Sylvia Cochran
Is it Truly Possible to Rebuild New York, Unless Its Muslim Community Participates?
Beyond the World Trade Center of September 11, 2001: 45 Park Place
On September 11, 2001, New York's World Trade Center became Ground Zero during an al-Qaeda terrorist attack that killed 2,752 people. In 2009, a couple of blocks down on Park Place, worshippers of Islam congregate in a new mosque.
Beyond the World Trade Center of September 11, 2001: 45 Park Place
45 Park Place in Manhattan is classified as a store building. Every Block reports that it was built in 1923, features 43,200 square feet and sold on July 16, 2009 for $4,850,000. 45 Park Place is a mere two blocks down from the World Trade Center, which places it sufficiently near Ground Zero to warrant some scrutiny upon its sale.
Not surprisingly, eyebrows across the nation are now rising as it becomes known that this address has been used as a mosque. The New York Times reports that for quite a bit of time now, Muslim faithful visit 45 Park Place for Friday afternoon prayers. They are members of the Masjid al-Farah, which is located further up on Broadway. The mosque's imam has a vision that surpasses a simple house of Islamic prayer: the construction of an Islamic center.
Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf's Vision for Ground Zero Post September 11
In the aftermath of the World Trade Center attacks, Islamic radicals were indiscriminately lumped in with everyday Muslims. Westerners, without knowledge of the Qur'an or its precepts, suddenly eyed Islamic faithful with distrust. Imam Feisal sees an Islamic center as an opportunity to counteract public perception of a faith that was given a black eye by radical extremists.
World Net Daily Calls Building a Mosque Near Ground Zero a "News Outrage!"
The publication reveals that the very imam with the peaceful mission has pointed fingers at Christians for spearheading civilian attacks during World War II, thus effectively paving the way for the World Trade Center massacre in the minds of terrorists. Quoting irate Americans from around the blogosphere, WND goes on to explain how the Islamic center vision fails to receive public support and is an outrage.
"I ask you: Do you want total war?"
These are the infamous words of Joseph Goebbels as he uttered them in February of 1943. I frequently heard my grandmother recounting his speech, her disbelief at its message and her disgust at its euphoric reception. While there is not currently an American politician uttering these words, the sentiments surrounding an Islamic mosque near the World Trade Center property in the aftermath of September 11 echo it to varying degrees.
Will an Islamic center near Ground Zero mend relationships and provide an avenue for interfaith discourse? Most likely for some and under Imam Feisal, although there is no telling what his successor will do. Will its presence near Ground Zero enrage Muslims, Christians, Americans and countless others? Once again, the odds are good that it will.
Yet is it truly possible to rebuild New York, unless its Muslim community participates?
Posted December 18, 2009, Asscociated content
