Tuesday, May 31, 2011
We will never forget, says Obama
From The Hindu
United States President Barack Obama put out yet another strong message that Osama Bin Laden's killing in Pakistan last Sunday was “justice done” to the victims of the 9/11 terror attacks when he travelled to the site of the attacks in New York City to lay a wreath at a memorial and spoke with the victims' families.
Three days after the nearly decade-long search for America's most wanted terrorist drew to an end, Mr. Obama laid a wreath of red, white and blue flowers at Ground Zero in Manhattan, and also spent time talking with fire-fighters, police officers and other first-responder teams that lost numerous colleagues in 2001.
Pursuing justice
Speaking at the “Pride of Midtown” Firehouse he reiterated a message that he, and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, had alluded to in the past few days — that the U.S. would pursue justice no matter how long it took. “What happened on Sunday, because of the courage of our military and the outstanding work of our intelligence, sent a message around the world, but also sent a message here back home that when we say we will never forget, we mean what we say,” he said.
After observing a few minutes' silence at around 1p.m. on a sunny afternoon in New York, the President said the Ground Zero site was symbolic of the “extraordinary sacrifice” that was made on that “terrible day almost ten years ago”.
He conceded, however that the actions of Sunday did not “bring back your friends that were lost”. Speaking to police officers at New York's First Precinct he also hinted that Osama's death would not be the end of terror threats, saying “there are still going to be threats out there and you are still going to be called on to take courageous actions and to remain vigilant.”
Meanwhile reports said that Mr. Obama would be meeting with members of the SEAL team that raided the Abbottabad compound where Osama was killed. On an upcoming visit to Fort Campbell, Kentucky, on Friday, an administration official was quoted as saying that the President would meet with Admiral William McRaven, a former SEAL and commander of the Joint Special Operations Command, which oversaw the successful raid.
While he was said to have already met with Admiral McRaven at the White House on Wednesday “to thank him personally in the Oval Office”, in Fort Campbell Mr. Obama “will have the opportunity to privately thank some of the special operators involved in the operation tomorrow at Fort Campbell”, an unnamed official was quoted as saying to the Washington Post.
Labels: 9/11, Ground Zero, Osama killing
Thursday, September 09, 2010
Interfaith group condemns pastor
From The Hindu
While a cacophony of extreme views has coloured the debate on the "Ground Zero mosque" and the role of the Islamic religion in America more generally, a rising crescendo of moderate opinion is equally striving to pull the country back from the abyss of intolerance and bigotry.
This week a group of religious leaders congregated in Washington to hold an "emergency summit" to condemn "the derision, misinformation and outright bigotry" targeting Muslims in the United States. A New York Times report quoted one of the leaders, Cardinal Theodore McCarrick, saying, "This is not America... America was not built on hate."
The Christian, Jewish and Muslim preachers jointly affirmed, the report added, that that they were "alarmed that the anti-Muslim frenzy and attacks at several mosques had the potential not only to tear apart the country, but also to undermine the reputation of America as a model of religious freedom and diversity."
Also this week, Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf, the man at the very centre of the Cordoba House Initiative, the Islamic centre to be built two blocks away from the site of the 9/11 attacks, spoke out on the issue in an op-ed in the New York Times.
In the article, Imam Rauf said that while he was "sensitive to the feelings of the families of victims of 9/11", he would proceed with plans to build the centre because if he did not, "we cede the discourse and, essentially, our future to radicals on both sides".
His comments also came closely on the heels of sharp criticism levelled against Terry Jones, a pastor from Florida church, for promising to burn copies of the Quran on the anniversary of the 9/11 attacks this year.
Reflecting possible international repercussions of the proposed action of the pastor, even General David Petraeus, leading U.S. forces in Afghanistan, warned this week that it would "undoubtedly be used by extremists in Afghanistan — and around the world — to inflame public opinion and incite violence". He added that this would certainly endanger the lives of American soldiers, a sentiment reflected by comments from the White House and State Department as well.
The inter-faith congregation also denounced the radical approach of Mr. Jones, saying in their joint statement, "We are appalled by such disrespect for a sacred text that for centuries has shaped many of the great cultures of our world."
Labels: anti-Muslim sentiments, Ground Zero, Islam, religious intolerance, Terry Jones
Thursday, August 12, 2010
Ground Zero mosque debate rages on
From The Hindu
Nine years after the most deadly terror attack on United States soil, zip code 10048, New York City, is yet again finding itself at the heart of a religious conflict. Only this time, the conflagration at the site of the 9/11 attacks is an entirely peaceful one, even if it raises fundamental questions about religious tolerance in America.
The controversy, which has been simmering over several months, boiled over last week when a local community board in Manhattan approved plans to build a mosque two blocks away from where the World Trade Centre stood.
Following the grant of approval, those supporting religious tolerance as enshrined in the constitution’s First Amendment clashed publicly and passionately with those who decried the mosque plan as a symbol of disrespect to victims of 9/11 and a surrender to religious extremists.
Advertisement approved
The most recent development came this week as a right-wing group won approval to run on NYC buses an advertisement that showed a photograph of a hijacked airplane flying into one of the twin towers on 9/11. The advertisement also showed a high-rise building with an Islamic crescent and the label “WTC Mega Mosque” and the words “Why There?”
Though the initial application to run the advertisement was rejected by the NYC Metropolitan Transportation Authority this week, the MTA passed it after it was sued by the authors of the advertisement, the American Freedom Defence Initiative.
In a statement the MTA said, “While the MTA does not endorse the views expressed in this or other ads that appear on the transit system, the ad...was accepted after its review under MTA’s advertising guidelines and governing legal standards.”
Meanwhile critics of the mosque plan also raised questions about the State Department sponsoring a trip to the Middle East by the man behind Cordoba House, Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf. AFDI Director Pamela Geller said in her blog that the White House was “bankrolling” the Imam’s “Middle East Fundraising Tour” and it was clear that “Terror-tied Rauf is comfortably ensconced in the bosom of the Obama State Department”.
State Department spokesman Philip Crowley however cast such allegations in doubt, saying to media that Imam Feisal was travelling to Qatar, Bahrain, and the UAE to discuss Muslim life in America and religious tolerance.
Mr. Crowley added that the Imam’s work on tolerance and religious diversity “is well-known and he brings a moderate perspective to foreign audiences on what it’s like to be a practicing Muslim in the U.S..”
He further clarified that the State Department’s discussions with Imam Rauf about taking this trip “preceded the current debate in New York over the Centre”.
Even as the debate raged, The New York Times reported a spike in the number of incidents of right-wing opposition to mosque-building plans across the U.S.. In particular, the newspaper cited instances of such plans being blocked by Republican, Tea Party, and Christian-group politicians in Tennessee, California and Wisconsin respectively.
Nine years after the most deadly terror attack on United States soil, zip code 10048, New York City, is yet again finding itself at the heart of a religious conflict. Only this time, the conflagration at the site of the 9/11 attacks is an entirely peaceful one, even if it raises fundamental questions about religious tolerance in America.
The controversy, which has been simmering over several months, boiled over last week when a local community board in Manhattan approved plans to build a mosque two blocks away from where the World Trade Centre stood.
Following the grant of approval, those supporting religious tolerance as enshrined in the constitution’s First Amendment clashed publicly and passionately with those who decried the mosque plan as a symbol of disrespect to victims of 9/11 and a surrender to religious extremists.
Advertisement approved
The most recent development came this week as a right-wing group won approval to run on NYC buses an advertisement that showed a photograph of a hijacked airplane flying into one of the twin towers on 9/11. The advertisement also showed a high-rise building with an Islamic crescent and the label “WTC Mega Mosque” and the words “Why There?”
Though the initial application to run the advertisement was rejected by the NYC Metropolitan Transportation Authority this week, the MTA passed it after it was sued by the authors of the advertisement, the American Freedom Defence Initiative.
In a statement the MTA said, “While the MTA does not endorse the views expressed in this or other ads that appear on the transit system, the ad...was accepted after its review under MTA’s advertising guidelines and governing legal standards.”
Meanwhile critics of the mosque plan also raised questions about the State Department sponsoring a trip to the Middle East by the man behind Cordoba House, Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf. AFDI Director Pamela Geller said in her blog that the White House was “bankrolling” the Imam’s “Middle East Fundraising Tour” and it was clear that “Terror-tied Rauf is comfortably ensconced in the bosom of the Obama State Department”.
State Department spokesman Philip Crowley however cast such allegations in doubt, saying to media that Imam Feisal was travelling to Qatar, Bahrain, and the UAE to discuss Muslim life in America and religious tolerance.
Mr. Crowley added that the Imam’s work on tolerance and religious diversity “is well-known and he brings a moderate perspective to foreign audiences on what it’s like to be a practicing Muslim in the U.S..”
He further clarified that the State Department’s discussions with Imam Rauf about taking this trip “preceded the current debate in New York over the Centre”.
Even as the debate raged, The New York Times reported a spike in the number of incidents of right-wing opposition to mosque-building plans across the U.S.. In particular, the newspaper cited instances of such plans being blocked by Republican, Tea Party, and Christian-group politicians in Tennessee, California and Wisconsin respectively.
Labels: debate, Ground Zero, mosque, World Trade Centre. U.S.
Sunday, May 30, 2010
Mosque plan for WTC site wins city approval
From The Hindu
New York’s World Trade Center (WTC) site, the target of the 9/11 attacks, has become ground zero for a less deadly but equally emotive conflict around questions of religion.
This week a community board in Manhattan fiercely debated but ultimately endorsed a plan to build a mosque near the spot where the WTC stood prior to the attacks.
The proposal’s passage, by a vote of 29-to-1, came after weeks of heated discussions that saw the idea being staunchly opposed by some of the families and friends of 9/11 victims and, more remotely, by a leader of the right-wing Tea Party movement.
Media reports quoted Rosemary Cain, whose son, a fireman, died in the attacks, as saying, “I think it’s despicable. That’s sacred ground. It’s a slap in the face. How could anybody give them permission to build a mosque there?”
Some made a subtler point: Bill Doyle, father of a 9/11 victim, reportedly said, “What I’m frightened about is that it’s almost going to be another protest zone — a meeting place for radicals.”
Radicals court controversy
Sure enough, it would appear that radicals have wasted little time in climbing on board the bandwagon. Mark Williams, a leader of the fiscally and otherwise conservative Tea Party movement courted controversy when he recently made disparaging remarks about Islam, terrorism and the purported use of the mosque for propaganda by a “cult”.
However given the extreme nature of Mr. Williams’ comments, the New York community authorities were quick to reiterate their support for the mosque proposal.
Manhattan Borough President Scott M. Stringer said, “When a hate-filled individual like Mark Williams spreads lies intended to injure millions of Americans, incite bigotry, and undermine our democracy, we must stand up and respond with the truth.”
He added that the mission of the centre, to be called Cordoba House, was “to establish a vibrant and world-class facility in New York City that promotes tolerance and pluralism that will strengthen relationships and attract those of other faiths to integrate and learn about Islam”.
State Senator Daniel Squadron noted that community, religious and civic organisations had been a big part of the extraordinary resurgence of Lower Manhattan, arguing, “Religious intolerance, demagoguery, and fear-mongering have no place in the discussion about development on and around the World Trade Center site.”
The mosque’s development is being led by the Cordoba Initiative which, according to founder Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf is about “moderate American Muslims who are the vast majority of the Muslims in the world and who condemn terrorism and 9/11”. Imam Rauf noted, “We have been and want to continue to be part of a coalition of Muslims and non-Muslims that work to eliminate terrorism.”
Labels: 9/11, 9/11 attacks, Ground Zero, Mark Williams, World Trade Center, WTC
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