The newest test of our democracy: Responding to proposed Islamic Center near Ground Zero
by
Martha McCoy
September 27, 2010
|
|
Hartford, Connecticut
Originally published August 30, 2010.Over the past two decades, forward-looking people have been pointing to our country’s growing diversity, and calling us to use it as an asset. They have asked us to look to the future, not with alarm, but with determination to act.
The future they spoke of is here. We
must learn to work together across differences or it will be impossible to build strong communities, make sound public decisions, or solve our toughest public problems.
Can we live up to the challenge of creating a vibrant, multi-racial, multi-ethnic, multicultural democracy? We must answer this question, while our country also faces great security challenges, economic hardship, and increasing global problems. Our ability to thrive as individuals and in all our circles—in our families, our communities, our country, and our interconnected world—will rest on how well we meet this challenge.
We need to answer some fundamental questions about who we are as a country and what we value. As Henry Cisneros pointed out almost 20 years ago, “As fewer of our fellow citizens look like ‘real Americans,’ we will have to adapt our images and learn to feel less threatened by the different faces, the different voices. Can it be that we could agree to a set of core values which would be called ‘the essential American values of the 21st century?’ If so, what are they? Could it be that, as a society, we could master a new dialogue, a new civics by which we speak to and collaborate with each other in effective and respectful ways?”
The heightened rhetoric, violence, and distrust of the past year show that we have a long way to go. But in our work, we have also seen that many people from all backgrounds want to master the new dialogue Cisneros envisioned. We have seen that, if there are opportunities to take part, many people will do so.
We all must act, now. We must do our part to create a “new civics” of honest expression, respectful listening, and collaboration.
Moved by the recent controversy about locating the Islamic cultural center in lower Manhattan, we have pulled together a few resources—Everyday Democracy’s and others’—to help you bring together people from different religious backgrounds, to work together on public issues. Please let us know what you are doing, and how we can help you at this critical time in the life of our country and our communities.
-Martha McCoy, Executive Director for Everyday Democracy
Resources to help you bring people together across religious backgrounds:
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
LaGuardia’s Difficult Dialogues on Religious Diversity project is designed to: 1) help faculty staff, students and members of the community learn more about our religiously diverse community 2) strengthen our ability to discuss and explore religious differences on campus and in the community 3) identify actions we can take to make the College, our community and the nation a place where people of all faith perspectives and beliefs are welcome and respected. Click here to download the discussion guide.
Click here to read about how this guide was used at LaGuardia
Community College.
Announcement: We will be updating this guide to be used by all communities and will make this available at the beginning of October. If you would like to pre-order this guide, please contact Sarah Eisele-Dyrli at . Meanwhile, if you would like advice about how to prepare for organizing dialogue across religious backgrounds in your community, please contact Senior Associate Nancy Thomas at .
Click here to check out more guides on religion in our Issue Guide Exchange.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"One Nation is a philanthropic collaborative that partners with community foundations in cities across America to create locally focused civic engagement programs that connect diverse communities to work with common purpose for the common good. Working together around shared values strengthens the pluralistic and inclusive values of communities by reducing distinctions of 'us' and 'them' and broadening the sense of 'We.'
Working to Uphold the Promise of 'Liberty and Justice for All'
America’s inclusive values and ideals make us stronger as a nation. America is a country propelled forward by a belief in opportunity for everyone no matter culture or creed. It is a place for people of all races, faiths and cultures to come and build a better life, and to give life to innovation and ingenuity that benefits everyone. America’s broad social vision of pluralism and inclusion, coupled with the promise of liberty and justice for all, make it possible to fully harness the power of our nation’s cultural and religious diversity, which enriches our communities and country as a whole."
OneNationFoundation.org from OneNationFoundation.org on Vimeo.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"Trustbuilding: an honest conversation on race, reconciliation, and responsibility is part historical narrative and part handbook for a model of dialogue and community change that has been adopted both nationally and internationally. At its center is the story of how Richmond, Virginia, a former slave market and capital of the Confederacy, has become a seedbed for interracial dialogue and trustbuilding with national and international implications."
Chapter 12 takes a look at relations between Muslims and Christians, which is especially relevant in light of 9/11 and the proposed Islamic Center near Ground Zero.
Tell us your story now!