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| Photo from The Daily News Journal |
CNN has been broadcasting a “news” special entitled “Unwelcome: The Muslims Next Door” this past week. With Soledad O’Brien as reporter, the program
recounts the negative response on the part of some citizens to the building of
a new Islamic Center (mosque) in my town of Murfreesboro, Tennessee. I am not a native of Murfreesboro, but I have
lived here for thirty-seven years as a matter of choice not chance.
In commenting on this program, I have to point out that
this is not really a news program or a documentary. This is the way that it is done in the
national (and sometimes local) media. Although
I am a fan of Ms. O’Brien, she and her producers have attempted to distill a
very complex event into a “story” with clearly defined protagonists and a
predetermined point of view.
Unfortunately, events in Murfreesboro provide all the ingredients—colorful
players (on both sides), elevated emotions, demonstrations, and courtroom
proceedings. In order to provide a
cohesive one hour production, they have simplified the situation so much that
it has become almost cartoonish.
Here’s what they missed.
Murfreesboro is a city that has experienced tremendous growth over the
past fifty years, primarily due to citizens who have displayed good sense and
charity to others. Although racial
issues still come up from time to time, Murfreesboro integrated its schools,
city leadership, and business community with wisdom and much earlier than many
other communities in Tennessee.
Differences between African-Americans and Anglos are articulated and
addressed rather than avoided.
In the 1970’s,
Murfreesboro and Rutherford County provided a sanctuary for many Laotians
displaced from their country due to America’s war in Indochina. There is a well-established Buddhist Temple
northwest of the city of Murfreesboro. A
Laotian was recently elected as a county commissioner. There is a thriving Laotian business
community.
With the arrival of a large number of Hispanics, both
government and business have been very receptive and provide services in
Spanish for these new arrivals. Several
churches have established Spanish-speaking services.
Our county is home to one of the first Nissan plants
built in the United States. We not only
have Japanese business people living in our community, but a number of local
people have traveled to Japan for training and to develop business
partnerships.
My grandchildren attend schools that include
African-Americans, Laotians, Indians, Hispanics, and those whose parents come from
the Middle East. My neighborhood
includes Anglos, African-Americans, and Laotians. Our churches have attempted to foster good
relationships among all ethnic groups. Saleh Sbenaty, one
of the lay leaders in the Murfreesboro mosque, was a guest in my Sunday school
class several years ago to talk about his faith. Local Muslims have even protested some of
America’s involvement in the Middle East without provoking violence.
None of these facts was made clear in the CNN special due
to a narrow focus and limitations of the format. The truth is that there is a certain segment
of individuals with varied motivations who have provoked this
confrontation. If CNN had been willing
to address the issue, they would have found that much of this dissension is
politically motivated. Some individuals
are playing on the fear and lack of knowledge of many citizens in order to pursue a
political agenda. A little investigative
reporting might have provided a different focus.
These people do not speak for all of the citizens of
Murfreesboro or Rutherford County. There
is another segment of the population who has been very supportive of their
Muslim neighbors. By and large, these
people were ignored in the CNN project.
Rather than going to a northeastern university to find a professor to
comment on Islam, CNN could have found any number of scholars at Middle
Tennessee State University (a local university with the largest undergraduate
enrollment in the state) who would have given an objective interview. The impression was left that such were not
available locally.
The largest segment of the population is made up of those
who don’t understand what all the fuss is about. They recognize that Muslims like Saleh Sbenaty have been
hard-working, responsible members of our community for years. These citizens recognize that our
Constitution guarantees freedom of (and from) worship. They are not afraid of Shariah Law. This part of our community was well
represented by most of our elected officials shown in the program. These officials recognized that the building
of a Mosque in Murfreesboro is no different than the building of a Baptist,
Methodist, Presbyterian, Episcopal, Catholic, or Pentecostal church. Most of the people in Murfreesboro and
Rutherford County like their community, are civic minded, and want to get along
with others no matter what their ethnic or religious background might be. They are Americans. I wish
that CNN would have talked to some of those folks.
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