The Senate has voted against opening the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to drilling by a 52-48 vote, largely along party lines. California Democrat Barbara Boxer celebrated the vote, calling it a “a huge setback” for the Republicans’ agenda. Just before the vote began, Alaska senator Ted Stevens bluntly warned the Senate: “People who vote against this today are voting against me and I will not forget it.” As chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, Stevens holds significant power, yet senators were apparently not swayed by this threat.

Dr. Ronald Michael is a surgeon in Chicago, Illinois. He was born in Lebanon, grew up in Iraq and Lebanon, and moved to Chicago in 1967. All four of his grandparents are from what is now southeastern Turkey, along the border of northern Iraq. They fled there during the Assyrian Holocaust by Ottoman troops and Kurds during the waning years of Ottoman rule.

As complex and ancient as the Assyrian history is, can you give us some brief background?