RIGHT: LOCATION OF THE PROPOSED MOSQUE NEAR GROUND ZERO IN LOWER MANHATTAN BELOW: AMERICAN SOCIETY FOR MUSLIM ADVANCEMENT WEBSITE
OFFICIALLY CALLED, “PARK51,” THE SUFI MUSLIM COMMUNITY CENTER IS A CHARITABLE ORGANIZATION WITH NO POLITICAL AGENDA Officially called, “Park51,” the Sufi Muslim community center is a charitable organization with no political agenda. The Islamic institution is exempt from taxes, holds its own fundraising initiatives and under New York Law, submits an annual financial report to the Attorney General. It holds a postal address of 45-51 Park Place, two blocks north of the World Trade Center Site, in a neighborhood filled with convenient shops and mom-andpop restaurants. Pedestrians around Ground Zero can’t see the thirteen floors of glass, concrete and steel, complete with an Islamic “prayer room” that fills two floors, of what used to be retailer Burlington Coat Factory. Two female Muslim receptionists on the ground floor
collect fees for the spacious exhibition hall and donations from attendants for expansion efforts. A Caucasian security guard looks on, and guards the desk when the two women excuse themselves to join up to eight hundred Muslims for prayer. The rest of the building is under construction. Chief proponents of the project is a married couple—he from Kuwait, she from Kashmir. Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf, after his graduation from Columbia University, served as prayer leader of a mosque located twelve blocks from Ground Zero. For nearly thirty years the Imam published and lectured on Islam and its issues. He founded the American Society for Muslim Advancement with his wife, Daisy Khan to support cultural and
religious harmony through interfaith/ intrafaith education and dialogue. Both, committed to moderation and tolerance, denounce terrorism and the 9/11 attacks. Khan, whose South Tower office filled the 106th floor, meets with individuals from different faith groups to advocate for religious co-existence and dispel misconceptions of Islam, tweeting, “Terrorists are fading and most Muslims are relieved at their demise.” Real estate developer Sharif El-Gamal leased 47-51 Park Place from Con Edison, the utility provider that owns half the space. El-Gamal serves as CEO and Chairman of Soho Properties, which built the institution modeled after the Jewish Community Center on Manhattan’s Upper West Side, where he lives. The New York native originally planned to build luxury condominiums, but was convinced by the Imam’s idea for a community center and prayer hall that could serve thousands of Muslims working and living in the financial district. Both men managed the property and oversaw its daily operations, until Imam Feisal’s replacement earlier this year.
“TERRORISTS ARE FADING AND MOST MUSLIMS ARE RELIEVED AT THEIR DEMISE” 18 RAGMAG | JANUARY 2012