Truth to Power, would be released next month. A new trailer for the film arrived earlier this week.
