Jen, author of BlagHag<\/a>, was visiting NYC this past week, and she made a point of stopping by the future site of Park51. When she was there, there was a small demonstration by supporters of the project, and she fell into conversation<\/a> with someone involved with Park51.<\/p>\n The guy with the goatee let us know that friends were welcome to dinner at 8pm, regardless if they were Muslim or not. Though he did say women would eat in a separate room, and after a quick glance at my outfit, confirmed that I was modestly dressed enough to come. We already had plans, but it was a nice offer.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Jen\u2019s anecdote made me wince because, to put it bluntly, I don\u2019t like Islam. As an atheist, I obviously dislike it for preaching what I believe to be falsehoods and encouraging people to waste a significant portion of their life in empty ritual and meaningless taboos. Of course, the previous goes for most religions, except those which are too watered down<\/a> to say much of anything at all.<\/p>\n What really bothers me about Islam (as well as Ultra-Orthodox Judaism and some evangelical traditions) is the way it treats women. Wishing women would dress modestly is different from treating their uncovered arms or hair as an assault upon the righteous. Offering specific workshops or meeting for groups according to gender or race or age or any other characteristic is different from mandating separation, particularly when that separation serves primarily to isolate women.<\/p>\n I don\u2019t find much comfort in hoping \u2018moderate\u2019 strains of Islam win out. Most of the time, when we talk about the \u2018moderate\u2019 form of any religion, we mean the one that looks pretty secular, but incorporates some quaint cultural practices. I\u2019m perfectly happy to just campaign for atheism. After all, I don\u2019t object to sexist practices because I find them to be inconsistent with the teachings of Muhammad. For me, the question is irrelevant, since I don\u2019t believe the Koran to be an infallible guide to ethics to begin with.<\/p>\n This is what makes free speech work difficult, and I confess I have a much easier time writing about these issues than I would if I were working for the organizers of Park51. I imagine I\u2019d have a very difficult time if I were ever a free speech lawyer for an organization of Hasidim and were not permitted to shake the hands of my clients.<\/p>\n
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