The Ground Zero Mosque (non) Story

The controversy surrounding the so-called ground zero mosque is a perfect example of what can happen when seemingly rational adults allow their emotions to cloud their judgment. Those opposing the mosque have given a number of reasons why they feel the mosque should not be built. They range from uncertainty as to where the funding will come from, to whether the mosque will serve as a headquarters for plotting terrorist attacks. The real reason however, is that opposition to the mosque, is firmly rooted in racism and religious bigotry.

Initially, there was no opposition to the mosque. City officials and Jewish leaders had welcomed the idea of putting a mosque at the location, and An FBI spokesman acknowledged Imam Rauf had worked for the Bureau (Salon.com, 2010). It was the relentless crusade of Pam Gellar, more than anyone else, that stoked the fires of the anti mosque movement.

Pam Gellar is a conservative blogger and publisher of Atlasshrugs.com. She has successfully managed to use her anti Islam rhetoric to attract thousands of supporters to her cause. Latent fears stemming from the 9/11 attacks have made it easier for her to spread her message of intolerance.

Another reason put forward by Gellar for not wanting the mosque to be built is that the area where the towers stood is sacred ground. But when told that the site for the proposed mosque is two blocks away, she says, unapologetically, that the building that will house the proposed mosque was damage by debris from the falling towers. Therefore, that building is sacred also (CNN podcast, 2010).

Gellar's reasoning seems to imply that if the site is sacred, then a Muslim's presence would somehow desecrate it. I wonder if she realizes that whenever the new world trade center (WTC) is built, there will be Muslims working there just as there were in the old WTC. And that several times each day, Muslims at the new WTC will go off to a corner office somewhere and pray, just as they did in the old WTC.

References:

Salon.com. (2010). How the ground zero mosque fear mongering began. Retrieved September 4, 2010 from http://www.salon.com/news/politics/war_room/2010/08/16/ground_zero_mosque_origins

3gpdb.com. (2010). Pam Gellar VS Imam on CNN Sunday Morning June 6, 2010. Retrieved September 4, 2010 from http://www.3gpdb.com/videoy.php?b=DBdqr9gdj_Q