Time Magazine ran a question on its cover this week asking if America is Islamophobic?
The media has been in an uproar regarding the demonstrations against the mosque that wants to locate at Ground Zero. From hip-hop mogul Russell Simmons to newscaster Katie Couric, everyone is weighing in on this issue.
Simmons asked why anyone should blame Muslims for the second attack on the World Trade Center when no one blamed Christians for the first attack. Huh? What is he talking about? Could he possibly not know that both attacks were perpetuated by radical Muslims?
Meanwhile, Couric said “we cannot let fear and rage tear down the towers of our core American values.” At MSNBC, Norah O”Donnell suggested those opposed to the mosque at Ground Zero are as bad as the terrorists who attacked the World Trade Center and killed thousands of innocent Americans. Even President Obama has weighed in although I”m still not quite certain where he stands on the location of this mosque I do know a lecture when I hear one and certainly many folks have felt the need to lecture those who don”t agree with them on this issue.
The media and a certain segment of our population just can”t pass up any chance to stir the pot. They seem to have an innate need to lecture and judge the rest of us. They repeat endlessly that America is the land of religious freedom, as if we had never heard that concept before. They insist this issue is about racism, bigotry and religious intolerance. They simply can”t or won”t listen when others suggest this issue is really about sensitivity to those who have been wronged the most which obviously are the families of the folks murdered on Sept. 11.
What has happened to our country? Why are we constantly trying to manufacture new victims so that we can label ourselves as intolerant and bigoted? There are many mosques in New York City already; did we try to stop all of them from being built? Do we go out of our way to attack and discriminate against Muslims in our daily lives? Are Americans really the most intolerant people on the face of the earth? Listening to the furor in our media in the last couple weeks it would be understandable if one came to that conclusion. It boggles the mind that anyone would want to immigrate to such an awful country as America, but plenty of people still do, even Muslims.
Many years ago, my husband lived in the Middle East. He taught math at a major university there. He was expected to follow the guidelines of their culture closely. For instance, he could not live with his girlfriend who had traveled all the way from America to be with him. Living together out of wedlock was just not allowed, not even for non-Muslims.
Can you imagine what would happen here if we tried to tell any immigrant from anywhere that they could not live with whomever they chose? The ACLU would descend, the media would condemn and everyone from the President to any kid with a journalism degree would lecture us on how bigoted and intolerant we all are.
Why is it so important for our entertainers, our leaders and our media to portray America as the most bigoted and intolerant country in the world?
Is it because this is the best way to control us? Is calling an American a racist or an intolerant bigot the best way to shut them up and get them to back down?
Will we never again be able to accept that our neighbors and countrymen just might harbor good intentions? Are most Americans really bad people who seek to denigrate others and deny them their civil rights?
Mary Becker is a former San Francisco business owner who now lives in Lake County. Contact her at mbnorthernlights@gmail.com.
