It didn't take long for countless handmade posters to appear on poles and walls around the city, urgently and tragically asking about the whereabouts of people who had suddenly gone missing. The unmistakable smell of burning hung in the air for weeks. It seemed like everyone, myself included, was in shock, and we were all mourning the dead.

But these were anxious times, too. I recall the sense of dismay I felt that morning when watching the first plane hit and how that morphed, when the second plane came less than twenty minutes later, into a gut-wrenching realization that this was no accident. If the terrorists turned out to be Muslim, I thought at the time, the future could become very difficult for Muslims in the United States.

Fifteen years later, the War on Terror continues with no end in sight and the question of whether Muslims should even be allowed to enter the United States is being vociferously debated. Some politicians have eveninvoked Japanese internment as a model to follow when dealing with Muslims in this country.

A registry of Muslims, already tried on non-immigrant males from 24 Muslim-majority countries (to disastrous effect), has also been proposed. Most polls put anti-Muslim sentiment in the United States at around 50% of the population.

And anti-Muslim violence remains high. According to a Georgetown University study, American Muslims were approximately 6 to 9 times more likely to be attacked in a bias crime in 2015 when compared to pre-9/11 numbers. Continue reading

• Moustafa Bayoumi is an award-winning writer, and associate professor of English at Brooklyn College, City University of New York.

"The tragedy of that day is compounded by the perpetrators' claim to be acting in God's name," he said.

In a letter sent a letter to Archbishop Timothy Dolan of New York, Benedict said he was praying for the thousands of innocent victims of the "brutal assault" and hoped that their families may find continued consolation.

"Every human life is precious in God's sight and no effort should be spared in the attempt to promote throughout the world a genuine respect for the inalienable rights and dignity of individuals and peoples everywhere," he said.

Benedict called for a greater commitment to justice and a "global culture of solidarity" to rid the world of the types of grievances that spark such acts of violence.

"It is my fervent prayer that a firm commitment to justice and a global culture of solidarity will help rid the world of the grievances that so often give rise to acts of violence and will create the conditions for greater peace and prosperity, offering a brighter and more secure future," he said.

The pope, who visited Ground Zero in New York during his trip to the United States in 2008, commended Americans "for their resilience in moving forward with hope and confidence", but said the root causes of violence still had to be addressed.

Sources

• Associated Press
• Reuters

Catholic League and the Family Research Council, say the event shows a prejudice against religion and ignores the central role religious groups played in the city's 9/11 response.

For weeks, Trinity Wall Street, an Episcopal congregation near ground zero, allowed rescue workers to operate from its chapel. Faith-based service agencies volunteered for a range of duties, from feeding recovery teams to counseling families. Clergy organized interfaith services for the city, most prominently at Yankee Stadium.

"Nobody was turning religious leaders away from the scene 10 years ago. Why are they being banned from the 10th anniversary?" said the Rev. Richard Land, who leads the public policy arm of the Southern Baptist Convention, the nation's largest Protestant group.

Fernando Cabrera, a City Council member who is also an evangelical pastor in the Bronx called the decision a "tragic mistake" and Reverend Thomas Margrave, an Episcopal priest who is a board member of the New York State Association of Fire Chaplains, said "it seems extremely curious" that prayer is included in so many public ceremonies, including the presidential inauguration, but not at ground zero, where prayer was so important.

Bill Donohue, head of the Catholic League has launched a petition demanding Bloomberg reverse his decision.

However several New York religious leaders say they understand the mayor's position.

"I just think a decision was made to give priority to the families. If this means more families will be attending, I think all of us can accept that," said Rabbi Joseph Potasnik, executive vice president of the New York Board of Rabbis.

Catholic archbishop, Timothy Dolan said he met with the mayor about a month ago and had discussed the ceremony.

"He, too, I think was under some restrictions. I think other people were involved in the planning not just him," Dolan said in an interview last week with the cable news outlet NY1. "He was very honest and up front. 'I think it's very limited. It may not be the way I want it, but it's just going to be immediate family and the political people who were in office then and political people now.' I'm fine with that."

Dolan said he and other clergy have "stacks of invitations" for prayer services surrounding the anniversary.

Charles Haynes, a senior scholar at the First Amendment Center who researches religious liberty, said he worries that Bloomberg may have jettisoned clergy prayer to avoid any controversy about Islam, since he would have to include a Muslim representative.

"Bloomberg is in a no-win situation here."

Source

• Associated Press
• Image: Dumbo Books

There will be no more imams as the public religious face of the project, and Sharif El-Gamal, the lead developer and Chairman of the 45-51 Park Place property says he has been trying to regroup and reach out to the community to get input into the final design.

According to El-Gamal, it will take years of hard work to determine what kind of facilities Muslim and non-Muslim visitors want and need.

Despite a NYTimes poll indicating residents want the project moved to a less controversial site, and the Anti-Defamation League opposing the project, the vision remains.

Park 51, the community centre portion of the project is designed to be open to all with an interfaith space.

PrayerSpace will be the mosque for Muslim prayer services.

Fund-raising for both projects are at their beginnings and being treated separately, however according to the NY Times the same people are managing both projects.

The proposed centre prompted furious protests in New York, and this despite the support from New York Mayor, Michael Bloomberg and the White House's 'comment' that it supported the constitutional right to religious freedom.

Muslim leaders have said that not only did they have a constitutional right to build but they would would also help move the forward, even in the face of opposition.

It was a matter of principle, the leaders said.

The centre should not budge from its planned site.

Opponents of the Ground Zero Mosque are not seeking to restrict Muslim-Americans' right to build mosques.

The opponents are happy to respect others' religious freedoms but strongly believe religious pluralism is a two-way street and with rights come responsibilities.

Sources

• NY Times
• Front Page Magazine