Sarah Palin is hitting the headlines with her stand regarding the planned construction of a mosque in New York. She is totally opposed to the construction of the Cordoba House near Ground Zero. The Cordoba House is the $100M 13-storey mosque and Muslim center aimed to foster better relationship between Americans and Muslims. Sarah Palin cleverly uses her facebook and twitter accounts to express to her thousands of followers her disapproval of the said construction.
More than anything else, I believe that it is Palin's ignorance that really drives her to condemn the construction of the mosque. Palin fails to recognize the millions of Muslims who are peace-loving, God-fearing and law-abiding. Quite obviously, she only notices the few Muslim extremists who kill innocent people. It is her failure to see beyond the stereo-type of a Muslim which instills fear and identification of a threat. The fact remains however that the construction of a mosque near Ground Zero falls within the bounds of the U.S. constitution. Perhaps, Palin chooses not to recognize the fact that Muslims too have the right to practice their faith in America. And a part of that right involves the freedom to construct places of worship. Constitutionally, the construction of the mosque is valid and protected.
While Sarah Palin is entitled to her biased opinion, I choose not to give her thoughts much significance. In a land where tolerance is embraced, Palin chooses to be intolerant. Indeed, such a person does not deserve much attention and importance.
No comments:
Post a Comment