There has been a great deal of noise in the press about Sarah Palin weighing in on the proposed mosque to be located just a few blocks from the Ground Zero site. In addition, to asking peace-loving Muslims to "refudiate" the proposed mosque she also tweeted that it is an "unnecessary provocation." Ordinarily I find nothing to agree with Sarah Palin about. In this case, I have to look past my lefty leanings and say that the woman has a point.
To their credit, The American Society for Muslim Advancement has never been one of those fringe Islamic societies proposing death to the infidels. They are a moderate group that tries to foster a more modern, more moderate Islamic faith that can exist side by side with other faiths. They propose interfaith cooperation and to that end have proposed a center to promote that end. Their center, in addition to the mosque, would include a swimming pool, an auditorium, shops, and art exhibitions, something for the community to enjoy and to promote a dialogue.
On the surface this is a great idea. The trouble is with the location in lower Manhattan and its proximity to the site of the World Trade Center tragedy. Let's face it. We live in America, and despite the claims of the religious right in this country, we are not a Christian nation. We are a nation where the majority of its citizens are Christians, but we are a secular nation that has enshrined in its Constitution the right to "Freedom of Religion." A person has the right to practice any religion they wish, as long as that religion doesn't require it to take away the "unalienable rights" of other citizens. You know what those are, "life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness."
That being said, in such a free nation, any religous entity, Christian, Muslim, Jewish, Hindu, Buddhist, or even Wiccan has the right to purchase property and build a center dedicated to its particular faith. The Constitution guarantees that right. The American Society for Muslim Advancement has the right to do that. Their stated goal of promoting healing between religions and peace for all is an admirable goal. The question is, "Is it wise to place that center in a location that speaks of Islamic aggression to many Americans?" How will that move be perceived by middle America?
In Texas there are those who will forever "Remember the Alamo." In the Deep South there are those who still run around in t-shirts with a picture of a crusty old guy in a rebel uniform, with a gun in one hand, a Confederate flag in the other and with the cartoon bubble that says "Hell no! I ain't forgettin'!" Whether you believe either of these sentiments is right or wrong is beside the point. The reality is that a large group of people are still angry about these situations from the 19th century and another large group of Americans is not about to forget or forgive the actions of 9/11.
The fact that there are huge numbers of moderate Muslims running around out there with no desire to bring "Death to America" does not dissuade the notion from their minds that it was Muslims who brought down the Twin Towers. It was not Christians. It was not Hindus, Buddhists, or Wiccans. It was not Communists from China or North Korea. It was not crazed anti-government extremists like Timothy McVeigh. It was Muslims, plain and simple. To many of these individuals, the placing of an Islamic center mere blocks from Ground Zero is like rubbing salt in the wounds. It is adding insult to injury. It is asking, begging homegrown extremists from America to attack that center, regardless of the fact that it is dedicated to peaceful purposes and healing old wounds. It's a bad idea.
Do we really need to be playing this drama out in the national press? Probably not. It brings out the worst in everybody. In this case, a voice of reason from within the New York City bureaucracy probably needs to speak to some people in private and let them know that they have a really good idea, but it would be a better idea to locate somewhere uptown instead, or better yet over in Brooklyn. I bet if someone checked there might be some zoning problem with the center, or something with permits that's throwing up a roadblock. Keep up the good work you moderate Muslims. Just don't do it right next to Ground Zero and rub people's noses in the fact that it was people from your faith who brought down the towers and killed thousands of people. A great many are not very forgiving.
As for Sarah Palin and her Tea Party compatriots, well I still disagree with you on everything else, and for goodness sakes, "refudiate?" Get an education if you want to be a leader.
They have killed 80 million Hindus and build these monuments of defeat on top of the Hindu Temples they destroyed. Don't let them do it here!
ReplyDeleteLet me understand your logic: there are plenty of people out there who will forever be angry, in the nationalistic narrow way that Americans tend to be, and therefore we should not show them that they are bigoted and wrong? By that logic you should never argue against Apartheid, be it in South Africa or Palestine, never argue for Civil rights in the American South, seal your lips when it comes to the great wrongs done to native Americans across North America, silently acknowledge the (justified?) anger of the majority when they carry out mass murder against Jews in Europe, the list goes on.
ReplyDeleteWhen it comes to being narrowly nationalistic, you, sir, are no different from Sarah Palin, please don't fool yourself.
And I am not even going to comment on the Hindu fundamentalist who commented before me on this post.