The Park 51 Community Center (previously known as the Cordoba Center and misnomered as the “Ground Zero Mosque”) is designed to be a place for the Muslim community in lower Manhattan to come together to play, celebrate art and music, learn, worship and teach others about their culture. It will be open to everyone, akin to the YMCA or JCC. It was unanimously approved by NYC last year as a project deemed worthy of the city’s multicultural traditions and appropriate for building codes in the area. It wasn’t until self-appointed “human rights activist” Pamela Gellar began her campaign to stop this project through her group “Stop Islamization of America” and her blog, “Atlas Shrugs.”  Since she jumped in the argument, many people have formed their opinions based on her hate speech and inaccurate facts.

We’ve heard things like:

-“That’s sacred ground.”

-“It’s a disgrace to the people who died for our country.”

-“It’s just not right… why do they have to build it there? Can’t they build it anywhere else?”

My friend Bob brings up an excellent point to all of those who are commenting about the proximity to the World Trade Center: at what point would Park51 be far enough? 10 blocks? 35? Suffolk County?

One question I’d like to ask is: how is it fair to treat the radical extremists who attacked our country on 9/11 any different than extremists of other religions who have also attacked our nation in the past few centuries? Let’s take the bombings of Centennial Park in Atlanta, GA during the 1996 Olympics as an example. Those bombings were conducted by an individual who had ties to the “Christian Identity” and “Christian Patriot” movements. They were Christian extremists who killed people and American property because of their crazy religious beliefs. After it happened, we chalked them up as nut-jobs. “Oh man, some Christian wackos bombed Atlanta.” We did not strip downtown Atlanta of any new churches or YMCAs, but instead classified them as outliers and moved on. But when extremists of a religion that’s not our majority attack us (a religion Americans knew virtually nothing about before 2001), we punish all Muslims and fear anyone with a beard as a potential plane hijacker (similar to how many clutch their purses when a black man walks down the street at night).  

To make this even simpler, follow this chain of thoughts:

July 27, 1996

·         Extremists of a religion (Christianity)

·         Act in name of their God

·         Bomb Centennial Park at Olympics

·         Opinion of Christianity does not change

September 11, 2001

·         Extremists of a religion (Islam)

·         Act in name of their God

·         Attack WTC & Pentagon

·         Opinion of Islam drastically changes

Did the attacks on 9/11 involve and kill more people? Certainly. There’s no denying the power in numbers. But it was hard for me to understand how the differences could give rise to such drastic and visceral reactions until I stepped back and considered other issues currently in debate in this country: the Arizona Immigration law, Proposition 8 & gay marriage, Obama’s nationality and religion continually being questioned. 

What I’d like to propose is that the anger being directed towards Park51 from those who don’t want it built has little to do with this “Mosque” and more with a monumental demographic shift that’s taking place throughout the country. The reason that this is such a big deal, the reason that religious fanatics have poured millions into the “Yes on Prop 8” campaign, the reason Sarah Palin is being hailed as a “real voice of Americans,” the reason that the Tea Party was created and has surged in popularity is all because at this very moment we’re experiencing an enormous change where the once “Average American” is slowly losing its populous and decades and centuries of overt and covert prejudice are making their way to the surface. We have a biracial President (not a black President as many like to point out), three women on the Supreme Court (including one who is Latina and the other who might be a lesbian), an African-American Attorney General, shows and movies about gay and lesbians, and states where Mexicans will be the majority in no less than fifty years. The power that Average Americans once held is slowly slipping away and they have no other way to react than through anger.

(For the sake of this article, I’m defining the “Average American” as a white, heterosexual Christian male or female who comes from at least a lower-middle class background. As someone who doesn’t identify as the Average American, I recognize that I’m limited from understanding the POV of those who do identify this way.)

The dream of America (which is really a white Christian America) is slipping away from those who pictured themselves in it. Many people are still holding on to the power that comes with being in the majority. As their reality changes and they see all these “crazy things” going on that will destroy the “morals of our country,” the emotion that manifests first is anger. And this anger is disguised in issues such as race (Arizona’s immigration law), sexuality (Prop 8) or religion (Park 51 community center). As with other forms of power (white privilege being one), people are petrified of what will happen if they no longer are in the majority. The thing is, in most cases, you lose nothing! You still have your life! You still can marry who you want! You can still practice you faith just as you always have (and subsequently, still judge and damn those who don’t practice your faith just as you do). Change scares people and this fright leads to the behaviors we’re observing now.

So what do all of these “hot button” issues currently going on in America have in common? They’re not about the “Average American.” In fact, they’re about others taking away from the “Average American.” Mexicans are taking jobs away. Gays are going to ruin my marriage. Children won’t be raised right because they need a mother and father (Side note: Up to now, almost every crazy person, serial killer, mass murderer, rapist, dictator and criminal were raised by either 2 opposite-sex parents or a single parent… so please explain how they didn’t get the memo that having a mother and father automatically makes you raised well?) The people who are making these comments are many times those who have never been discriminated against because they are in the majority, and when they feel slighted against for the first time (due to things like Affirmative Action), they freak out and call shenanigans. 

What makes matters worse is no one wants to own up to their own fears and prejudices. They say things like “I’m not homophobic, it’s just that the Bible says this is wrong” or “I’m not racist, I just don’t think this is the place for a Muslim center.” I hate to break to you, but anytime you have to preface your statement with “I’m not racist, but…” you’re being racist. So now we have many Americans against gay marriage, against the Park51 Center and in support of the Arizona immigration law; and rather than owning up to their fears, they are citing someone or something else (God, morals, “just the way it is”) as the reasoning behind their defense. These individuals have created an Other to blame for their opinions so they don’t have to take ownership. “Don’t blame me, it’s just how it is.” 

When will we start taking responsibility for our opinions? When will we own up to our prejudices? It’s not like those against Park51 are the only people who have misconceptions about a race, religion or sexuality. Almost everyone in this country fears someone else; some of us are willing to admit it while most of us are not.

So why does Park51 matter? Because this community center represents every “new” idea brought to our nation. Building Park51 within blocks of the World Trade Centers takes NOTHING AWAY from the “sacred ground.” Muslims are allowed to pray in the Pentagon mere feet away from where the plane struck the building, so how does a building that will host arts & crafts night pose a threat? Allowing Park51 doesn’t take away anything; in fact, it builds our credibility with the Muslim culture. It shows that we can tell the difference between the millions upon millions of peaceful Muslims in this country and abroad who wished 9/11 never happened. It shows that we can “forgive and forget” and build a new lower Manhattan together as Americans, all of which were at one point immigrants and most likely faced discrimination when coming to this country. It shows that we stand by our Constitution and its Amendments and don’t make exceptions when it pleases us due to fears and illogical rationale. 

And most importantly, it shows that we stand behind the single idea that makes America unique from all other countries: that we accept all, we welcome all and we will learn from all. We have never faltered from this stance and now is not the time to begin.