The “Ground Zero” Islamic Center: A Conservative Distraction
Back in May of 2010, the Lower Manhattan Community Board approved the construction of a Islamic community center two blocks from the site where the World Trade Center towers once stood. 
Two months after the approval of the community center, the media and its pundits have suddenly exploded with reports of outrage over its construction. Most notably opposing the construction of this Islamic center are politicians such as Harry Reid, Sarah Palin, and a range of ‘Tea Party’ supported candidates. Harry Reid, the Democratic leader of the US Senate who faces tough opposition from Sharron Angle, the ‘Tea Party’ backed candidate, must realize that the US Constitution under the first amendment fact guarantees the protection of religious freedoms. These ‘religious freedoms’ means not being discriminated against due to religious beliefs; And this is exactly what is happening in this situation. People are angry that an Islamic center is being built near the former site of the ‘Twin Towers’ as the hijackers who flew two planes into the buildings claimed to represent Islam. But by opposing the construction of an Islamic building near the Ground Zero site they are in-effect claiming that all Muslims are to blame for the attack.
I’ll put aside addressing the preposterous amount of xenophobia that resides in such arguments against the Islamic site being constructed on Park Place. I will not lecture about how each man should not be judged by the colour of his skin or eyes, or length of his nose, but as an individual each in his own. Instead, I choose to address why this story has become so popular in the media, and how the right-wing has used this story to their advantage and mask their putting politics before helping the victims of 9/11.
July 29th, 2010, a bill in the House was brought forth to a vote which would have “provided up to $7.4 billion in aid to people sickened by World Trade Center dust”. The bill was backed by the Democrats, and would have been seen as a victory for the party going into the November election. In order to prevent the Republicans from possibly amending the bill, the Democrats required a two-third majority vote for the bill to pass. Due to this, the vote failed with only 12 Republicans voting in favour of it.
The failure of the bill gave way to Rep. Anthony Weiner’s dramatic outburst on the floor which received a significant amount of media coverage across the US. The Republicans quickly began to realize this was a win-win for the Democrats, (in this sense, the Democrats should also be partially blamed for simply playing ‘politics). If the bill passed, it would be considered a Democratic victory. If the bill failed due to the Republicans, the Democrats would hold it over their heads; Voting against benefits for victims of the 9/11 attacks could prove to be a dangerous blow to the Republican party. The Republicans needed to regain the upper hand in shaping the narrative of their party, something which they’ve been particularly skilled at in recent years.
Despite, as previously stated, the issue of the Islamic center being around since before May of 2010, the Republicans did not jump on-board to oppose its construction until permission was given by New York City to demolish the building currently at the site. The construction of the center allowed for Republicans to regain control of their image.
First and foremost, the Republicans have been able to divert attention away from their vote against the health of 9/11 victims. For their opponents, like Anthony Weiner, who claim that they do not care for the victims they now point and say, “Look, we’re defending those victims by stopping an Islamic building of hate from being constructed on it’s site”. Of course, such statements are riddled with ignorance.
The Republicans use the term misleading term “Ground Zero Mosque”, one which the media has caught onto which further frames the narrative in the Republican’s favor. Despite the first amendment protecting religious freedoms, the Republican party has decided to rally around the cause of preventing the Islamic center’s construction, knowing that it is a fight they cannot win. That’s irrelevant to most members of the party as this is a topic being used to give the Republicans the upper hand. They’re able to brush aside claims they do not care about 9/11 victims, claims spawned from their vote against providing them with health care. They’re able to rally their base and attempt to evoke the patriotic spirit that was aroused after the 2001 attacks. They’ve been able to get the President to come out in support of the right to the center’s construction, likely furthering the false, (and irrelevant), belief that Obama is a Muslim. It’s unfortunate that the American media is so easily led astray from the big picture. Instead, they’re acting as agents for a political party by focusing so much energy on such a topic.
The Republican party has once again created a distraction from the real issues and their own deficiencies by focusing America on a humble Islamic center’s construction in New York City.
He who allows oppression, shares the crime.
