AC360: Fareed Zakaria Discusses The Muslim Community Center & Why He Returned The ADL Award

Run time: 05:08 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wXAUvo0Ad78   Posted on YouTube: August 12, 2010 By YouTube Member: NewsPoliticsAmerica Views on YouTube: 30   Posted on DU: August 12, 2010 By DU Member: Turborama Views on DU: 975

 
COOPER: We're talking about the outcry over that Islamic center and mosque planned for Lower Manhattan near Ground Zero but also what appears to be the growing anti-mosque, anti-Muslim, in some cases bigotry across the country.

Earlier you heard Congressman Louie Gohmert lay out a conspiracy theory involving Muslim terrorist babies. You saw pictures of protestors outside mosques, one of the groups planning to actually burn Korans on 9/11. You just hear a Christian minister say Islam is a lie -- that's his words.

We've seen the Anti-Defamation League, whose mission statement proclaims opposition to intolerance of any religion, come out against the downtown mosque.

Several years ago, the ADL awarded CNN International's Fareed Zakaria its First Amendment Freedoms Prize. Over the weekend he said he is returning it. We spoke earlier tonight.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

COOPER: So the U.S. government is yet again sending this imam, who is behind the Ground Zero mosque, overseas to represent the United States and Muslims in the United States and tell people around the world about what it's like being a Muslim in the United States. Now some representatives, Republicans, are saying they shouldn't be sending this guy, should they?

FAREED ZAKARIA, HOST, "FAREED ZAKARIA GPS": No, of course they should, and it just points out the central error and flaw in the way people are looking at this.

The United States has been searching for moderate Muslims, particularly moderate Muslim clergymen, to send out to spread the idea of moderate Islam and Islam that is pluralistic, tolerant. They found this guy. This is years before --

COOPER: And they've been sending him out since, I think, 2007.

ZAKARIA: Right. And he does FBI sensitivity training to teach the FBI how to detect extremist Islam, how to detect, you know, which ones are moderate. So this is proof positive, if you will, that the guy is actually a moderate, that the U.S. government has found him to be moderate.

COOPER: But some Republicans who I've talked to say, look, you know, he has said on "60 Minutes", he said that he seemed to be blaming the United States for -- in part for 9/11 or that he refuses to -- to renounce Hamas.

ZAKARIA: Look, I don't want to defend his political views. They're not my political views. The stuff I've seen of his is pretty generic, you know, and I hate to put it this way, but left-wing critiques of American foreign policy.

The core issue about this guy is, what does he think about Islam. You know, what are his views on terrorism? Does he -- what are his views on women's rights? What are his views on whether the Koran should be interpreted liberally? Whether you should be tolerant of other religions? And on all those issues, he has time and time again come out squarely in the moderate or liberal camp.

COOPER: You actually have now returned to the Anti-Defamation League an award that they gave you several years ago. Why did you return it?

ZAKARIA: Well, I'll tell you what happened, Anderson. I was going to write a column on this -- on this issue. And I was going to write a column arguing that it was wrong for the United States -- in the United States for us to be discriminating against particular religions, treating these people as second-class citizens. It was a violation of our First Amendment principles.

And I was looking -- across my office was this award that the ADL had given me. And it's called the Hubert Humphrey First Amendment Freedoms Award. And I thought there was something so hypocritical about an organization that was giving an award for the defense of the First Amendment, which is an amendment that says Congress shall not establish any religion in this country or favor any religion, to have taken the stand that it did. The ADL came out and basically put its -- cast its weight on the side of those opposed to the mosque.

COOPER: Right. They claim that they support the right to have an Islamic center there, but because of the sensitivity that -- of the issue and the area, that basically they're saying you should pay attention to the sensitivities of the 9/11 victims.

ZAKARIA: Right. I mean, to my mind there's a little bit of nit-picking there. They chose to weigh in on this issue, and they weighed in on the side of telling people the mosque, you know, was a bad idea. They chose to get involved in this, in my opinion, on the wrong side.

Look, the ADL does very good work, and what I'm hoping that, by returning the award and the money that came with it, I send them a signal and make them think about what they're doing.

COOPER: Now, on buses and some buses in New York, there's going to be this ad that I think was originated by a right-wing blogger. Should these ads be on buses basically saying why there? It's going to show a picture of one of the towers with the plane going toward it, and it's going to show a picture on the other side -- there it is -- you know, of a building with an Islamic symbol on it.

ZAKARIA: Sure it should run. I mean, I don't know what the MTA's particular rules are, but my own view is freedom of expression means freedom of expression. If people want to buy ads saying whatever they want, that's just fine.

Look, the politics of this are clear. Most people are opposed to this. I understood that full well when I took the stand I did. But American democracy, the glory of American democracy is that it is not just about what the majority thinks is right.

The Bill of Rights is an anti-democratic document. The Bill of Rights says, "No matter what the majority thinks, these rights are sacrosanct." And the first of those rights, the First Amendment, is about freedom of religion.

COOPER: Fareed Zakaria, appreciate it. Thanks.

ZAKARIA: Pleasure, Anderson.

It must have been something in the title because there wouldn't have been enough time to watch it. :shrug:

Thank you for your counter rec, though! :hi:

I am beginning to favor either the elimination of the UNREC, or at least, making it something that one cannot does anonymously.

:applause:

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

and he is a thoughtful person and well versed on the issues, especially when it comes to the middle east and Muslims in the US. I find your comment out of line. You are intitled to your opinion but it diminishes your credibility. You come across like a certain pastor who was interviewed by Anderson Cooper recently.

We Europeans receive better information than Americans about international relations and similar topics. This is reflected in this interview, which treats the causes for 911 as a mistery. Educated people have understood for many years this terrorist attack was caused or triggered by US policies and behaviors, which animate the response by the terrorist group led by Osama bin Laden. Americans, who are not well informed, deny the evidence: the US was attacked by crazy terrorists seeking revenge. These people, the same as many other potential terrorists, are convinced the US is attacking them. Now ask yourselves, which country bombs others, and invades them all the time? From Panama to Lebanon to Iraq to Viet Nam to Kosovo, the answer is always, the USA. Thus, the cause of 911 is found in US behavior. Maybe Americans don't like the subject, but this can be researched by people who read books such as "Imperial Hubris". Books by the writer Noam Chomsky are also very good to describe what is happening.

When I see this silly discussion about muslim mosques, it is very incredible. Why should you forbid the construction of an islamic center? I am not Muslim, but it is not sensible to deny them their right to gather as a social group. And if some of you Americans don't like the way you have become the enemies of the Muslims, then think why this is happening, and who started the fight. You Americans did.

coming your way.

That said, the United States policies toward other sovereign nations is not known for its benevolence, and has interfered in places it had no business while keeping most Americans ignorant.

And religious leaders like the one below are trying to make sure the fires never go out.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=385&topic_id=494462&mesg_id=494462

It's too bad that the ones who are intolerant and ugly in this country get so much air time to convince others while the thinking people only get a scrap now and then from a few people like Fareed Zakaria.