Replies to post #104127 on Tornado Alley (PROG)

[StephanieVanbryce]

ADL: If mosque-builders really wanted to promote reconcilation, they'd move

Greg Sargent | August 7, 2010; 9:02 AM ET

Via Steve Benen, I see that Fareed Zakaria has decided to return an award betowed on him by the Anti-Defamation League in order to protest the organization's deeply misguided opposition to the Islamic center near Ground Zero.

Over at ADL's web site, Abraham Foxman has now responded to Zakaria -- and he now appears to be subtly questioning the motives behind the building of the center.

In renouncing ADL's award, Zakaria wrote that the decision to oppose the Islamic center is "utterly opposed to the animating purpose of your organization," adding: "Your own statements subsequently, asserting that we must honor the feelings of victims even if irrational or bigoted, made matters worse."

To which Foxman responded, in part:

I hope you have read our statement on the proposed Islamic Center at Ground Zero and, more importantly, understand our position. We did not oppose the right for an Islamic Center or a mosque to be built. What we did was to make an appeal based solely on the issues of location and sensitivity. If the stated goal was to advance reconciliation and understanding, we believe taking into consideration the feelings of many victims and their families, of first responders and many New Yorkers, who are not bigots but still feel the pain of 9/11, would go a long way to achieving that reconciliation.

ADL has and will continue to stand up for Muslims and others where they are targets of racism and bigotry, as we have done at the request of and on behalf of Imam Faisal Abdul Rauf.

The "stated" goal, eh? Translation: The best way the builders of the Islamic center can show they're seeking reconciliation, as they claim to be doing, is to move.

This goes considerably further than ADL's initial statement, which didn't question the motives behind the center. In other words, this is no longer just about the feelings of those still wounded by 9/11, as ADL initially claimed.

With this response, ADL has strayed even further from its own stated mission. After all, the group says its "ultimate purpose" is to "put an end forever to unjust and unfair discrimination against and ridicule of any sect or body of citizens." And in his letter to Zakaria, Foxman says ADL will continue to stand up for Muslims who are the targets of "racism and bigotry."

But look, many of those who are insinuating that the Islamic center isn't really about promoting reconciliation are targeting Muslims with bigotry. These folks are the ones who are going beyond saying this is just about respecting 9/11 victims. You've probably seen people calling this the "victory mosque," and so on. Those good people are actively trying to associate all Muslims with the 9/11 attackers. Seems to me ADL is coming perilously close to effectively siding with the bigots here.

http://voices.washingtonpost.com/plum-line/2010/08/adl_if_mosque-builders_really.html

[bulldzr]

Hey, since neither Fareed nor the ADL seem to want the $10,000 check, why don't they send it to me. They can contact me here and I will email my address.