A TEST ISLAM IS PASSING AND THE RIGHT IS FAILING:

Hope at Ground Zero: America and Muslims have an opportunity to repair frayed relations and build bridges for the future (Aijaz Zaka Syed, 8/12/10, Al-Ahram Weekly)

[T]he Manhattan mosque initiative has subjected both America and Muslims to an unprecedented test. It not just tests America's claim to be the "land of the free" but also the much-celebrated ideals of its founding fathers. It tests its fabled democracy and freedom and its claim to be a land where everyone is welcome and has the right to do his or her own thing.

By giving the go-ahead for the mosque project in Manhattan, close to the site of the 11 September terror attacks, New York and its mayor Michael Bloomberg have already earned the admiration of many Muslims around the world. However, the ongoing campaign against the mosque and indirectly against Muslims is sure to get fiercer and nastier in the days and months to come. The response of the US leadership will be watched closely around the world, especially by Muslims.

On the other hand, Muslims face a situation that refreshes the memories of the 9/11 aftermath. Right now, they need all the survival skills they've got. Already, there's an alarming upsurge in hostility and paranoia in the land that they chose to make their home.

But I see an opportunity in this brewing crisis. Muslims must use this opportunity to clear the cobwebs clouding the image of their faith in the minds of Americans. They have an opportunity to remind and explain to Americans, and the world, that the destruction that struck the Twin Towers does not represent Islam, but peace, compassion and equality do.

In the Manhattan mosque initiative, America and Muslims have an opportunity to repair their long-frayed relations and build bridges for a shared future. The wounds inflicted by the US wars and policies in the Muslim world are deep, but gestures like these could make them less painful.

The Cordoba House project should be a monument to healthier and better Islam-West relations, and for a better world. There's too much at stake in this struggle for America and Islam's soul.