Civic Space for American Muslims

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New York City Mayor Mike Bloomberg gave a soaring speech yesterday on the controversy of siting an Islamic community center near Ground Zero. I highly recommend reading the whole text. Bloomberg rightly asserts the principle of religious freedom and that all Americans have a stake in protecting the right to locate prayer centers, houses of worship, and temples wherever religious assemblies wish, and that no government can limit private property use to only popular religions.

In Minnesota, JRLC's four Sponsors and other groups, notably the St. Paul Area of Churches, work hard to build trusting relationships and civic infrastructure among diverse religious leaders and faith communities. JRLC's existence, unique in the country, is a near-40 year example of how religious communities support each other, fight religious bigotry, and build up our civic life.

JRLC's newest board member, Abdisalam Adam, a leader at the Dar Al-Hidraj mosque on the West Bank, has been instrumental in reframing, and even renaming, his mosque, pushing it to become the Dar Al-Hidraj Islamic Civic Center. Adam is doing in Minnesota exactly what the New York organizers hope to do — orient their Islamic center to be part of the civic fabric of their neighborhood and city, in the same tradition as YMCAs or Jewish Community Centers.

Park51, an Islamic community center, is now slated to rise in downtown Manhattan. Just prior to Bloomberg's speech, a NY city agency gave final approval for the project. Bloomberg's speech was urgently needed to allay the fears and sooth the pain felt by many New Yorkers, and quell the controversy whipped up by national large-mouthed figures, including Newt Gingrich and Sarah Palin. Gingrich opposes the project and warned of “radical Islamists…in their stealth form.” It appears Gingrich, thought to be an intellectual leader in his wing, wants to limit first amendment rights to religious organizations if crimes and atrocities were ever committed in the name of the same religion!

The brilliance of Bloomberg's speech is that he names the treasured American values that project opponents would sacrifice on an alter of fear and religious bigotry. History will laud Bloomberg for standing up for religious freedom amidst all the media-hyped anger, and for supporting civic space for this group of American Muslims, who like other religious associations, are motivated by their faith to contribute to American life.

(Photo: JRLC Board members Larry Gibson, and Owais Bayunus.)