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Hermonie Granger
Mrs. Beeson
English IV
1 February 2012
The Appeasement of Few, the Pain of Many: The Ground Zero Mosque
A fourth branch in the American government does, in fact, exist: The People. Our
government was constructed “by the people, [and] for the people,” as a Democratic Republic, in
which the sole purpose of government is to protect its people, majority and minority alike. With
these expectations upheld in our government, it is a necessary ability to recognize when a
government must protect the majority over the minority. The planned Muslim community center
and mosque called Cordoba House was founded by Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf and is now run by
Imam Abdullah Adhami. The Cordoba House, dubbed “Park 51” due to the proposed location in
lower Manhattan very near Ground Zero, has received an immense amount of opposition
(Destefano). While the First Amendment protects freedom of religion and the exercise of that
religion, it is the duty of the American government to protect and support the opinions of the
majority before the appeasement of the minority regardless of separation of church and state.
The opposition of the Islamic cultural center, a project being undertaken as part of the
Cordoba Initiative, is widespread and adamant. This issue is not black and white; it is not
Muslims vs. America. One cannot say that “if you believe in freedom of religion, you’re for the
mosque. If you’re against the mosque, you’re obviously against one of America’s founding
principles: the right to worship your own God, in your own way” (McFarland). Sure, there is a
large majority of Americans that oppose the mosque due to a clash of religion. Many Americans
were apprehensive and scared of the Muslim faith before the attack of the World Trade Center;
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the tension has, without doubt, grown exponentially. This leads back to the issue of the proposed
location of the Cordoba Project: why so near to Ground Zero?
For the families and friends of the victims of the September 11 attacks, Ground Zero is
the only grave their loved ones will ever know. Many believe the Mosque is just too close to that
grave – approximately 560 feet away; “Some body parts [were] found further away from
[Ground Zero]” than the building site of the Cordoba House (Bolling). The emotional wounds of
the attack are ever present and “putting a shopping center up near [Ground Zero] would be a
sacrilege. Putting a mosque near there would be an abomination,” for the families and friends of
victims (McFarland). It is not only the loved ones of the victims, however, that feel this way.
Americans, as a whole, view this area as “hallowed ground” (James). The wounds are too deep,
the fear too large, the feelings too strong. The construction of a Mosque so near this cemetery of
innocents will be detrimental to the public outlook on the American government’s capability to
make decisions for the public safety and wellbeing of the people. However, it is not solely
American citizens who are pleading for a location change.
Many prominent members of the Muslim world are also voicing their disapproval of the
position of the Mosque.
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Works Cited
Bolling, Eric. “Imam to Make Case for Ground Zero Mosque.” O’Reilly Factor (Fox News)
(n.d.): Newspaper Source. Web. 20 Jan 2011.
Destefano, Anthony M. “Imam Reduces Role in Downtown Mosque Project.” Newsday,
(Melville, NY) 14 Jan. 2011: Newspaper Source. Web. 20 Jan. 2011.Literature. Ed.
Janet Allen, et al. Dallas: McDougal Littell, 2008. 365-366. Print.
Enger, Leif. Peace like a River. New York: Grove Press, 2001. Print.
"Enger, Leif (1961-)." Discovering Authors. Detroit: Gale, 2008. Student Resource Center –
Gold. Web. 3 Dec. 2009.
"The Transparent Eyeball: On Emerson and Walker Evans." Discovering Authors. Detroit:
Thomson Gale, 2007. Student Resource Center - Gold. Web. 3 Dec. 2009.