Shu weighs in on debate over mosque at Ground Zero

Henry Crocker

Staff Reporter

Ever since the attacks on The World Trade Center towers on Sept. 11, 2001, the Muslim community has been taking numerous courses of action designed to counter-balance the reputation given to them by Al Qaeda.

Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf – imam being the title of a Muslim religious leader who leads places of worship – has been making visits all over the world to promote interfaith peace and understanding.

Recently Rauf has made the very controversial decision to open both a mosque and a Muslim community center two blocks north of Ground Zero in New York City.

According to The New York Times (NYT), Rauf maintains that the mosque’s only intended connection with the events of 9/11, if any, is to promote awareness of Islamic culture and to distance themselves from extremists such as Al Qaeda.

He has written multiple books on the subject, his most popular being “What’s Right with Islam: A New Vision for Muslims in the West,” a discussion on the distinct differences in Islam.

“I do not think they should build it there. Regardless of freedom of religion, they should know better and show a bit more respect,” said junior Brian Buchanan.

Senior Nataki Pilage reciprocated similar disdain for the plans, calling it an “insult.”

There are some though to whom the freedoms of expression and religion supersede all other considerations.

“I think that we, as Americans, pride ourselves on diversity and acceptance. I think we would be viewed as being a very honorable society if we were to let the mosque be built there,” said junior Lauren Candee

“Not as a gesture of acceptance or forgivenss, but as a gesture from our entire country that we can overcome,”she said.

This debate, however  is not two-sided, but incorporates multiple varying viewpoints.

In reality a lot of the controversy stems from a basic misunderstanding of Islam and its many forms.

President Barack Obama is quoted by NYT as saying, “Al Qaeda’s cause is not Islam – it is a gross distortion of Islam. In fact, Al Qaeda has killed more Muslims than people of any religion, and that list includes innocent Muslims who were killed on 9/11.”

Al Jamri, editor of the Arabic newspaper Alwasats, is also quoted by The New York Times, stressing the importance of the mosque victory.

“If the Mosque project fails, it will be a big victory for [Muslim] extremists who say that America is only liberal when it’s convenient,” said Jamri.

There are two equally potent and drastically different forces of patriotism seeming to split the opinions of America, which seems to be the reason this is such a complicated issue.

One force being that according to the right of freedom of expression, and freedom of religion, the mosque has every right to be there.

Others, however, disregard this as being irrelevant to the situation. This is in show of support for those who risked and lost their lives  in the attack.

Groups such as radical evangelical Christian preachers, who endorse the burning of the sacred Islamic text: the Quran, and people such as Mayor Rudy Giuliani, continue to make efforts in opposition of the mosque.

There are a number of protests, counter-protests, and formal meetings planned in order to negotiate a compromise in regards to the mosque.

It remains to be seen whether or not every concerned group will be able to accept what the other has to offer.

There are still other groups who see a controversy in the fact that there is a debate surrounding the building of the mosque in general.

“There’s no reason for any arguments about this. I mean, if Islam and Al Qaeda are separate, then why are we raising a religion into question that never attacked us?” said junior Vincent Famularo.

“Even as a New Yorker, I don’t think there’s really anything to discuss.”

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