The Ground Zero 'Mosque' and the First Amendment

Hello everyone this is my first post on the Daily Wood and I hope to be around to share more of my views. My name is Alex and I am currently studying Journalism with an interest in both Public Relations and Law. With my experience in Journalism I believe I can speak with some authority on the issue of the First Amendment and how it relates to a hot topic this year with the ground zero 'Mosque'.

I will say as I have said before on this blog that while the building known as Park51 will be housing a place of worship for Muslims known as a Mosque, it will also have many other facilities for use by any New Yorker, no matter their creed or religion. It will have a swimming pool as well as a basketball court, and be more akin to a YMCA then a tower Minaret Monument to some Muslim victory. Another misnomer is that this building will be built on Ground Zero. In reality it will be built two blocks away from Ground Zero, with no line of site to the former place of the Twin Towers. To put this in perspective three blocks away from Ground Zero is a real mosque that has been there for 25 years, longer then the twin towers. What also resides so close to this sacred and hallowed ground? Strip joints and betting parlors. Despite all this I will refer to the commonly held name the Park51 building has, a Mosque, for the sake of simplicity and so this post is easier to write and understand.

Let us focus on one issue for today. The First Amendment and how it relates to the Mosque. I will break my post down into three sections. First, how the First Amendment relates to the Mosque. Second, why we should defend the First Amendment to the death, and how this Mosque is the perfect issue to do so with. Third and last, why people wrongly oppose the Mosque, while at the same time saying they want to uphold the First Amendment.

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Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.

What this breaks down to is the Freedom of Religion, the Freedom of Speech, and the Freedom to peaceably assemble and protest.

The Freedom of Religion allows people to practice their religion, whatever it may be, without fear of persecution or restrictions. If you wish to worship Satan or little green goblins you are free to do so in the United States of America. This means not only clasping your hands and saying prayers but also building a place where you and those of your faith can worship in peace. It is one of the very foundations of what our country was built on, people came here to escape the persecution of other countries so they could worship freely.

The developers of the Park51 Mosque have bought private property 2 blocks away from Ground Zero, and as far as the First Amendment is concerned, they can build whatever they want there. (Of course zoning codes can say 'No you may not build this type of building here'. But from what I understand that issue has been settled already.)

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Now as I said before the First Amendment, specifically the Freedom of Religion is one of the Foundations of our country. You can not chip away at the foundation less you want the entire country to fall apart. "Oh they do not need the Freedom of Religion. Oh you do not need Due Process. Oh there is no reason we can't hold him in a prison for a few decades for no reason." Once you start where does it stop?

I've heard several pundits and those of the Right say, "They won't let us build a Church in Saudi Arabia, why should we let them build a Mosque here?"

Simply put, to show that we are better. To show that we hold our ideals and value true. To show that when we say you have the freedom to worship whatever and however you wish, we truly mean it. We mean it for everyone, be you Christian, Muslim, Jewish or Ewok.

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Speaking of Ewoks I want to tell a little story: Today I was leaving the HUB, a central building on the Campus I go to. Outside was a massive sign that said 'Jesus Christ said, if you love me, obey me.' Next to that sign were three kids, covered by a rainbow colored blanket, members of a Gay Pride club. By them were a dozen or so students holding signs that said 'You Mad?' and 'Words on a Sign!' And by them was a man clad in a brown robe, spouting off the merits of Jedisim. This is a true story. This is all possible because of one thing, the First Amendment.

While this may seem insane and stupid, how many other places in the world can you have such an absurd scene and not have any fights break out, or people being killed?

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Finally I want to address why so many people are opposed to this Mosque, and in turn opposed to the First Amendment.

I believe we need to get over the idea that the entire Muslim world is after us, that it was the Muslim world that attacked us on 9/11 and killed those 4000 some people. On September 11th, 2001, radical and hateful people crashed four planes into the heart of America. While they worshipped Allah and revered Mohammad, they were not the same as the nearly 1 billion other Muslims in the world. They were not like you or I, but if we so easily discard the First Amendment because of fear and hatred, how long before we look into the mirror and see something we hated?

People continue to perpetuate this cycle of fear and hate for political gain. At the end of the day this Ground Zero Mosque will just be another political dividing line that politicians can use on election day to say "Look! Look! I am Different then him! I am better then him! Vote for me!"

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There are almost 2 million Muslims in America, but if you see them you should not see them as a Muslim, but as an American, just like you.

And a few years ago there was a saying going around the political world, "If we do this, or if we do that, the Terroists have won."

Well guess what folks, if we ignore the First Amendment, the Terroists have won.

Note: Alex considers himself a Deist, one of the common religions of the Founding Fathers. He has no relation with Muslims, Christians, Jews, Ewoks, or Jedi.