SOCIETY
CALIFORNIA INTERFAITH LEADERS TO BACK GROUND ZERO ISLAMIC CENTER
Baku, August 20 (AZERTAC). A group of 60 interfaith leaders in California will come out Friday in favor of a controversial Islamic center near ground zero in New York City.
"Christian, Jewish, Mormon and Muslim leaders will address the rapidly expanding epidemic of Islamophobia across the nation -- from Temecula to Tennessee to New York to Connecticut -- which they view as a threat to religious freedom and rights of mosques, churches, and synagogues to exist," the group said in a statement.
The event will take place at the Islamic Center of Southern California at 9:30 a.m. (12:30 p.m. ET).
The New York Islamic center`s leaders say they plan to build the $100 million, 13-story facility called Park51 two blocks from the site of the 9/11 attacks.
"We Americans, whether Muslim or Christian, whether Jew or Hindu, whether of faith or no faith, were all attacked on 9/11 by terrorists who can only be described as criminals," the text of the signed statement provided to CNN says. "We oppose the exploitation of the pain and suffering of 9/11 by political opportunists. They only divide our country and undermine the principles of pluralism, religious freedom, and security by fostering hate based on fear."
Developer Sharif El-Gamal describes the project as an "Islamic community center" that would include a 500-seat performing arts center, a lecture hall, a swimming pool, a gym, a culinary school, a restaurant and a prayer space for Muslims.