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Cordoba House, also referred to as the "Ground Zero Mosque" and "Park51", is a proposed $100 million 13-story glass and steel Islamic cultural center and mosque planned to be built in New York City on Park Place between West Broadway and Church Street, two blocks away from Ground Zero. It has been the subject of protests with regard to building an Islamic center so close to where Islamist terrorists killed nearly 3,000 people.

The project's name refers to Córdoba, Spain, the capital of Caliphate of Córdoba during the period of Muslim rule in Spain.

History

During the September 11 attacks, the then five-story building, at the time a Burlington Coat Factory, was severely damaged. Part of one of the hijacked planes used in the attack crashed through its roof. Until its 2009 purchase, it lay abandoned.

In July 2009, the real estate company Soho Properties purchased a five-story building located two blocks north of the former World Trade Center site. Soho Properties paid the owner $4.85 million in cash for the property. One of the investors in the transaction, the Cordoba Initiative, along with the American Society for Muslim Advancement, later proposed to use the property as the site for a $100 million Islamic center and mosque. Some U.S. politicians such as Republicans Peter T. King and Rick Lazio asked for an investigation of the group’s finances, especially its foreign funding, with King saying "The people who are involved in the construction of the mosque are refusing to say where their funding is going to come from."

For several months after its purchase, the building was used as a makeshift Muslim prayer space, with services led by American Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf, who is CEO of Cordoba Initiative. Abdul Rauf is the chief exponent of the mosque project, and some U.S. politicians voiced concerns about his views. On September 30, 2001, shorty after the 9/11 attacks, he told CBS’ “60 Minutes”: “I wouldn’t say that the United States deserved what happened. But the United States’ policies were an accessory to the crime that happened.” King raised the remarks in regard to a discussion of Rauf being the driving force behind the mosque. Congressman Rick Lazio has raised questions as to Rauf's connections with Islamist extremists, which Rauf strongly denied.

On May 6, 2010, neighborhood authorities in an advisory vote backed plans for Cordoba House, a $100-million Islamic center and mosque, to be built on the site. The project was endorsed by the 12-member Lower Manhattan Community Board 1's financial district committee, in a vote of 29-to-1, with 10 abstentions. The vote does not have any binding effect.

Those behind the project, the American Society for Muslim Advancement and the Cordoba Initiative, claim it is intended to foster better relations between Islam and the West. In an interview, Daisy Khan, executive director of the American Society for Muslim Advancement, said: "We decided we wanted to look at the legacy of 9/11 and do something positive." She added that her group represents moderate Muslims who want "to reverse the trend of extremism and the kind of ideology that the extremists are spreading." Pointing to the fact that ordinary Muslims have been killed by Muslim extremists all over the world, Khan also said about the mosque, "For us it is a symbol... that will give voice to the silent majority of Muslims who suffer at the hands of extremists. A center will show that Muslims will be part of rebuilding Lower Manhattan."

While the media widely described the center as a mosque, the Initiative's official blog portrayed it as a community center with prayer space, making comparisons to the YMCA or Jewish Community Center. The plan is for it to have a Muslim prayer room, 500-seat auditorium, fitness center, swimming pool, basketball court, childcare services, art exhibitions, bookstore, a culinary school, and a food court serving halal dishes. Daisy Khan, executive director of the American Society for Muslim Advancement and Cordoba Initiative board member, as well as Rauf's wife, said that it was anticipated that once built, 1,000 to 2,000 Muslims would pray at the mosque every Friday.

One remaining obstacle to construction is the potential of conferment landmark status on the building, which was constructed between 1857 and 1858 in the Italian Renaissance palazzo style, to be voted by the City's Landmarks Preservation Commission. Cordoba House has stated that if the Commission landmarks the existing building, the community center would be "worked into" that status. Presumably, this would involve integrating a landmarked facade into the new construction, as has commonly occurred in the neighborhood, where unremarkable and decrepit interiors are often excluded from landmark status. The commission plans to vote on the issue in August 2010.

Opposition to construction near Ground Zero

Polls

A Quinnipiac University Poll carried out in June 2010 reported that 52% of New York voters oppose the construction, while only 31% supported it. At the same time, 46% of Manhattanites supported it, while 36% opposed it; in Staten Island, 73% opposed it.

Families of 9/11 victims

Some relatives of victims of the September 11 attacks found the proposal offensive, because the terrorists who committed them were Muslim and committed the attacks in the name of Islam. A group of families of 9/11 victims, called 9/11 Families for a Safe & Strong America, calls the proposal "a gross insult to the memory of those who were killed on that terrible day."

Sally Regenhard, mother of 28-year-old firefighter Christian, who died on September 11, said that the center would be “sacrilege on sacred ground”, and that “People are being accused of being anti-Muslim and racist, but this is simply a matter of sensitivity.” Former Fire Department of New York Deputy Chief Jim Riches, whose firefighter son Jim was killed on September 11, said: "I don't want to have to go down to a memorial where my son died on 9/11 and look at a mosque." Rosemary Cain, mother of firefighter George Cain, who was killed on 9/11, called the project a "slap in the face", and said "I think it's despicable. That's sacred ground". C. Lee Hanson, father of Peter who was killed in the attacks, said he opposed the center because he felt that building a tribute to Islam so close to the World Trade Center site would be insensitive: "The pain never goes away. When I look over there and I see a mosque, it’s going to hurt. Build it someplace else."

Muslims

The building of the mosque, as well as the initiative itself, was criticized by other Muslims, such as Sufi Muslim mysticist Suleiman Schwartz, director of the Center for Islamic Pluralism, who said that a building built by Rauf barely two blocks from Ground Zero, is inconsistent with Sufi philosophy of simplicity of faith and sensitivity towards others and "grossly insensitive".

Zuhdi Jasser, founder of the American Islamic Forum for Democracy, strongly opposes the mosque, saying:

For us, a mosque was always a place to pray, to be together on holidays — not a way to make an ostentatious architectural statement. Ground zero shouldn’t be about promoting Islam. It’s the place where war was declared on us as Americans.

Poiticians

Politicians such as Republican former vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin (who called on moderate Muslims to oppose the project), Milt Romney, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, Peter King (R-NY; ranking Republican on the House Homeland Security Committee; "it is offensive to so many people"), Carl Paladino, and Rick Lazio have opposed the construction of the mosque. Tea party activist Mark Williams called it a monument to the terror attacks.

Organizations

New York City fireman Tim Brown opposes the mosque, saying: "A mosque ... that's using foreign money from countries with Shariah law is unacceptable, especially in this neighborhood". Brown allied with the American Center for Law & Justice (ACLJ), a conservative law firm founded by Pat Robertson that champions the rights of Christians to build and worship freely. Brown is seeking to pressure Rauf to fully disclose the project's funding sources. Pamela Gellar, executive director of Stop Islamization of America, said: "We think its an insult. It's demeaning to non-Muslims to build a shrine dedicated to the very ideology that inspired 9/11." More than 20,000 people signed an online petition for the Committee to Stop the Ground Zero Mosque, and have lobbied the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission to give the location landmark status, which would add a major hurdle to construction.

The head of the Anti-Defamation League, a Jewish civil rights group in the United States, also opposed the construction of the mosque, saying that while some of those who oppose the mosque are "bigots", the mosque at that site will nevertheless cause more pain for some victims of 9/11.

Academia

Boston University Department of Religion professor Stephen Prothero opined that Cordoba House should not be built near Ground Zero because it will serve as a symbol of Muslim conquest of Lower Manhattan, and because Saudi Arabia doesn't allow the construction of churches.

Support

Organizations

Another Jewish political group, J Street, supported the construction. Its President, Jeremy Ben-Ami, released a statement saying:

The principle at stake ... goes to the heart of American democracy, and the value we place on freedom of religion. Should one religious group in this country be treated differently than another? We believe the answer is no.... proposing a church or a synagogue for that site would raise no questions. The Muslim community has an equal right to build a community center wherever it is legal to do so.

Interfaith Alliance also supported the mosque, while indicating that it agreed with the need for transparency as to who is funding the project.

Politicians

New York City's Mayor Bloomberg, who strongly endorsed the project, responding to opposition to the project, said:

The government should never, never be in the business of telling people how they should pray or where they can pray. We want to make sure that everybody from around the world feels comfortable coming here, living here and praying the way they want to pray.

Community Board 1 Committee Chairman Ro Sheffe said: "it will be a wonderful asset to the community." Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer and New York City Council Speaker Christine Quinn also supported the proposal.

Families of 9/11 victims

Valerie Lucznikowska, aunt of Adam Arias, who died in the September 11 attack, said: “I want tolerance. I want inclusion, and there is no better embodiment.” Bruce Wallace, who lost a nephew in the attack, said: "Here is a chance to allow moderate Muslims to teach people that not all Muslims are terrorists."

Academia

Rabbi Geoffrey Dennis, of the University of North Texas Jewish Studies Program said that where it comes to the freedom to practice religion in a private sphere, such as on a piece of private property in Lower Manhattan, the freedom of religion is virtually inviolate.

See also

• Islamic Cultural Center of New York

References

1. ^ Neroulias, Nicole (July 29, 2010). "Quietly, another mosque operates in the shadow of Ground Zero". The Houston Chronicle. Retrieved August 1, 2010.
2. Sanchez, Ray (May 26, 2010). "Despite Protests, Mosque Plan Near 9/11 Site Wins Key Vote". ABC News. Retrieved July 31, 2010.
3. "Palin: Muslim facility near Ground Zero an 'unnecessary provocation'". CNN. July 20, 2010. Retrieved July 31, 2010.
4. "EDITORIAL: The 9/11 mosque". The Washington Times. May 27, 2010. Retrieved May 30, 2010.
5. Geller, Pamela; Spencer, Robert (May 24, 2010). "Guest Opinion: The 9/11 Mosque's Peace Charade". Catholic Online. Retrieved July 31, 2010.
6. ^ El, Tamer (July 27, 2010). "Amid Ground Zero Mosque Debate, NYPD Alert for Security During Ramadan - Metropolis". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved August 1, 2010.
7. ^ "1,000 protest planned Islamic center, mosque near Ground Zero". Nydailynews.com. June 7, 2010. Retrieved August 1, 2010.
8. ^ http://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/26/nyregion/26muslim.html
9. ^ http://www.nytimes.com/2010/07/14/nyregion/14center.html
10. ^ http://www.nytimes.com/2010/07/14/nyregion/14center.html
11. Blumenthal, Ralph; Mowjood, Sharaf (December 9, 2009). "Muslim Prayers and Renewal Near Ground Zero". The New York Times. Retrieved July 31, 2010.
12. Memmott, Mark (May 6, 2010). "Plan For Mosque Next to Ground Zero in NYC Moves Forward". NPR. Retrieved July 31, 2010.
13. ^ "NYC community board OKs ground zero mosque plans". Boston.com. Retrieved August 1, 2010.
14. ^ Jackson, Joe; Hutchinson, Bill (May 6, 2010). "Plan for mosque near World Trade Center site moves ahead". Daily News. New York. Retrieved July 31, 2010.
15. "Supporters, opponents debate merits of controversial plan to build mosque near Ground Zero". Nydailynews.com. May 26, 2010. Retrieved August 1, 2010.
16. Bliman, Nicole (May 7, 2010). "Mosque to go up near New York's ground zero". CNN. Retrieved July 31, 2010.
17. Rutkoff, Aaron (May 5, 2010). "Near Ground Zero, a Mosque Moves In and Meets the Neighbors". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved July 31, 2010.
18. Kreimer, Nancy Fuchs (May 21, 2010). "Proposed Muslim Community Center Near Ground Zero: 'A Slap in the Face' or 'Repairing the Breach?'". The Huffington Post. Retrieved July 31, 2010.
19. "What is a Community Center". Cordoba Initiative. Retrieved July 29, 2010.
20. ^ "Plan for mosque near World Trade Center site moves ahead". Nydailynews.com. Retrieved August 1, 2010.
21. ^ "A mosque at ground zero? - The Boston Globe". Boston.com. June 6, 2010. Retrieved August 1, 2010.
22. ^ Goldsmith, Samuel (July 1, 2010). "More than half of New York voters oppose Ground Zero mosque plan: poll". Daily News. New York. Retrieved July 31, 2010.
23. "More than half of New York voters oppose Ground Zero mosque plan: poll". Nydailynews.com. Retrieved August 1, 2010.
24. Jacoby, Jeff (June 6, 2010). "A Mosque at Ground Zero?". The Boston Globe. Retrieved July 31, 2010.
25. Siegel, Joel (July 19, 2010). "Sarah Palin 'Refudiates' Ground Zero Mosque". ABC News. Retrieved July 31, 2010.
26. Tacopino, Joe (July 22, 2010). "Newt Gingrich comes out against planned Cordoba House mosque near Ground Zero". Daily News. New York. Retrieved July 31, 2010.
27. Hernandez, Javier C (July 13, 2010). "Planned Sign of Tolerance Bringing Division Instead". The New York Times. New York. Retrieved July 31, 2010.
28. ^ "Jewish group opposes ground zero mosque". Associated Press. July 30, 2010. Retrieved July 31, 2010.

External links

• Cordoba House

• Mosques in New York
• Mosque-related controversies
• Places of worship in New York City
• Building projects in the United States