9/11

“Our purpose and our goal here at Dove World Outreach Center is to get people to stand up…It is our vision to go around, to preach and to challenge, and to get the church involved and ready. We must go outside of the walls, and march for righteousness.”

This is the mission statement of the Dove World Outreach Center (I shutter to think I added to the website traffic), located within walking distance of my comfy little home in Gainesville, Florida. Unfortunately, the orange and blue pride as we beat the University of South Florida, and reverence as we attend the 9/11 memorial will be overshadowed by Dove World Outreach’s “Burn a Koran Day” celebration. As a student at UF, I often sidestep a major traffic zone on campus in an attempt to steer clear of the Dove Center’s use of our free-speech zones—and at the very least I avoid making eye contact with these Alachua county residents.

The Koran Burning is to signify the day that Islamic extremists hijacked United States airplanes and crashed them into the Twin Towers in New York City. I hope you note that it was the extremists and not any representative portion of the Islamic population that caused the deaths of 2,977 Americans.

In my opinion, after the 9/11 attacks a majority of Americans wrongly believed a religion, ethnicity, or culture was to blame. I cannot confidently say I was in that minority either. Still, is it any surprise that the New York Times compared the DWOC to al Qaeda hijacking Islam. I don’t think so. But what it does prove is that the actions of a few can wrongly be interpreted by the many.

On the flip side, Terry Jones, pastor of DWOC, has announced that he has received hundred of support letters in the past three weeks. He does have plenty of support, as evidenced by the many white tee shirts sporting the logo “Islam is of the Devil”.

So to the Dove World Outreach Center: I hope you are satisfied with the negative publicity you have garnered; not only have you smeared the name of the city I now call home, but of a country that protects your right to burn the sacred symbol of Islam. And remember, Jesus not only told us to “love the Lord…with all your heart” but also to “love your neighbor”.