The world will end soon — or so it seemed on Sept. 21 when, among the clamoring of protestors, New York debuted its Park51, a cultural center which features educational, recreational and religious facilities, including a mosque. And to top it all off, it’s only a few blocks from the former location of the World Trade Center.
Given the amount of rancor this project received from right-wing pundits last year, one might expect a bigger fallout. But my views haven’t changed from just over a year ago. The construction and existence of a cultural center such as this is far more American than our denying it would have been.
In addition, Park51’s debut exhibit concerned itself almost entirely with depicting the multiculturalism of New York City by showing the works of Danny Goldfield, titled House.”
“America is experiencing an Islamist cultural-political offensive designed to undermine and destroy our civilization. Sadly, too many of our elites are the willing apologists for those who would destroy them if they could. No mosque. No self deception. No surrender,” Gingrich said.
Both of these quotes show just how heated the debate was at the time, and just how angry many Americans were. The likes of Rudy Giuliani, Joe Lieberman and Sarah Palin were also against it.
Look, I understand the attacks on Sept. 11 had monstrous effects on the American psyche, effects which haven’t yet fully scarred over a decade later. However, if we continue to let the hate and fear many people demonstrated last year run our lives those scars will never heal.
As cliche as it is, if we can’t mend ourselves and continue our tradition of multiculturalism then the terrorists really do win.
It’s an example of what we stand for as a country and our rights to free speech and religion, that, a decade after the greatest terrorist attack in American history, we can have a cultural center only blocks away from Ground Zero, sponsored by the very religion of those who attacked us.
That, to me, is America.
 
Zachary Davis is a 20-year-old History Junior from Warsaw, Poland. Follow him on Twitter @TDR_zdavis.
 
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Contact Zachary Davis at [email protected]