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(I'm cross-posting here because, all else aside, I think - hope, anyway - that this is worth spreading to a wider audience.)
This is Park Place, Manhattan:*
(Larger version here.)
*Not to be confused with Park Place on your Monopoly board, which, like all Monopoly squares, is named after a street in Atlantic City.
It's a quiet little out-of-the-way side street, or as much of one as you'll find on the crowded island of Manhattan. It's well away from the hustle and bustle of midtown, south even of (formerly artsy, now more touristy) areas like the Village. A short walk will take you to City Hall or Tribecca. Wall Street and Battery Park are also within reasonable walking distance.
But this is Manhattan, where everything is so densely packed that even a short walk will take you to an entirely different neighborhood, sometimes what seems like a whole other world. Witness Morningside Heights, for example, where high-end apartment buildings intermingle with student housing for Colombia University. Literally around the corner is an endless row of busy shops and restaurants on Broadway... and it's all just a few blocks away from Harlem. A few blocks in another direction, you'll find the top of Central Park. In Manhattan, short distances can make a huge difference.
As you can see, though, this particular block of Park Place is even quieter than most. In a very rare move by the NYPD, it's been blocked off to vehicular traffic. There's a police car with two officers stationed in the middle of the block. Further, signs have been posted warning of security cameras, and, indeed, there's at least one clearly visible.
And yet, on the left side of the first picture, on the very edge, you can see the fender of a cart looking to sell food and drink to passers-by on the sidewalk. Indeed, towards the middle of the block, there's a small crowd. Some are tourists, but the heart of this particular cluster of people is a class. A teacher is talking, in calm, reasonable, and well-informed terms about the building across the street while the students around him take notes.
It all looks just a little different than Google's Street View of the same place.
What's the fuss about? This building:
(Click for larger image.)
51 Park Place. It's a run-down old building, next door to an AT&T store. For the last couple of years, a corner of the drab interior has been used as a prayer room. There's a five-minute video here. Early this year, plans were announced to remake the building, modernizing and expanding it into a community center, open to the public. In addition to the prayer room, there would be many other facilities, including a pool, basketball court, cooking school, and 9/11 memorial. It would be known as Park 51. At the head of the project is a religious leader who has spent much of his time not just denouncing terrorism and extremism, but actively working to promote peaceful relations, particularly between Muslims and Jews.
Fundraising for the project has not yet begun. It's a daunting task, considering the costs of completely remaking the building. But the money will be raised locally, and funding sources will be publicly disclosed.
So why all the fuss? Well, there wasn't one for well over a year since the prayer room opened. There wasn't one for well over half a year since the project was announced. And then election season came around. Primaries for the 2010 congressional races. Suddenly, fearmongering started. Which led to shouting and threats and protests. And things like this, left on the block, pointing at the building:
(Click for larger image or you can go here for the original. Snagged it for my own stream since I had trouble loading the original. Don't want it to go away.)
You see, the prayer room is used by Muslims. And Park Place also happens to be within walking distance of Ground Zero. Never mind that these Muslims are American citizens. Never mind that the congregation is there for peaceful purposes. Never mind that Muslim Americans were among the dead of 9/11 - both as people who worked in the Twin Towers and as rescue workers who died in the line of duty, doing their best to save lives.
This is the "Ground Zero Mosque." This run-down building on quiet side-street. Not in view of Ground Zero. In practically a whole other neighborhood, despite the physical proximity.
I listened to the teacher as he explained, in the steady voice of a lecturer, about the building and the protests and the fundraising. Watched as the students nodded and looked and took notes. Saw people of all types walk by in ones and twos and threes, saw them take pictures, look around. Half a block away, a steady trickle of weekday morning traffice went by up Church Street and down the last couple blocks of Broadway. It was all so quiet.
I went up to one of the officers in front of the building and asked if I was allowed inside. She told me visitors were normally allowed, but that there was construction going on that day. No one had even come to pray. I was welcome, however, to walk past the barricade and try the front door. So I did. It was open. Inside, a blue tarp hung from the ceiling, making a rough curtain. I could hear a few people at work, but it didn't seem too busy. In fact, it was quiet enough that my tentative footsteps could be heard.
The curtain parted. I got a glimpse of bare walls. A few wires ran across the ceiling. A man walked out. 20-something, brown skin, dark hair. His clothing was casual, and he had a pair of iPod earbuds in place. He would not have stood out at all on any college campus within 500 miles or more. He politely explained that the place was closed for construction, but that visitors would be welcome after 1pm the next day. After a brief exchange, I let him get back to work. Outside, I gave the officer an update so that she'd know in case anyone else asked.
Hopefully, I'll find a time to come back when it's more convenient for them. To some degree, I was hoping for a look around. But that wasn't the main purpose of my visit. What I really wanted was to meet the people. To drop by and offer some support and respect. To offer a friendly voice to help break up the stream of bigotry and hatred directed their way. And maybe, from there, to open a conversation - American to American, Jew to Muslim, human to human.
Another time, perhaps. It's not often that I have free time in the city during daylight hours. But I'll try. Meanwhile, I can share my perspective with you, across the country and the globe, and hope that it will do some good.
This is Park Place, Manhattan:*
(Larger version here.)
*Not to be confused with Park Place on your Monopoly board, which, like all Monopoly squares, is named after a street in Atlantic City.
It's a quiet little out-of-the-way side street, or as much of one as you'll find on the crowded island of Manhattan. It's well away from the hustle and bustle of midtown, south even of (formerly artsy, now more touristy) areas like the Village. A short walk will take you to City Hall or Tribecca. Wall Street and Battery Park are also within reasonable walking distance.
But this is Manhattan, where everything is so densely packed that even a short walk will take you to an entirely different neighborhood, sometimes what seems like a whole other world. Witness Morningside Heights, for example, where high-end apartment buildings intermingle with student housing for Colombia University. Literally around the corner is an endless row of busy shops and restaurants on Broadway... and it's all just a few blocks away from Harlem. A few blocks in another direction, you'll find the top of Central Park. In Manhattan, short distances can make a huge difference.
As you can see, though, this particular block of Park Place is even quieter than most. In a very rare move by the NYPD, it's been blocked off to vehicular traffic. There's a police car with two officers stationed in the middle of the block. Further, signs have been posted warning of security cameras, and, indeed, there's at least one clearly visible.
And yet, on the left side of the first picture, on the very edge, you can see the fender of a cart looking to sell food and drink to passers-by on the sidewalk. Indeed, towards the middle of the block, there's a small crowd. Some are tourists, but the heart of this particular cluster of people is a class. A teacher is talking, in calm, reasonable, and well-informed terms about the building across the street while the students around him take notes.
It all looks just a little different than Google's Street View of the same place.
What's the fuss about? This building:
(Click for larger image.)
51 Park Place. It's a run-down old building, next door to an AT&T store. For the last couple of years, a corner of the drab interior has been used as a prayer room. There's a five-minute video here. Early this year, plans were announced to remake the building, modernizing and expanding it into a community center, open to the public. In addition to the prayer room, there would be many other facilities, including a pool, basketball court, cooking school, and 9/11 memorial. It would be known as Park 51. At the head of the project is a religious leader who has spent much of his time not just denouncing terrorism and extremism, but actively working to promote peaceful relations, particularly between Muslims and Jews.
Fundraising for the project has not yet begun. It's a daunting task, considering the costs of completely remaking the building. But the money will be raised locally, and funding sources will be publicly disclosed.
So why all the fuss? Well, there wasn't one for well over a year since the prayer room opened. There wasn't one for well over half a year since the project was announced. And then election season came around. Primaries for the 2010 congressional races. Suddenly, fearmongering started. Which led to shouting and threats and protests. And things like this, left on the block, pointing at the building:
(Click for larger image or you can go here for the original. Snagged it for my own stream since I had trouble loading the original. Don't want it to go away.)
You see, the prayer room is used by Muslims. And Park Place also happens to be within walking distance of Ground Zero. Never mind that these Muslims are American citizens. Never mind that the congregation is there for peaceful purposes. Never mind that Muslim Americans were among the dead of 9/11 - both as people who worked in the Twin Towers and as rescue workers who died in the line of duty, doing their best to save lives.
This is the "Ground Zero Mosque." This run-down building on quiet side-street. Not in view of Ground Zero. In practically a whole other neighborhood, despite the physical proximity.
I listened to the teacher as he explained, in the steady voice of a lecturer, about the building and the protests and the fundraising. Watched as the students nodded and looked and took notes. Saw people of all types walk by in ones and twos and threes, saw them take pictures, look around. Half a block away, a steady trickle of weekday morning traffice went by up Church Street and down the last couple blocks of Broadway. It was all so quiet.
I went up to one of the officers in front of the building and asked if I was allowed inside. She told me visitors were normally allowed, but that there was construction going on that day. No one had even come to pray. I was welcome, however, to walk past the barricade and try the front door. So I did. It was open. Inside, a blue tarp hung from the ceiling, making a rough curtain. I could hear a few people at work, but it didn't seem too busy. In fact, it was quiet enough that my tentative footsteps could be heard.
The curtain parted. I got a glimpse of bare walls. A few wires ran across the ceiling. A man walked out. 20-something, brown skin, dark hair. His clothing was casual, and he had a pair of iPod earbuds in place. He would not have stood out at all on any college campus within 500 miles or more. He politely explained that the place was closed for construction, but that visitors would be welcome after 1pm the next day. After a brief exchange, I let him get back to work. Outside, I gave the officer an update so that she'd know in case anyone else asked.
Hopefully, I'll find a time to come back when it's more convenient for them. To some degree, I was hoping for a look around. But that wasn't the main purpose of my visit. What I really wanted was to meet the people. To drop by and offer some support and respect. To offer a friendly voice to help break up the stream of bigotry and hatred directed their way. And maybe, from there, to open a conversation - American to American, Jew to Muslim, human to human.
Another time, perhaps. It's not often that I have free time in the city during daylight hours. But I'll try. Meanwhile, I can share my perspective with you, across the country and the globe, and hope that it will do some good.
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From:
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(I shouldn't say this, actually, I'm sure some people would support this cause in a heartbeat. *headdesk*)
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