Anti-“Ground Zero Mosque” rally turns ugly (predictably)

Angry mob [source: TV Tropes]

In which today’s shiny, peaceful, post-racial, free-religion-espousing America is exhibited in all its glory once again [my emphasis]:

NEW YORK — The proposed mosque near ground zero drew hundreds of fever-pitch demonstrators Sunday, with opponents carrying signs associating Islam with blood, supporters shouting, "Say no to racist fear!" and American flags waving on both sides.

[…]

Opponents of the $100 million project two blocks from the World Trade Center site appeared to outnumber supporters. Bruce Springsteen's "Born in the USA" blared over loudspeakers as mosque opponents chanted, "No mosque, no way!"

Signs hoisted by dozens of protesters standing behind police barricades read "SHARIA" — using dripping, blood-red letters to describe Islam's Shariah law, which governs the behavior of Muslims.

Steve Ayling, a 40-year-old Brooklyn plumber who carried his sign to a dry spot by an office building, said the people behind the mosque project are "the same people who took down the twin towers."

Opponents demand that the mosque be moved farther from the site where nearly 3,000 people were killed on Sept. 11, 2001. "They should put it in the Middle East," Ayling said.

On a nearby sidewalk, police chased away a group that unfurled a banner with images of beating, stoning and other torture they said was committed by those who followed Islamic law.

A man wearing a keffiyeh, a traditional Arab headdress, mounted one of two mock missiles that were part of an anti-mosque installation. One missile was inscribed with the words: "Again? Freedom Targeted by Religion"; the other with "Obama: With a middle name Hussein. We understand. Bloomberg: What is your excuse?"

New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg has fiercely defended plans for the proposed mosque, saying that the right "to practice your religion was one of the real reasons America was founded."

[…]

If the mosque gets built, "we will bombard it," [Kobi] Mor said. He would not elaborate but added that he believes the project "will never happen."

Here’s a video of a Black man being mistaken for a Muslim and treated correspondingly:

But, hey, all that opposition to the Park51 Islamic cultural center has absolutely nothing to do with racism! You know, just like all those other anti-mosque (read: anti-Islamic) protests rearing up across the country. These people are just offended that peaceful Muslims want to build a community center within, say, 50 blocks of Ground Zero! Right? Right?

Well, either that, or this latest “Ground Zero Mosque” hysteria has shone new light on the fact that not only are so many people idiots, they’re also bigots to boot. Nice going, folks.

(video via @todayspolitics)

Tags: racism • Ground Zero Mosque • Muslims • Americans