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Anti-Mosque Fever From Sheepshead Bay to NY Supreme Court
By
John Del Signore
Published Mar 14, 2011
Modified Mar 14, 2011
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By
John Del Signore
Published Mar 14, 2011
Modified Mar 14, 2011
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Two mosques planned for two very different parts of NYC are facing intensifying opposition from increasingly determined critics. Tomorrow, Pat Robertson's American Center for Law and Justice will square off in New York State Supreme Court against the Muslim community center and mosque planned for Lower Manhattan. The ACLJ says the city erred by rejecting landmark status for the building at 45-47 Park Place that would be razed to build the mosque. Meanwhile, in Sheepshead Bay, about 120 people demonstrated against a proposed mosque yesterday, while mosque supporters rallied across the street. Here's video:
The local group Bay People fears a mosque would create traffic congestion in the neighborhood, and WNYC reports the group also worries that the mosque would broadcast the call to prayer outside. But the developer, Allowey Ahmed, says the call to prayer would not be heard outside, and insists most of the congregation of 150 families would arrive on foot, not by car. "I don't know what is required of us to do, but of course we denounce terrorism," Ahmed tells WNYC. "Everyone denounces terrorism. We are the first ones to suffer from terrorism. We are the ones who are labeled terrorists."
But anti-Islam crusader Pamela Geller knows better. On her blog, she's posted photos of the counter-protesters (who are part of a group called NYC Coalition to Stop Islamophobia) and writes, "Look at those on the left—they know not what they fight for. They are carrying water for the most radical and extreme ideology on the face of the earth." During a speech at yesterday's demonstration, she asserted that the group behind the mosque is connected to the Muslim Brotherhood. "Why put it here?" Geller asked. "There are hundreds of mosques in this city, there are thousands of mosques in this country. Why here?" What, isn't it far enough from Ground Zero?
Tagged
ground zero mosque
islam
Islamaphobia
mosque
muslims
sheepshead bay
video
John Del Signore
Originally from the Albany area, John Del Signore has called NYC home since 1995. In addition to his thousands of meticulously-crafted bespoke blog posts for Gothamist, his writing has also been published in The Awl, Deadspin, The Nervous Breakdown, and performed at The Brick Theater in Brooklyn.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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