Video – NY1 Exclusive: Developer Blames Media For “Misperception” Over Lower Manhattan Mosque – NY1.com
The developer who wants to bring a controversial new mosque and Islamic center near the World Trade Center site in Lower Manhattan spoke exclusively with NY1 for his first extensive interview.
Sharif El-Gamal told NY1′s Josh Robin that he blames the media for the furor over the so-called “Ground Zero Mosque” and maintains the project will combat Islamic extremism.
The developer said he will not abandon his plans for the Cordoba House, which are drawing international attention, and insists he never anticipated the outrage his plans unleashed.
He also dismissed the suggestion he was being naive in thinking a mosque so close to the World Trade Center site would sail through without a hitch.
“It’s not about being naive at all. I understand that there was such a misperception about Muslims and Islam. That’s what this brought to my awareness, that there’s a tremendous misperception about Islam…, that we are terrorists,” said El-Gamal.
via NY1 Exclusive: Developer Blames Media For “Misperception” Over Lower Manhattan Mosque – NY1.com.
