The Inquirer believes that the developers who are planning to build an Islamic center and mosque two blocks from the World Trade Center have every right to do so.

Although this is a very sensitive issue – we do understand that many people feel strongly against the location of the proposed mosque – people don’t have the right to not be offended. There will always be things that some people won’t agree with, but that does not give them the right to take away someone else’s rights.

It is not fair for countless Muslim-Americans to be demonized because of the events that transpired on September 11, 2001. It’s not as if this mosque is promoting extremist Islamic beliefs or training terrorists. It would seem that the very people who rallied around the United States after 9/11 would support the Constitution and uphold the rights of its people. You cannot give and take rights when it feels convenient to a certain group of people.

There are already two other mosques within 12 blocks of the World Trade Center. What should be done with these? If people don’t want a new one built, why do they not voice their concern about the already completed mosques?

We agree with President Obama’s initial statement back in August when he said, “Muslims have the same right to practice their religion as everyone else in this country.” No one has the right to take away someone else’s freedom.

The people who oppose the Islamic center are doing the United States a disservice. Some people say that by allowing the mosque to be built, we allow Muslim “triumphalism”, as Newt Gingrich said last month. But it would be more triumphant to allow the mosque to be built because it shows that even after the 9/11 attacks, the United States still values freedom of speech and freedom of religion.

The attacks on the World Trade Center were absolutely tragic, but it would be a disappointment to allow the 19 hijackers to affect how Americans think about their own civil liberties. The Constitution is a blanket protecting our personal freedoms. If the mosque is opposed, a part of the blanket will be removed, exposing the lengths we would take to discriminate against any group whenever we see fit. That’s unacceptable.

Americans must be allowed to express themselves, and we shouldn’t pick and choose just because some of us might be offended.

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