Park51

And the full prepared remarks:

“Good evening, and Ramadan Kareem. I want to welcome everyone to our annual Ramadan Iftar at Gracie Mansion. 

“We call this ‘The People’s House,’ because it belongs to all 8.4 million New Yorkers who call this city home. People of every race and religion, every background and belief. We celebrate that diversity here in this house with gatherings like this. 

“And for me, whether it’s marking St. Patrick’s Day or Harlem Week or any other occasion, these gatherings are always a powerful reminder of what makes our city so strong and our country so great. 

“America is a nation of immigrants, and no place opens its doors more widely to the world than New York City. America is the land of opportunity, and no place offers its residents more opportunity to pursue their dreams than New York City. America is beacon of freedom, and no place defends those freedoms more fervently, or has been attacked for those freedoms more ferociously, than New York City. 

“In recent weeks, a debate has arisen that I believe cuts to the core of who we are as a city and a country. The proposal to build a mosque and community center in Lower Manhattan has created a national conversation on religion in America, and since Ramadan offers a time for reflection, I’d like to take a few minutes to reflect on the subject. 

“There are people of good will on both sides of the debate, and I would hope that everyone can carry on the dialogue in a civil and respectful way. In fact, I think most people now agree on two fundamental issues: First, that Muslims have a constitutional right to build a mosque in Lower Manhattan and second, that the site of the World Trade Center is hallowed ground. The only question we face is: how do we honor that hallowed ground? 

“The wounds of 9/11 are still very much with us. And I know that is true for Talat Hamdani, who is here with us tonight, and who lost her son, Salman Hamdani, on 9/11. There will always be a hole in our hearts for the men and women who perished that day. 

“After the attacks, some argued — including some of those who lost loved ones — that the entire site should be reserved for a memorial. But we decided — together, as a city — that the best way to honor all those we lost, and to repudiate our enemies, was to build a moving memorial and to rebuild the site. 

“We wanted the site to be an inspiring reminder to the world that this city will never forget our dead and never stop living. We vowed to bring Lower Manhattan back — stronger than ever — as a symbol of our defiance and we have. Today, it is more of a community neighborhood than ever before, with more people than ever living, working, playing and praying there. 

“But if we say that a mosque and community center should not be built near the perimeter of the World Trade Center site, we would compromise our commitment to fighting terror with freedom. 

“We would undercut the values and principles that so many heroes died protecting. We would feed the false impressions that some Americans have about Muslims. We would send a signal around the world that Muslim Americans may be equal in the eyes of the law, but separate in the eyes of their countrymen. And we would hand a valuable propaganda tool to terrorist recruiters, who spread the fallacy that America is at war with Islam. 

“Islam did not attack the World Trade Center — Al-Qaeda did. To implicate all of Islam for the actions of a few who twisted a great religion is unfair and un-American. Today we are not at war with Islam — we are at war with Al-Qaeda and other extremists who hate freedom. 

“At this very moment, there are young Americans — some of them Muslim — standing freedoms’ watch in Iraq and Afghanistan, and around the world. A couple here tonight, Sakibeh and Asaad Mustafa, has children who have served our country overseas and after 9/11, one of them aided in the recovery efforts at Ground Zero. I’d like to ask them to stand, so we can show our appreciation. Thank you. 

“The members of our military are men and women at arms — battling for hearts and minds. And their greatest weapon in that fight is the strength of our American values, which have always inspired people around the world. But if we do not practice here at home what we preach abroad — if we do not lead by example — we undermine our soldiers. We undermine our foreign policy objectives. And we undermine our national security. 

“In a different era, with different international challenges facing the country, President Kennedy’s Secretary of State, Dean Rusk, explained to Congress why it is so important for us to live up to our ideals here at home. He said, ‘The United States is widely regarded as the home of democracy and the leader of the struggle for freedom, for human rights, for human dignity. We are expected to be the model.’

“We are expected to be the model. Nearly a half-century later, his words remain true. In battling our enemies, we cannot rely entirely on the courage of our soldiers or the competence of our diplomats. All of us must do our part. 

“Just as we fought communism by showing the world the power of free markets and free elections, so must we fight terrorism by showing the world the power of religious freedom and cultural tolerance. Freedom and tolerance will always defeat tyranny and terrorism – that is the great lesson of the 20th century, and we must not abandon it here in the 21st. 

“I understand the impulse to find another location for the mosque and community center. I understand the pain of those who are motivated by loss too terrible to contemplate. And there are people of every faith – including, perhaps, some in this room – who are hoping that a compromise will end the debate. 

“But it won’t. The question will then become, how big should the ‘no-mosque zone’ around the World Trade Center be? There is already a mosque four blocks away. Should it too, be moved? 

“This is a test of our commitment to American values. We must have the courage of our convictions. We must do what is right, not what is easy. And we must put our faith in the freedoms that have sustained our great country for more than 200 years. 

“I know that many in this room are disturbed and dispirited by the debate. But it is worth keeping some perspective on the matter. The first colonial settlers came to these shores seeking religious liberty and the founding fathers wrote a constitution that guaranteed it. They made sure that in this country the government would not be permitted to choose between religions or favor one over another. 

“Nonetheless, it was not so long ago that Jews and Catholics had to overcome stereotypes and build bridges to those who viewed them with suspicion and less than fully American. In 1960, many Americans feared that John F. Kennedy would impose papal law on America. But through his example, he taught us that piety to a minority religion is no obstacle to patriotism. It is a lesson that needs updating today, and it is our responsibility to accept the challenge. 

“Before closing, let me just add one final thought: Imam Rauf, who is now overseas promoting America and American values, has been put under a media microscope. Each of us may strongly agree or strongly disagree with particular statements he has made. And that’s how it should be – this is New York. 

“And while a few of his statements have received a lot of attention, I would like to read you something that he said that you may not have heard. At an interfaith memorial service for the martyred journalist Daniel Pearl, Imam Rauf said, ‘If to be a Jew means to say with all one’s heart, mind, and soul: Shma` Yisrael, Adonai Elohenu Adonai Ehad; Hear O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is One, not only today I am a Jew, I have always been one. If to be a Christian is to love the Lord our God with all of my heart, mind and soul, and to love for my fellow human being what I love for myself, then not only am I a Christian, but I have always been one.’

“In that spirit, let me declare that we in New York are Jews and Christians and Muslims, and we always have been. And above all of that, we are Americans, each with an equal right to worship and pray where we choose. There is nowhere in the five boroughs that is off limits to any religion. 

“By affirming that basic idea, we will honor America’s values and we will keep New York the most open, diverse, tolerant, and free city in the world. Thank you.”

A spokesman for the real estate developer Sharif El-Gamal, who owns the property at 45-51 Park Place, insisted that the project is on track and that “nothing has changed.”

“The financing is moving forward,” said Park51 spokesman Larry Kopp, while declining to give details on the fundraising status of a project whose cost has been put as high as $100-$150 million.

Park51 has experienced two rounds of leadership changes in the past few months. First, El-Gamal announced in January that Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf — who had been the public face of the project last year when it was the subject of a national controversy — would no longer be speaking on behalf of Park51. Then, a second imam, Sheik Abdallah Adhami, announced in February he was stepping down from a leadership role at Park51 that he has assumed just three weeks before. (That followed a controversy over remarks made by Adhami about homosexuality.)

To Sullivan, the loss of Rauf was the single biggest blow to the project. “They just went through two imams. Imam Rauf and [his wife] Daisy Khan have officially separated from Sharif El-Gamal. Rauf was the international figure that was supposed to draw all of this attention and fundraising capability. El-Gamal on his own is nothing,” Sullivan said.

The New York Times reported last week that Rauf and Khan are now considering trying to build an “interfaith cultural center”in the city, which would be separate from Park51.

The Times also reported that “no money has been raised” for the Park51 project. As early as last summer, media reports suggested that Park51 might never raise the money to get off the ground.

Kopp, the Park51 spokesman, maintained that the project is moving forward. “The common misconception was, because Imam Feisal was the face of the project, that he was calling the shots. He has never been the leader of the project,” he said.

Sullivan, a Brooklyn-born construction worker who will be touring in opposition to Park51 this year, published the apology on his blog, Blue Collar Corner: 

It seems a wrong needs to be righted and the fault is my own. My 911 Hard Hat Pledge to band together fellow Americans to stand in defiance of the very hurtful and distasteful Ground Zero Mosque had spawned a Face Book Boycott. One of my volunteers out west began it and I approved it. It simply put either people and or groups on there who were outwardly in supoport of the Ground Zero Mosque. Some of the culprits were Jon Stewart, Mike Bloomberg and GQ magazine to mention a few.Well it wasn’t till Justin Bieber came out on it that garnered attention. The individual running the site had read an article referencing Tiger Beat’s magazine interview with Bieber where he had informed them his support of it. Well it turned out the interview was a fake but we didn’t find out until quite recently. Weeks ago I did several interviews with media on it and said my children who were fans were upset and my 8 year old took down her posters in her room and my boy said he will not be going to any Justin Bieber concerts after this. My kids are 11 and 8 but if you are a borderline Boomer you know that’s like 18 and 25 by today’s standards. My children were free to make up their own minds regarding Bieber and I respected their convictions. I did not demand or restrict anything in any way I felt that this was an important way for them to get a taste of what it’s like to make an adult decision.

So in closing I offer my most genuine apology to Justin Bieber his family and his fans. If I have caused any grief or pain I am terribly sorry. I for one know what that can do to someone and their family. I also hope this does not detract from our” Sacrificed Survivors” cross country Tour where will be be taking on Imam Rauff and his Pro Ground Zero Mosque Band of propagandists. The Tour begins the 15th of January in Dearborn Mich. Stay tuned I am sure the sparks will be flying.

In an interview with Salon last week, Sullivan referred to Dearborn, which has a large Muslim population, as “Islamoville.”

Bieber’s publicist, by the way, never got back to me in response to questions about the teen star’s actual views on the mosque, and the hoax.

The story began inorganically, with misleading framing pushed into the mainstream by a right-wing blog and the New York Post. It evolved into the national political obsession of the summer and, finally, into a midterm election issue. And then, just like that, it disappeared. 

The course of the media coverage had little to do with the facts on the ground at 49-51 Park Place in lower Manhattan, the proposed site of the mosque. To review what happened: 

News of the proposed Islamic community center first broke in a front-page New York Times piece in December 2009, but it garnered very little attention. The attention it did receive — including from the likes of Fox News — was positive. Then in May, when the project was facing some local bureaucratic hurdles, anti-Muslim blogger Pamela Geller stepped up her coverage of what she called the “Monster Mosque” of “Death and Destruction.” The New York Post adopted Geller’s perspective on the project: that it was something to fear and defeat. (See Salon’s detailed timeline on the origins of the story here.)

The first peak in the coverage came when a wave of national Republican figures weighed in. Rudy Giuliani, Newt Gingrich and Tim Pawlenty each took shots at the project and its organizers. Sarah Palin took to Twitter to call on “peaceful Muslims” to “pls refudiate.”

Meanwhile, the proposed community center had gotten all the necessary regulatory approvals — though there were (and still are) serious questions about whether the organizers could raise the money needed to make the project a reality.

Again, very little about the project itself shaped the media coverage. There were distortions that are, at this point, well known: A mosque was only a small part of the proposed center; it was not at ground zero, but a few city blocks away; the organizers had been operating a progressive mosque in a nearby neighborhood for many years; there were no links to terrorism; lead organizer Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf had in fact worked with both the Bush and Obama administrations promoting the United States in the Muslim world. 

The second peak in coverage came in mid-August when President Obama weighed in at a press conference, citing religious freedom. Those comments gave political reporters an excuse to keep writing about the story for weeks.

But then, after a last gasp in October in the run-up to the election (including a few memorable anti-mosque campaign ads), the story all but disappeared. What changed? Well, on the ground, exactly nothing. The organizers had not changed their plans. Fundraising continued.

There can be no single explanation for why a news story of this magnitude disappears. But, given the timeline here, it seems likely that the electoral calendar played a role. National Republicans who used Park51 as a bludgeon against Democrats suddenly were less interested in talking about the project after the election. In addition, there was suddenly action in Congress again after Nov. 2. And political analysts turned their focus to what Washington would look like with a Republican House majority in 2011.

The media, too, decided that a proposed Islamic community center in Manhattan was not deserving of daily, granular coverage. Looking back now, it’s pretty good evidence of a manufactured story when coverage spikes and then vanishes, even as nothing has fundamentally changed.

In 2011, the “ground zero mosque” story will probably live on — but primarily on Fox News and Pamela Geller’s blog. It’s unlikely that anyone else will pay much attention ever again.

So it was quite a surprise this month to read that Sullivan has set his sights on a new target: Canadian teen pop superstar Justin Bieber.

Mosque foes recently started a boycott of Bieber after he made comments in support of the mosque project in an interview with Tiger Beat, a teen fan magazine, Sullivan told WYNC earlier this month. Now, his 8-year-old daughter and 11-year-old son have been banned from attending Bieber performances.

“I informed them, ‘Hey guys, guess what? Justin Bieber spoke out for the ground zero mosque,” Sullivan explained to Salon in an interview. “My little girl took down his poster and said she didn’t want to have nothing to do with him anymore. These are my kids. They’re living this thing.”

A Facebook page has been set up by an ally of Sullivan publicizing the boycott of Bieber and several other pro-mosque celebrities. It has attracted nearly 500 fans.

Intrigued by the idea that Bieber would weigh in on one of the most polarizing political issues of the day, I began looking for his interview with Tiger Beat. 

The magazine does cover Bieber obsessively (“Justin Bieber Dodges Dating Selena Gomez Question!” and “Did Justin Bieber Grow a Mustache?” are two recent features). But I couldn’t find any sign of an interview on Park51. There is, however, a post on the website CelebJihad.com purporting to describe a Tiger Beat interview. It reads in part:

In an interview with Tiger Beat, the pop sensation stressed that freedom of religion is what makes America great, and went on to say that those who oppose the Mosque are motivated by bigotry.

“Muslims should be allowed to build a mosque anywhere they want,” the singer said. “Coming from Canada, I’m not used to this level of intolerance, eh.”

Bieber went on to say that Muslims are “super cool,” Christians are “lame-o-rama,” and that the mosque will help “start a dialogue” with all religions about which Justin Bieber song is the most awesome.

“I was like seven when September 11th went down, and frankly I’m surprised people are still going on about it. Move on, already!”

Celebjihad.com seems to specialize in softcore celebrity porn, but poke around a bit and you find this disclaimer:

CelebJihad.com is a satirical website containing published rumors, speculation, assumptions, opinions, fiction as well as factual information

I was able to reach the proprietor of the site, who confirmed that the Bieber item is in fact a hoax. “[T]he fact that some people take it seriously is hilariously depressing,” he said in an e-mail.

It’s a hoax, though, that has spread around the Web, and succeeded in taking in several anti-mosque activists. They recently discussed the issue on the wall of the Facebook boycott page:

Megan Alpert: Why is Justin Beiber on Boycott companies for ground zero?? He’s a kid. lol

Cynthia Bloemer: That stupid dhimmi kid spoke out for the Mosque. Idiot kid!

Megan Alpert: That’s crazy Cynthia. I totally missed that all together.

Administrator: Justin took an adult position and spoke out in support of the mosque in tigar beat magazine. He one of the most influential teen sensations, reaching millions of impressionable kids. If he is going to play like the big boys he better expect some back lash…

Megan Alpert: Well then he is leading all the young teens into a funny way of thinking. He was just a baby when the attack came upon us. He has no clue what we are up against. He is very lost.

Walter H Steinlauf: Justin Beiber is “fishing in DEEP water” now. I eat people like that for breakfast. 

Bieber’s publicist did not immediately return a message seeking comment about the hoax and Bieber’s views on the mosque.