Imam Feisal Press Conference (regarding plans for the Islamic Community Center)

[Douglas Carpenter]

Run time: 02:28 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JfIPO7CVflA   Posted on YouTube: May 21, 2010 By YouTube Member: CordobaInitiative Views on YouTube: 13983   Posted on DU: August 16, 2010 By DU Member: Douglas Carpenter Views on DU: 330

 
link for the Cordoba Initiative website:

http://www.cordobainitiative.org/

[aquart]

1. We're doing their PR for them? Cool.

That should save them a buck.

[JDPriestly]

2. I cannot think of a better way to show Muslims that those Muslims who

think that non-Muslim Americans are some kind of enemy to them than to make sure that Muslims have the same freedom to worship and participate in our society as do other religious groups.

We may not believe what they believe, but we do believe that all of us, including Muslims, have the right to the free exercise of our religion.

The fuss over this is disgusting. John Adams must be turning over in his grave.

[lumpy]

3. Hea hear. But other religions will get their chance to save

bucks on expressing their bigotry. I believe in the Constitution and it's promise to allow freedom of religion certainly not bigots who condemn others for thier beliefs in God.

[Douglas Carpenter]

4. a NYT article about Imam Feisal and his plan for the center written before the crazy hate campaign

Muslim Prayers and Renewal Near Ground Zero
By RALPH BLUMENTHAL and SHARAF MOWJOOD
Published: December 8, 2009

snip:

“ As a Sufi, Imam Feisal follows a path of Islam focused more on spiritual wisdom than on strict ritual, and as a bridge builder, he is sometimes focused more on cultivating relations with those outside his faith than within it.

snip:

Those who have worked with him say if anyone could pull off what many regard to be a delicate project, it would be Imam Feisal, whom they described as having built a career preaching tolerance and interfaith understanding.

“He subscribes to my credo: ‘Live and let live,’ ” said Rabbi Arthur Schneier, spiritual leader of Park East Synagogue on East 67th Street.

snip:

The mayor’s director of the Office of Immigrant Affairs, Fatima Shama, went further. “We as New York Muslims have as much of a commitment to rebuilding New York as anybody,” Ms. Shama said. Imam Feisal’s wife, Daisy Khan, serves on an advisory team for the National September 11 Memorial and Museum, and Lynn Rasic, a spokeswoman for the memorial, said, “The idea of a cultural center that strengthens ties between Muslims and people of all faiths and backgrounds is positive.”


snip:

“ Building so close is owning the tragedy. It’s a way of saying: ‘This is something done by people who call themselves Muslims. We want to be here to repair the breach, as the Bible says.’ ”

The F.B.I. said Imam Feisal had helped agents reach out to the Muslim population after Sept. 11. “We’ve had positive interactions with him in the past,” said an agency spokesman, Richard Kolk. Alice Hoagland of Las Gatos, Calif., whose son, Mark Bingham, was killed in the hijacked plane that crashed in Pennsylvania, said, “It’s quite a bold step buying a piece of land adjacent to ground zero,” but she said she considered plans for the site “a noble effort.”

snip:

Joy Levitt, executive director of the Jewish Community Center, said the group would be proud to be a model for Imam Feisal at ground zero. “For the J.C.C. to have partners in the Muslim community that share our vision of pluralism and tolerance would be great,” she said.

Mr. El-Gamal agreed. “What happened that day,” he said, “was not Islam.”

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/12/09/nyregion/09mosque.html

link to the cordoba intiative:

http://www.cordobainitiative.org /

link to Imam Feisal Press Conference:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JfIPO7CVflA