Give me a fucking break. I’ve seen so many people (that I follow on Twitter), people that I thought were intelligent and well informed, or at least made a semblance of an attempt to be, express this sentiment. And my respect for them plummeted in the face of such a ridiculous, xenophobic remark. Guys, you’re really not helping the ‘ignorant American’ stereotype. You’re really not.
For those of you that don’t know what I’m talking about (welcome back from under that rock, by the way!), there are plans to build a masjid a couple blocks away from Ground Zero, the site of the September 11 attacks on the World Trade Center.
Spoiler alert: people are all in a kerfluffle about this.
Because, clearly, it’s a slap in the face of all the victims of 9/11, their families, New Yorkers, and Americans in general to build a house of worship so close to ground zero.
Because…what, exactly? 9/11 is the face of Islam? It’s what people think of when they think of Islam? Because the people that gather at this masjid are surely would-be enemies of the state planning untold attacks on America? Because the masjid would harbor these types? BECAUSE ISLAM BREEDS VIOLENT ATTACKS ON OTHER SOCIETIES/RELIGIONS?
Do I even need to write a full post about how moronic these ideas are?
I get that a lot Americans don’t know shit about Islam. I even get that a lot of those Americans don’t even want to know shit about Islam. Demonization is so much easier, after all.
After all, who wants to hear that masjids are places where we gather to pray, to greet each other, to make friends, to meet spouses, to give charity, to learn about Islam, to study the art of Arabic recitation, even to simply sit in solitude and reflect? Who wants to think about how masjids, here and abroad, are places for Muslims to gather and spearhead local initiatives for social welfare: food drives, clothing drives, fundraisers for national and international disasters and war relief (Kosovo, the tsunami in Indonesia, the suffering in Chechnya and Tibet, the children of Afghanistan), free community day care for working Muslim mothers, and the like? Who wants to think about how Muslim immigrants, a good portion of those that frequent these masjids (along with my generation, born and bred in the USA), are one of the most affluent immigrant populations to ever come to this country, and that we use our time at the masjid to network and make connections and help each other out with start-ups, with contacts, with job searches, and more?
Who wants to think about how Islam as a religion and as a word means ‘peace,’ and that violent attacks carried out by deranged lunatics doesn’t change that any more than a bunch of pedophiles in the Catholic Church makes Christianity a religion of sexual perverts?
Masjids are no more centers of inciting violence and horrible attacks like those that happened at Ground Zero, than churches are loci of sexual depravity that prey on defenseless children. The people that visit masjids are no more terrorists than the people that visit churches are child molesters.
So what is it about having a masjid so close to Ground Zero that’s so offensive and horrible and damnable?
Because Islam was responsible for 9/11?
Are we still fucking stuck on that?
If you legitimately believe that, I feel tremendous pity for you.
Is it because masjids are gathering places for terrorists, places for them to plan and carry out their attacks? They might be in the sense that people who want to carry out those attacks might meet there. But guess what? The 9/11 hijackers met up in various places of business in Las Vegas. And an upper middle class suburban neighborhood. In a motel in Maryland. I bet it’s not even a stretch to say that would-be terrorists have met at a fucking Starbucks, sipping frapps while they plot out their whole death-to-America garbage.
News flash: Masjids aren’t some beacon of plotting terror activities. Unless you’ve got a completely radical population that supports that and gathers at one local masjid, masjids in the US do quite the opposite. Step into a masjid, I dare you. You know what you’ll find? You’ll find a bunch of largely middle-class folks, sitting barefoot on a carpet. They’ll be doctors, engineers, lawyers – because studies indicate that not only are Muslim immigrants among the wealthiest immigrant groups to ever settle in this country, but they are generally very well educated and, as a result, have raised their children to be the same. They live here in America, they speak the language, they wear the clothes, and they have relatively spotless records. And yes, I feel comfortable saying that, because the immigrant population particularly was brought up overseas not to drink or do drugs (salient aspects of our religion), and that discipline manifests itself all over the place.
We’re not sitting in our masjids like something out of one of Bin Laden or Al-Zawahiri’s videos. If you come into our masjid, you’ll see that for the most part, our men wear trousers and jeans. Our women wear jeans or pants or long skirts, or robes because they feel like it. When we leave the masjid, we turn on our iPhones and our iPods, we drive off in our sedans, and we go about our day the same way you do.
Masjids are places of peace and worship. I’m very comfortable saying that in the vast majority of masjids across the country, that death-to-America rhetoric isn’t tolerated. Why? Because our parents emigrated here for a reason. They may not condone the American culture of drinking and sex and Britney Spears, but they came here for a reason. They found opportunities, educational, professional, and more, in this country. A lot of them even found spouses in this country (usually through the masjids). They made a conscious decision to raise their kids here, not overseas. They’re proud of the American justice system, the education system, the societies they find themselves a part of, all while knowing they’ll never be truly accepted as loyal Americans. But that’s okay, because they kind of like it here, and they raised kids who like it here. A lot.
They raised kids who, daily, negotiate how to keep their Islamic ideals intact and be accepted in American society. Sometimes it’s easy, seamless, unconscious. Sometimes, like when a lunatic tries to detonate a bomb in Times Square or set something on fire in an airplane, it’s very, very difficult.
What I think most people don’t get is that masjids host a very wide cross-section of people. There are old people there, like, really old people who are so conservative and traditional it’d make your head spin. There are people like Mama and Papa Hoomster, nearing retirement age, people with one foot in each country. There are middle-aged folks who were the first real folks born here. There are people my age, young professionals who are more closely tied to America than they ever will be to another country. There are people younger than me, school children. It’s not just a bunch of crusty immigrants who barely speak English talking about the white devil and the imperialist America. There are folks that converted to Islam – Caucasians, African Americans, Asians. People from all walks of life who identify themselves as Muslims and Americans and find the idea that the two are exclusive in any way completely laughable.
When it came out that the Times Square bomber was an American, media sources were quick to say that he’d only been nationalized however long ago (I forget). Translation: Yeah, he’s American, but he’s only a teensy bit American.
I shouldn’t even have to say that American Muslims are proud of being American. I really shouldn’t. It should go without saying. But the popular rhetoric since 9/11 has been that Muslims are terrorists and it’s just that simple. All Muslims are terrorists and all terrorists are Muslims…except for the 94% that aren’t. Even the Justice Department sang that same tune shortly after 9/11.
Muslims aren’t terrorists, and masjids aren’t places where we plan our attacks. If you’re going to claim that Muslims have a violent mentality toward the West, also note that almost all attacks on Muslim countries historically have been from Western countries. There are two sides to a coin, two sides of a story. I’m not excusing anything: all I’m saying is not to parrot the one thing you heard from Glenn Beck and ignore the context.
Putting a masjid by the 9/11 site isn’t anything to get upset about. Suggesting that it’s somehow terrible and a slap in the face of America and the victims of 9/11 is an ignorant, xenophobic view I’ve been confronted with far too often to keep quiet about. In suggesting that it’s somehow wrong, all you’re doing is endorsing the idea that Islam only stands for violence and terrorism, which is akin to my saying that Christianity only stands for sexually abusing little boys, and Judaism only stands for hoarding money, or something unacceptably ignorant like that.
This post was a very long-winded way for me to say that if you honestly feel that building a masjid that close to Ground Zero is ‘highly inappropriate,’ as @SCartierLiebel, who I previously had at least some modicum of respect for, put it, then you can go get fucked.
Here’s a beautiful NYC masjid. Here is what people are afraid of. Again, those people can go.get.fucked.
Thank you. This pretty much sums up everything I’ve been feeling all day.
Ugh. I have so much more pent-up frustration regarding the Times Square bomber. Some jackass posed this brilliant question to me about why Muslims are always suspected whenever we hear “bomb threat.” Observe this gem: “If we find a black guy hanging from a tree with a rope around his neck and n—-r written on his shirt, do we suspect Greenpeace?”
ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME?!
WTH?!? …No words.
What can you do? Some people just don’t get it.
Well said, Huma!!
It seems like we’ve crawled back to a time when ignorance is something to almost be proud of!!! Like the genius in FL (I think) running for something who thinks we should legalize racial profiling because we know what they look like! Then he has two guys – one a white guy in a business suit and one a Muslim-looking man with a scarf covering his eyes. He said does this look like a terrorist (white guy) or does THIS (Muslim guy)!! OMG!!!! As if they have ALL forgotten Timothy FUCKING McVeigh!!!!
Keep up the outrage! It is necessary!!!
It’s just the ridiculous arab named idiots out there, who have so many issues, they just want to raise hell every couple of weeks or so. These idiots are REALLY helping our image. And then, on top of that, comes the redneck ignorant person who thinks they know everything and everyone and just poses all these stereotypes. The people just have to go crawl in a hole and stay there. I’m willing to go stick them in a hole, how about you?
[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by lbergus, Huma Rashid, Huma Rashid, Solo Ensemble, Joe Ross and others. Joe Ross said: @huma_rashid offers a cogent look at the absurdity of the no-mosque-at-ground-zero bilge sloshing around recently – http://ow.ly/1Ina2 #fb [...]
Huma,
Since I originally tweeted the article with the phrase, ‘seems highly inappropriate’ which you asked me to respond to, I’ll do so on your blog. (just saw the tweets, BTW, because I was out all afternoon)
My response had nothing to do with racism or lumping together a radical minority with a peaceful majority or anything even remotely close to this.
The best way to answer you is to share a story from the early 1980s. Bear with me before you react and I think you’ll understand my use of the phrase ‘seems highly inappropriate’ because it has nothing to do with justifying anyone’s position, the article posted or its content. More to do with the headline and the emotional response it illicits. Emotional is not factual and anyone who knows me knows I am the other end of the pendulum when it comes to judgment against others.
In the early 80′s there was a truly horrific story which rocked California. It was about a day care which was run for several years and unbeknownst to the parents the children were being physically abused, sexually molested and so much more. When the story finally came out it was learned this had been going on for years and it shattered people and highlighted unregulated day cares, pedophilia and other horrors.
People Magazine ran a several page article on it with details that left you breathless and aghast. And as soon as you were finished reading the article, wanting to cry because of the unimaginable suffering of these children, on the about facing page was a full page ad by Nikon of a beautiful 3 year old girl giggling…. and totally naked but for a small shirt opened and her mommy’s high heels.
My first gut, emotional reaction was shock and then the exact same words ‘how inappropriate.’
I was so upset not because People Magazine ran the article (they report news) or because Nikon ran this campaign (because it was a simply stunning picture filled with childhood joy captured on film). It was the thoughtless placement of the advertisement immediately after this horrific article on child molestation and abuse.
The placement of the ad next to the end of the article was ‘thoughtless’ and highly inappropriate and at first blush reflected very poorly on Nikon for being so insensitive to the emotions and issues regarding the care of children in this country at a time when women were finally getting into the workplace in large numbers.
Since I am a person of action and in another lifetime was in the advertising world, I wrote a letter to Nikon and explained I wasn’t judging them, I’m not part of the moral majority or anything like that. I did explain my gut response and said if I was reacting this way, how must others be reacting and it would not reflect well on Nikon because most would not take the time to understand how advertisements are placed, the life cycle of ad campaigns and more.
I still have the letter I received from the then President of Nikon who told me that in his country the body is revered and found beautiful. This print campaign was almost cycled-out and when the campaign was done they would not run it, again. They didn’t realize the placement because it was run-of-paper meaning it was determined by the magazine. He also understood what they consider beautiful in Japan may not sit well in the U.S. His response to my letter was sensitive and intelligent and he also spoke with People Magazine about their choice to run his ad after the article.
The point I’m making here is this: two things which are totally appropriate when apart when put together create an unintended emotional reaction. Therefore, under the circumstances it ‘seems highly inappropriate.’
Susan, what can I possibly say to that? I read your comment yesterday, didn’t trust myself to reply right away, and figured I’d just come back to it later.
And I’m back today, and I still barely trust myself to reply. So I’ll just say this. Yes, it’s often true that the juxtaposition of two otherwise innocuous (in this context) and distinctly meaningful things creates a new expression, by simple means of that juxtaposition, that is far removed from that innocuous meaning originally.
But that you would state, quite clearly that an article about child molestation placed next to a picture of a nearly undressed child is AS INAPPROPRIATE as building a house of peaceful worship next to a site of national tragedy….it just boggles my mind.
BOGGLES MY FUCKING MIND.
I stand by the last point in my post. And in addition to that, I just feel terribly sorry for you. What an ignorant person you are.
Huma,
This is your blog and you’re free to be as intelligent or as coarse as you choose to be.
However, if you can’t take the next logical steps with my analogy and are mired down in choice of story rather than advancing to the conclusion which is ‘why’ there is an initial gut reaction by some, then I leave you to your boggled mind.
Ironically, didn’t you have an initial gut reaction to three little words on a page – ‘seems highly inappropriate’ and have now drawn a myriad of conclusions about a bunch of people, the very thing you rail against?
As far as calling others ignorant, I think you’re young, intelligent, passionate and unrestrained. You might want to work on the restrained part. Age will take care itself.
A tone argument? Really? That’s the best you’ve got?
Your original comment seemed to say that the act of building a masjid near the World Trade Center site was highly inappropriate. Of course Huma got upset at that. I got upset at that, because the way you phrased it made you look like a kneejerk fearmonger. It made it look like you were saying, yes, that if there was a masjid near Ground Zero, then that was inappropriate and disrespectful to the victims, the families and anything else you want to throw in there. Ideally under a American flag.
Yeah, it looks like you said all of that with 3 words.
Now you’re saying that the fact that CNN reported it as “masjib built two blocks from Ground Zero” was inappropriate because it might make people upset? I don’t even know what you think your point is.
People get upset because they are ignorant morons and like I said to Huma on twitter, this is un-fucking-believable. Except it’s totally believable. Which makes it even more un-fucking-believable.
Susan -
Why waste time presenting arguments and rationale (which I did in the actual post) when they’re just completely meaningful and useless to someone so happy to say racist things like that? Why waste time presenting cogent, ‘restrained’ arguments to someone like you, when FUCK YOU is so much more efficient? :)
You’ve already proven, with knee-jerk whining about tone and decency, that you have nothing of substance to bring to the table here.
Age takes care of a lot of things, I’ll agree. I’ll grow out of swearing eventually. Too bad you won’t grow out of your sheer ignorance and xenophobia.
So wait. I read Susan’s long and stupid post purporting to explain why she made that bigoted comment even though the post doesn’t explain why she made that comment, but only tells a borderline insane story that has nothing to do with any semblance of her argument.
After “name-dropping” that she worked in advertising (why is it that all these trolls always have to tell us their resumes?), she informs us that the reason she made that disgusting comment about Muslims was because one day she was reading a story and an AD that the magazine placed after the story upset her.
And she was so upset, in fact, (because, after all, she’s a person of action!!!) that she wrote the company a letter about the placement of its advertisement. At no point did she realize that the company did not have a say in the placement of their advertisement. Did she think that Nikon had just forgotten to check the “Don’t juxtapose my Ad with stories of child abuse and pedophilia” box? Did she think that the Advertising director at Nikon was sitting around one day and thought, “You know what would really sell cameras . . .”
She received a form apology letter that was probably written by a customer service intern and it made her feel so empowered that she saved it. And she thinks the president of Nikon wrote that letter.
This might be the dumbest story I’ve ever heard in my life.
She exhibited horrible judgment by making the comment. She exhibited horrible judgment in telling us some bizarre story that makes her seem crazy. With her credibility completely out the window, she decided to reframe her argument on the fly and make ad hominem attacks by implying your use of profanity was unintelligent.
No, all this stupidity doesn’t surprise me at all. This is a person with bad judgment and an overinflated sense of self importance. She’s going to scream and flail and rant and tell stories that don’t make sense instead of just admitting the tweet was wrong and being finished with it.
And for you, Laura, the fact that you agree with Susan should have surprised me. It really should have. I was expecting to feel surprised, I truly was. And yet I wasn’t.
So I’ll repeat what I said to her: my last point in the post absolutely applies here. Go get fucked.
Ok so um it seems that someone hijacked my wordpress stuff. This is absolutely not my post and I’d appreciate it if you’d remove it from your blog. Thanks!
Um, Laura didn’t post this comment. FTR, I completely disagree with Susan. Well stated, Humarashid
So would building a Catholic church two blocks from a daycare center be “highly inappropriate,” because some members of that religion (like some members of any religion) have done evil things? This isn’t any different.
I think it’s actually great to have a building that represents all the good qualities of Islam near a place where some people perverted the religion to do evil things.
Having any problem with the masjid really is saying that you have a gut reaction that all Muslims are terrorists. I don’t see how it can be otherwise.
I’ll have to agree with Huma on this one. You cannot make that analogy on “gut reactions” by relating putting a tragic story on children to a page next a nikon photo of naked children to putting a Masjid next to ground zero. I mean, seriously?
There is absolutely nothing even gut-wrenching about the appropriateness or inappropriateness of putting a Masjid next to this tragic sight. If anything, it should bring hope instead of feelings of inappropriateness. Hope, tolerance.. perhaps “One Nation *Under God*”? To pull from our Pledge of Allegiance…
Anyway, I don’t want to repeat Huma’s, redheadedgirl’s, New Kid’s… arguments
Huma.. your reaction was appropriate.
New Kid took the words right out of my mouth regarding the placement of a school near a Catholic Church. Just as Nikon did not take part in the abuse of the children at that daycare, the Muslims building the mosque 2 blocks from Ground Zero had nothing to do with 9/11, and should not be penalized because of it.
Can we all agree this is a product of ignorance and that people fear what they don’t understand? I think that’s reasonable, right?
Mr. President likes to call these “teachable moments” and I think that’s about right. What do we need to do before this no longer seems “inappropriate”? How do we break the connection some people have made between terrorism and Islam?
The thing is, the masjid is going up. As the CNN article notes, it doesn’t require any zoning changes and they didn’t actually need to go to the board or get permission from anyone. So, how do we educate people? How do we help them understand what Huma has pointed out in her blog entry?
You guys, terorrism is not an “Islam thing.” Terrorism is coercion through violence. Terrorism is using terror, fear, to get what you want. I studied war and terrorism in undergrad. Terrorism is not a phenomenon unique to any part of the world or any religion.
I’m Catholic. I don’t think I need to review various acts of terrorism done in the name of Christianity [which is, ironically, also a faith of peace, love, and forgiveness of sin] over the last few hundred years.
And our sex abuse scandals? I don’t imagine people would object to the juxtaposition of a daycare and a Catholic church. People rail against the abusers and rightly anger against the Church for not doing everything in its power to deal with this. But, people do not view Catholicism as a religion of sex abuse. This is why I imagine that people wouldn’t make the connection of day care –> children –> church –> priests –> abused children. Why is this? What has made Islam different?
9/11? Ok. And what about McVeigh? And Scott Roeder?
What has made Islam different?
I propose it is ignorance and fear bred from that ignorance.
And, I think we need to do what we can to help get at the root cause of fear by education and community development.
Are there always going to be people who make the sorts of judgments that made Huma use lots of swear words? As long as there are people we haven’t reached yet, yes. But the more we educate people, the more people there will be to object to such reactions, if only for the resentment and ignorance they perpetuate. And, more importantly, the more people there will be who can say, “You know, I still don’t agree with that, but I understand it.”
People will disagree. That’s what we do. But, understanding leads to empathy, and empathy leads to compassion. Compassion is what we need right now, so understanding is what we should aim for.
Fin.
To Susan and Laura:
I would like to tell you why, in my opinion, your position surpasses being simply wrong and approaches being scary. Now before you begin making guesses about me, personally, I’ll just tell you up front that I am a white guy who was raised on the North Shore by a family who identifies as Methodist. I now hold myself out as an unabashed atheist. I mention these things because I wanted you to know that I do not have any ideological biases regarding support for masjids, churches, synagogues, or any other worship sites. I also would like to tell you why I address this post to you, specifically, rather than just making it a general post regarding my views on the subject. I do this because you each drafted the concept of logic into your argument. Yes, I realize that Laura never employed the word “logic” but if I understand your use of the term “common sense” correctly, you’re invoking the same idea. First, I’ll say that the concept of building a logical, or commonly sensible, argument in the arena of what people find distasteful is bordering on retarded, but what the hell, let’s give it whirl.
So here it is. Your position only stands up to reason if you first grant the premise that Islam itself holds some causal relationship with the attacks of 9/11. By this I mean that you cannot reasonably hold the building of a masjid contemptuously without first some having some contempt for at least one of the aspects of a masjid. Since Susan employed an analogy in her post, I’ll do the same.
Most of the states and/or municipalities of this country have statutory law regarding how close to a school or house of worship one can open up an adult bookstore or an adult dance club. We have these laws because there is a shared perception among many, if not most, that the mixing of churches and porn shops creates imagery that people find distasteful. This isn’t terribly different than the reasoning you use to come to the conclusion that building a masjid near ground zero is distasteful. This is where we come to an issue with your position. We, socially speaking, accept the concept of separating houses of worship and porn shops because we, nearly universally, accept the premise that the values and virtues espoused and promoted by the houses of worship are contra-posed to the concept of commercializing the sex industry. Where your argument falls off the rails is the implication that Islam, or in this case the masjid, would symbolize some value set that is contra-posed to the imagery elicited by the memorial at ground zero. I think that would be a tough argument to make.
In fact, the argument cannot hold water in any way without the belief that Islam played a causal role in the 9/11 attacks. That’s the connection that others will find offensive. That is why your position evokes such a passionate response from people like Huma. Islam, as a religion, played no causal role and bore no causal relationship to the events of 9/11. These were the acts of mad men. You need to make that real. You have to understand that simply because one drapes himself in the rhetoric of an idea, doesn’t mean that the values of the idea support his action. You cannot associate the acts of one group of men with other men that had nothing to do with the act. It (9/11) wasn’t the fault of Islam and your position requires that Islam is part of the construction that brought the men to commit the act.
Finally, here’s why it’s scary. You don’t get that. I know that you don’t get it b/c your argument doesn’t address it. It’s the fundamental flaw in your reasoning that your post glosses over without even the slightest hint of a mention. It’s scary because when people start opposing a minority’s right to worship in the fashion and in the place that they, the minority, see fit, we move a little bit closer to saying it’s okay to oppress people who disagree with us. This is all by way of saying I agree with Huma. Get fucked.
Just wanted, again, to state that Laura didn’t post this. Someone has been posting under her name.
Huma,
Thank you so much. Otherwise, I’m simply speechless.
Forwarding liberally.
Kate
[...] Reasonably Prudent Law Student: On your post the Masjid Near Ground Zero, YOU GO GIRL! Tell that crazy comment lady! (Love getting riled up over this kind of [...]
[...] her own memories of Kagan’s presence as dean. Marshall ‘11 Huma shed some light on the differing opinions about building a masjid near Ground Zero. Minnesota ‘11 Dennis experienced a moment of sheer terror when he realized he didn’t [...]
This is so sneaky..OMG I cannot believe that this is even an option or a consideration. The guys who took the planes into the towers chanted “allah ho Akbar” (God is great) and thats what they ( the musilms) chant in their mosques/masjids.
The act was committed by a bunch of muslims. And as far as I go this is a sneaky “back-door” way of honoring the muslim so-called matyrs ( the terrorists) who died for their religion. And we stupid ass hole naive Americans are going to allow a mosque/masjid to come up right there next to ground zero? then we are allowing the terrorists to be martyred and the ground where they died ( killed themselves) to be hallowed? SHIT ON THEM.
This is bull crap. I will totally loose faith and respect for America and New York if this shit is allowed to be passed and come about. I WAS UNDER THAT BUILDING ON 9/11 and I KNOW WHAT IT FEELS LIKE TO BE TERRORRIZED.
MUSLIMS CAN GO BUILD MOSQUES IN the middle east and Mecca not here and NOT next to ground zero( and infact nowhere in the USA.) . Lets not be hood winked into giving them( the 9/11 terrorists) martyrdom.
Ryan and the other guys and gals your stupid. Heck knows who this HUMA woman is …for all I care she must be a male fanatic muslim with the pen name of HUMA. And whats about the F word she keeps using…not in keeping with her type. This is identity shielding… get real you guys on this blog.
Thank you for pointing me out personally. I mean that. No kidding. It tells me that I got under your skin. It tells me that there was something about what I wrote that you found especially poignant. It lets me know that there is a fundamental difference between the way that I think and the way that you think. Please, pause for a moment while I breath a sigh of relief.
Now that that’s over, do yourself a favor and notice that everyone else who has posted here, even Susan and Lauren, have tried to make a point. You still haven’t. And for that matter, everyone else who has posted here hasn’t seemed to wrestle with language the way that you do. Collect yourself, determine a cogent thesis, and try again please.
Haley,
There are a couple things that I think that you should know. First, this is a blog that is read and commented on by adults. We use all of the words of the English language, including the word “fuck,” because there is no reason not to use them. I’m not going to shy away from using the word “fuck” simply because it might offend a person who supports a position and rationale that I find offensive. I gave you and your cohort a sound, reasoned argument explaining the fundamental flaw in your position. Not one of you has been able to offer a response that is directed at the issue at hand. In fact, your second post essentially concedes your xenophobia. So as long as you’ll be openly racist and openly xenophobic, I’ll continue to give you arguments against that position and finish with a good ol’ FUCK YOU.
Second, if you have any doubts about who I am, I invite you to come to Chicago, visit The John Marshall Law School and ask around about me. My name is Ryan Galloway. You can look me up on facebook (I have an Ohio State logo for my profile pic). You can leave me messages; I’ll be happy to tell you to fuck off after destoying any point that your tiny little brain can muster through that media as well as this one. I know Huma personally, and the fact that you doubt her identity speaks only to the point that you have nothing of substance to offer to the actual conversation.
Third, you write like you’re in junior high.
SO FUCK YOU and have a nice day.
Hahaha. I was just going to sit here and laugh at her. :D Seriously, her comments made me giggle when I read it this morning. I love crazy people. Until they get stabby. Then the love fades a little. :-|
You know, I would laugh except for this is the kind of rhetoric one might easily hear at a KKK meeting. There is no string of reasoned thought. There is no semblance of structured argument. And she takes the “us v. you” position. It’s like two steps away from having a book burning in 1936 Berlin.
[...] Law Student [...]
[...] Reasonably Prudent Law Student: On your post the Masjid Near Ground Zero, YOU GO GIRL! Tell that crazy comment lady! (Love getting riled up over this kind of [...]
Huma, just to tell you who I am, Im a fourth year evening law student and former President of the Middle East Law Student Association at John Marshall for the last two years.
First HUMA its a shame that I didn’t know about your blog until tonight. I love your blog, even if these posts are the only postings I ever read. Your enthusiasm and honesty, and dedication to principle and truth are awe inspiring. People are too afraid to speak the truth, or take a stand or recognize the “wolves in sheep’s clothing”. Ignorance is not unique to the uneducated, it can be found in institutions of higher learning.
Second it is an honor to share the halls of John Marshall Law School with you, and I look forward to meeting you, hopefully before I graduate this December.
If there is anything I can ever be of help to you here at Marshall or in the future, advice, direction, classes, jobs, please do not hesitate to contact me. It would be my pleasure to impart whatever limited knowledge or help I may have.
Your talents and honesty are rare and should be encouraged.
Oh and for the record “Susan and Haley”………..FUCK YOU.
all those who disagree with building a mosque near ground zero thats your personal problem. islam rejects terrorism and cowardly acts such as 9/11. not to mention islam is the fastest growing religion in the world.
keep building!!!
Hey Huma, You are completley right. But one thing you should keep in mind, when speaking of Islam as a peaceful religion that teaches patience, especially in the month of Ramadhan, Just remember, Non-Muslims are also reading it. The fact that you put curses into your blog completley goes against the peaceful image we are trying to portray. As Muslims, we should teach by example. The cursing is not a good example. Rather, portrays us Muslims as bad, ignorant people. If we vent our anger by cursing and violence, what is the difference between us and these Non-muslims who are against us? I dont mean to be insulting, your point is compeltley right, just next time you make something public, watch your language- we dont want to look trashy
BTW, to the “Emotionally laden prejudicial ignoramus” with the explanation as to why she was upset — Do YOUR HOMEWORK and you will find that ULTIMATELY when the witch hunt was over and REAL evidence was examined — Unfortuntately, MUCH later in a TRUE legal environment where REAL TANGIBLE EVIDENCE was required — it turns out that the day care center and its staff were INNOCENT.
Police departments, prosecutors, posturing politicians, and media that participated in the unjust rush to accuse and convict on unsupported hearsay all would up with egg on their faces AND large holes in their wallets.
But, I guess those who are ONLY attracted to rash judgements and NEVER read or examine missed that part…
BTW, I hear there are PLENTLY of openings in third world countries where they convict people based on opinion — suggest you go THERE as you are NOT a REAL AMERICAN.
Holy Cow. You guys, I absolutely did not write that reply. I’m mortified.
http://lauramcwilliams.wordpress.com/2010/09/02/identity-theft/
Someone is posting under Laura’s Name.
that comment above doesn’t sound like Laura McLaura.
hmm…..
911 was an inside job – so who really gives a shit if a masjid is being built near Ground Zero!
I m a muslim,i belive in holly quran,and i also belive that their is nothing worng in the quran,and who read the quran and understand they can’t do this(9/11 incident).
My family fled German militarism in the last century. As a youngster hearing from my grandparents about the idiotic things the Germans believed about Jews I became convinced that Germans must have some kind of mental defect.
Now I am in my 60′s and observing what many Americans believe about Muslims I am not so smug. A favorite tactic of German anti-Jewish propaganda was to quote the Torah out of context to justify their heinous criminal acts against a helpless minority. That same tactic is now being employed here in the USA against Muslims by using out of context quotes from the Quran.
In many ways the only real difference between Hitler’s Germany and today’s America is what Middle-Eastern religion is being vilified. Shame on all of you pretend Americans who should know better — many of whom are really low-lifes who are overjoyed to get some kind of official sanction and social acceptance for their illogical prejudices and mindless hatred of a minority.