Henry Morgenthau I was the United States ambassador to the Ottoman Empire between 1913-1916, in Constantinople. After learning about the atrocities committed against the Armenians, Morgenthau met with the Minister of the Interior, Talaat Pasha, urging an end the deportations, torture and violence.
Although he was unsuccessful, Henry Morgenthau was committed to bringing these persecutions to the world's attention. In 1915, he requested that an American relief organization be formed to help the victims. In response, an official organization called the American Committee for Armenian and Syrian Relief, was established in the United States in the same year. In 1919, the organization was renamed to Near East Relief.
The Near East Relief received support from President Woodrow Wilson, Hollywood celebrities, and thousands of Americans. Millions of dollars were raised to provide assistance to refugees and orphans from those of Armenian, Greek and Assyrian communities, among others victimized during World War I.