On September 11, 2010, both those who support the idea of the mosque and those who object spilled out to the streets to voice their opinions.
1. Church Street, between Murray Street and Park Place
There was a pen set up for protesters, media, and anyone else who wished to ask questions or just watch. Outside the pen, police were urging people not to block the sidewalk, and either continue walking or go inside the pen.
The man with the flag believes that "it is not about religion, it is not about politics - it is about understanding." The man with the Bible disagrees; he believes that this is God telling us we need to repent.
This 17-year-old New York native is fine with political arguments any day but today. For her, today is September 11; it should be about the 3,000+ people who died in 9/11 nine years ago. She still remembers how it was that day, though she was only eight years old.She was interrupted by someone that disagreed with her, who then accused her of not voting. She was too young to vote, and still is, for another few months from today.
"You have no rights! You're Islam."The girl in the picture above is actually Jewish, not Islam. The man responded with a "Shalom". He is also Jewish.
"Jesus is the word. He is the answer."This man was a Hindu, until "there was a bomb." He believes that if we do not convert, we will be killed. He also believes that we should "put a Conservative president up and get rid of all the liberals."
To this man, this is not a protest. He is appealing to people to repent and turn to God.
There was a discussion between a passer-by and an anti-abortion activist. It was the passer-by's first time in the area since 9/11, and while he respected the activist's rights, he believed that conversations involving abortion should be taken to other streets. The activist, however, held a different stance: "There are people here, there is media, therefore we speak here today."The former Hindu man was still in the vicinity, arguing with the young NY native, when this man happened to be walking by. He had two questions: "So how many Christians were on the plane? Are you even American?"
It became the start of an argument between this man and another man that happened to be nearby, wearing a "Peace Thru Understanding" t-shirt. An excerpt from the argument:
A: I don't want to argue with you, sir. It's America. They have the right to build a mosque.
B: We should make exceptions to the Constitution.
A: So we should make exceptions to the Constitution?
2. Church Street, between Park Place and Barclay Street
One block south of the first pen, there was a similar pen set up. It was just as well occupied as the first.
This woman used the analogy of a plane destined to crash to describe why we should turn to Jesus Christ. She said that if we are on board an airplane, and the flight attendant tells us the plane will crash and that we should get out, we should get out with a parachute. She recommended that we "put on the parachute of Jesus Christ"."I'm not trying to be religious, but if you confess, put your life in his hands... he will make a new life for you. [...] Isn't your soul more important than anything else?"
This man here, with his "Real Americans don't burn Qurans" sign, does not see a problem with this mosque. He believes that since these are not the same people behind 9/11, we should not blame them. He would also later add that there is no such thing as "the Muslims".
While the vast majority of people in the pen were either busy voicing their own opinions or jotting down what others had to say, this couple silently stood there with a little American flag.
This proud American woman was not afraid to make herself heard. She believes that "that mosque has got to go," otherwise we will always have to bow down to Muslims, and will get "killed for everything."
A man appeared, claiming to be knowledgeable about the Koran. A lengthy argument ensued, drawing in a fair amount of media attention.
Soon enough, this woman was inside the pen with everyone else. She proceeded to belt out a lengthy speech, part of which went as follows:"Islam is not a religion. Islam is a militant supremacist movement! They want to kill everybody who's not Islam. Everybody. It's going to be worse than Hitler! It's going to make Hitler look like child's play. Open your eyes, America! [...] I'm not an Arab."
One reporter asked where she was from. She replied that she is from Brazil, but that it does not matter.
After the woman left, the argument about the nature of the Koran continued. One side believes that paranoia is what destroys people, not the Koran, and there are various interpretations of the book. According to the opposing side, Islam disguised as a religion is not religion, but rather hate, and while people have the freedom to believe in anything as long as it is peaceful, this book calls for murder. One of the pro-mosque protesters shouted out that "Context rules everything."At that moment, a man in a red shirt happened to be nearby. He responded that "context isn't everything; grammatical structure is everything also."
This man was with a girl that may have been his daughter. He seemed like he had had many pictures taken with his placard today. He asked which newspaper I was from.3. Pro-Mosque: Broadway, by the City Hall
These two men are on their way to the pro-mosque protest. Their banner says, "These aren't the Muslims you're looking for..."
The pro-mosque crowd covered a couple of blocks on Broadway next to the City Hall.
A mosque leader was among the speakers at this protest. He assured the attendees that they "are standing on a higher moral ground than everyone". He also added that Ground Zero belongs to all of us, and that our shared priority is to keep justice and peace.A later speaker said that "Muslim is as diverse as any other religion; this is why [they're] here today", and emphasised the importance of religious freedom and equality.
These people were among the many protesters that were proud to share their opinions today.4. Anti-Mosque: West Broadway
The anti-mosque protesters were waiting for their keynote speaker.
This man is being interviewed by the New York Post. He said that this is like bringing the Cordoba mosque here, and thinking about the issue this way will help clarify things.
This man is pre-mosque. When asked why he was here and not two blocks away (at the pro-mosque protest), he said he was "lost". He added that the people that are for a mosque are also from this nation, then left. The media left a large gap at the protest scene when they followed him out of the pen.By the Amish Market, located just south of the protest site, a policewoman was heard saying, "I can't wait till all of this is over." Her colleague agreed.
