Ground Zero Mosque

There has been considerable debate over the plans to build a mosque adjacent to Ground Zero in Lower Manhattan. A recent zoning commission hearing brought the nastiness of this issue to the forefront. Technically, this isn't a Middle Eastern issue, so I'm reluctant to comment. But the connections to Islam, as well as the abhorrent behavior of several of my fellow citizens, convinced me to say a few words. 

The issue is as follows: Muslims in New York want to build a community center on the site of an old building near the World Trade Center site. Conservative activists seek to block this action, viewing it as an "insult" to the lives lost on 9/11. Construction of the mosque would require the demolition of the historic structure, and last night's meeting was intended to determine whether that building deserved landmark status. If the building is not landmarked, construction will begin. 


As I read various articles on this issue, two things became clear to me. The first was the embarrassingly weak grounds upon which the mosque opponents stand. The second was the repulsive prejudice and ignorance that the mosque opponents are unabashedly displaying. Let's address these issues in order. 


Reasons for Opposition


The opposition argument is basically as follows: "The Mosque is Islamic. Muslims attacked America on September 11th, therefore they should not be allowed to worship so close to Ground Zero."


Clearly, this argument is BS. Ostensibly, opponents are blocking the mosque "out of respect for the victims of that attack," but that fig leaf of a justification doesn't do much. This argument does nothing but bait prejudice against Muslims in this country, who had nothing to do with the horrible events on 9/11. Let's apply this reasoning to a few other hypothetical situations and see how they stand up:

• "The NRA is an organization for gun and weapons enthusiasts. Timothy McVeigh, a gun and weapons enthusiast (and former NRA member) blew up the Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City. Therefore, the NRA should not be allowed to operate in Oklahoma City out of respect for the victims of that attack."
• "The Catholic Church is a religious institution. Leaders of this religion repeatedly molested young boys, for decades, and covered up their activities from authorities. Therefore, Catholic churches should not be allowed in neighborhoods with small children out of respect for past victims (and perhaps even for the safety of children today)."

These arguments are ludicrous. NRA members and Catholic worshippers today have nothing to do with these horrible tragedies, and the exercise of their second and first amendment rights should not be abridged based on the actions of a few representatives of their respective ideologies. 

Perhaps most ironically, the fight against the mosque has been headlined by Mark Williams. Mr. Williams left his position of leadership at the Tea Party Express, which fiercely "defends" the Constitution and the Bill of Rights, to work to oppose the freedom of religion for others. It's great to see Democrats and liberals like Andrew Cuomo and Michael Bloomberg standing up to defend religious freedom. From the New York Times:

“Government should never — never — be in the business of telling people how they should pray, or where they can pray,” Mr. Bloomberg said on Monday. “We want to make sure that everybody from around the world feels comfortable coming here, living here and praying the way they want to pray.”

The Displays of Bigotry

The second aspect of this story is the shocking displays of prejudice and hatred spewed by opponents of the mosque. The "respect for the victims" argument sounds nice in theory, but after reading the actual remarks of the Tea Party and other opponents, there's no respect in their positions at all. This is about harassing Muslims, not respecting the victims of 9/11. 

Some choice comments:

• From the aforementioned Mark Williams: "The [project] would consist of a Mosque for the worship of the terrorists' monkey-god." When pressed to apologize, he added:

  "In the course of the article I described the ‘god’ worshiped by terrorists as 'a monkey god.' I was wrong and that was offensive. I owe an apology to millions of Hindus who worship Lord Hanuman, an actual Monkey God.

  "Moreover, Hanuman is worshiped as a symbol of perseverance, strength and devotion. He is known as a destroyer of evil and to inspire and liberate. Those are hardly the traits of whatever the Hell (literally) it is that terrorists worship and worthy of my respect and admiration not ridicule."

• From Pamella Geller, of "Stop the Islamization of America" : We feel it would be more appropriate maybe to build a center dedicated to... the victims of hundreds of millions of years of jihadi wars, land enslavements, cultural annihilations and mass slaughter"
• Ms. Geller again, in comments to The Washington Post: "I am not anti-Muslim. I love Muslims. I am pro-freedom and anti-islamic supremacism." (her comment was followed by a threat to sue the Post, another display of her support for the first amendment)

Mr. Williams' comments are horribly offensive, and display the extent to which this opposition is simply a bigoted anti-Muslim witch hunt. Ms. Geller's remarks, though less inflammatory, display similar ignorance. Why does she blame a 1,400-year-old religion for "hundreds of millions of years" of atrocities? Her suggestion of a memorial displays another glaring double standard. When Catholic churches include memorials to victims of the Inquisition, and when fundamentalist churches in the US display memorials to victims of anti-abortion terrorism, she might have an argument. 

Finally, and most disappointingly, the prevention of this Islamic center would reinforce the views of anti-American firebrands and terrorists across the world. The mosque's obstruction would clearly advertise that this country supports religious freedom for all except Muslims. It would destroy our credibility and moral standing abroad, and would give more ammunition to the terrorist recruiters who claim that "America is waging war on Islam."

If the mosque goes forward, it will stand as a testament to the strength of religious freedom and pluralism in the United States. You are not judged here by your co-religionists. You are not judged here by your religion. By building this mosque, we show the world that America still believes this. By building this mosque, we show the world the depth of America's commitment to religious freedom. Though Muslims flew planes into the twin towers and the Pentagon in 2001, they do not speak for all of Islam and they do not speak for all Muslims. Though Muslims committed this terrible atrocity, we still welcome Muslims to worship freely in America because we believe in religious liberty. They should be allowed to build their mosque free from the harassment of those like Mr. Williams and Ms. Geller. 

And, though the urbanist in me wants to save the historic structure, I feel like this building is a small price to pay to put that statement out there.