The freedom of religion is one of the most beneficial liberties that other cultures and religions have, which allow us to live the life of an average American. So do you think that allowing this mosque to exist is up for controversy? Remember freedom of religion is our right and duty as Americans. Therefore, should the notion of opening a new mosque during the Ramadan effect Americans or their perceptions? Do you think there was an issue against the location?
Share with us your thoughts.
Federal judge clears way for new Tennessee mosque to open for Ramadan
updated 9:53 AM EDT, Thu July 19, 2012
The Justice Department asked a federal court to
clear the way for a Tennessee mosque to open in time for Ramadan.
STORY HIGHLIGHTS
- U.S. District Judge Todd Campbell orders Rutherford County to conduct a final inspection
- Campbell ordered the county to conduct an inspection by Thursday
- Campbell's ruling came the same day the U.S. Justice Department filed a lawsuit
- A fierce debate over the opening of the mosque began in 2010
The ruling by U.S. District Judge
Todd J. Campbell is the latest development in a two-year battle over the opening
of the Islamic Center of Murfreesboro, near Nashville, that has been marked by
legal challenges and anti-Muslim sentiment.
"If the building complies with
applicable codes and regulations, the County shall issue, on or before July 19,
2012, the certificate of occupancy," Campbell wrote Wednesday in his order
granting a temporary restraining order against the county.
Campbell's ruling effectively set
aside a ruling by a county judge in June that reversed a planning commission's
approval of the Islamic Center's expansion because of what he said was
insufficient public notice.
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Attorneys for the county have
said it followed the normal practice of publishing notice of the hearing in the
local newspaper, but the judge said more should have been done because the
mosque was "an issue of major importance to citizens."
The U.S. Justice Department and
the Islamic Center of Murfreesboro filed separate lawsuits this week, arguing
that Rutherford County officials violated federal laws when they denied requests
for a final inspection and certificate of occupancy for the mosque.
The Justice Department is
accusing Rutherford County of violating the Religious Land Use and
Institutionalized Persons Act of 2000 by holding the mosque to a different
standard than other religious institutions built in the county. The Islamic
Center argued that it was being unconstitutionally blocked "merely because local
anti-Islamic protests have made the mosque controversial."
The Islamic Center of
Murfreesboro has existed for more than a decade, but the fight erupted in 2010
when planning commissioners approved an expansion project.
The construction site had been
vandalized multiple times, including by an arson attack in 2010, and federal
authorities have charged a Texas man with calling in a bomb threat to the center
before last year's anniversary of the September 11, 2001, attacks on New York
and Washington.
"Not welcome" was spray-painted
by vandals on a sign announcing the construction of the project.
Four county residents filed suit
to block the mosque in September 2010, arguing it posed a "risk of terrorism
generated by proselytizing for Islam and inciting the practices of Sharia law"
and that planning commissioners violated their due process rights. They also
demanded the judge bar any approval until the Islamic center showed that it was
not interested in "the overthrow of the American system of government, laws and
freedoms guaranteed by our Constitution."
While those lawsuits were
dismissed, another challenging the county's public notice of a hearing on the
mosque succeeded in court.
On Wednesday, Campbell ruled
that the Justice Department had "demonstrated that the mosque is necessary to
accommodate the number of worshipers, especially during the holy season of
Ramadan."
If the building does not comply
with inspection requirements, Campbell ordered Rutherford County to immediately
notify the Islamic Center of any deficiencies and "promptly re-inspect the
building" after it informs the county it has corrected the problems.
Imam Ossama Bahloul said in a
statement that the center was "delighted by the judge's decision."
"We look forward to celebrating
Ramadan with our neighbors," he said.
Sally Wall, a critic of the
decision to approve the mosque, said last month on CNN's "AC360" that she was opposed because
there was no due process.
"It's not a matter of
Islamaphobia with me," she said. "The county government is supposed to operate
in a particular way .... People who live in an area where a mosque or anything
else is going to be built are supposed to have the right to say something about
it."
Kevin Fisher, who is also
opposed the mosque, told CNN affiliate WZTV on Wednesday that the issue was never about someone's
right to worship but rather about whether the planning commission gave proper
public notice.
"I do believe in our system. I
believe in due process," he said. "You have to respect the system, even if you
disagree sometimes with the decision it makes."
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