As you undoubtedly recall, there was tremendous uproar from some people when the "Ground Zero Mosque" was proposed by a supposedly moderate cleric leading a supposedly moderate community outreach effort in New York City.
The people who opposed it (largely) did not say that no mosques should be built in America. They did not say that Islamic religion should not be allowed in America. They simply said that they thought it was offensive that a mosque should be built so close to the site of a massacre carried out by Islamic terrorists in the name of Allah and Islam. The idea was on its face repulsive, they argued.
The almost instant backlash sponsored by the popular press, the mayor of New York City, and the president of the United States branded those who opposed the mosque's location blocks from the World Trade Center as racists (as if "Muslim" is a race or ethnicity), haters, and deniers of religious freedom.
In the northern part of Phoenix, Arizona the Mormon church owns a 9 acre piece of land. The land is in a residential area, and about half of the parcel is already occupied by a Mormon chapel. The church wants to build a temple on the other half.
As soon as that desire was stated, groups of citizens - some neighbors, and others simply "concerned" - began legal action to block the construction of the temple. It would be too bright, it would be too tall, it would bring too much traffic, it was not compatible with the neighboring community, it would damage home values, and on and on.
The local press (national media was not so anxious to pick up on this issue as they were the mosque) lampooned the church and sympathized with those working to stop construction. In all the coverage, it was never implied by reporters that the real issue here was freedom of religion. The vaunted First Amendment has never been raised. And those who oppose this temple's construction have never been called haters or xenophobes or racists or anything but "concerned citizens".
I think it's interesting that our country still finds it acceptable to fear, despise and hate Mormons even after the (very literal) war of religious extermination (yes, "extermination" in the true sense of the word) the governments of the various states (Ohio, Missouri and Illinois specifically) - and the federal government itself (invading Utah in 1857) - waged against the Mormons in the mid-1800s.
Similar observations can be made about the way Jews are treated in our political discourse and in our media.
Neither Jewish nor Mormon leaders have ever declared a desire to destroy America. Neither Jews nor Mormons have ever participated in any plot to harm Americans in the name of Judaism or Mormonism. Only Islamic leaders have repeatedly called for the destruction of America (and thus the American Ideal). And only Muslims have enlisted by the thousands and the tens of thousands in veritable armies acting out the terrible slaughter of "infidels" as Muslims call those of other faiths - Christians, Jews, Hindus, Buddhists, Animists.
And yet, Islam seems to be a "sacred cow" if you will forgive the metaphor. Why does Islam enjoy First Amendment protection in the American media and the American political system, while Christianity is systematically erased from our national discourse and ignorants within and without government are allowed to persecute Mormons and Jews?
I'm not whining about it. I'm just wondering....
The people who opposed it (largely) did not say that no mosques should be built in America. They did not say that Islamic religion should not be allowed in America. They simply said that they thought it was offensive that a mosque should be built so close to the site of a massacre carried out by Islamic terrorists in the name of Allah and Islam. The idea was on its face repulsive, they argued.
The almost instant backlash sponsored by the popular press, the mayor of New York City, and the president of the United States branded those who opposed the mosque's location blocks from the World Trade Center as racists (as if "Muslim" is a race or ethnicity), haters, and deniers of religious freedom.
In the northern part of Phoenix, Arizona the Mormon church owns a 9 acre piece of land. The land is in a residential area, and about half of the parcel is already occupied by a Mormon chapel. The church wants to build a temple on the other half.
As soon as that desire was stated, groups of citizens - some neighbors, and others simply "concerned" - began legal action to block the construction of the temple. It would be too bright, it would be too tall, it would bring too much traffic, it was not compatible with the neighboring community, it would damage home values, and on and on.
The local press (national media was not so anxious to pick up on this issue as they were the mosque) lampooned the church and sympathized with those working to stop construction. In all the coverage, it was never implied by reporters that the real issue here was freedom of religion. The vaunted First Amendment has never been raised. And those who oppose this temple's construction have never been called haters or xenophobes or racists or anything but "concerned citizens".
I think it's interesting that our country still finds it acceptable to fear, despise and hate Mormons even after the (very literal) war of religious extermination (yes, "extermination" in the true sense of the word) the governments of the various states (Ohio, Missouri and Illinois specifically) - and the federal government itself (invading Utah in 1857) - waged against the Mormons in the mid-1800s.
Similar observations can be made about the way Jews are treated in our political discourse and in our media.
Neither Jewish nor Mormon leaders have ever declared a desire to destroy America. Neither Jews nor Mormons have ever participated in any plot to harm Americans in the name of Judaism or Mormonism. Only Islamic leaders have repeatedly called for the destruction of America (and thus the American Ideal). And only Muslims have enlisted by the thousands and the tens of thousands in veritable armies acting out the terrible slaughter of "infidels" as Muslims call those of other faiths - Christians, Jews, Hindus, Buddhists, Animists.
And yet, Islam seems to be a "sacred cow" if you will forgive the metaphor. Why does Islam enjoy First Amendment protection in the American media and the American political system, while Christianity is systematically erased from our national discourse and ignorants within and without government are allowed to persecute Mormons and Jews?
I'm not whining about it. I'm just wondering....
Posts
0 comments:
Post a Comment