Statement of Congresswoman Carolyn Maloney on the Planned Community Center and Mosque Near Ground Zero

“While I understand some of the strong emotions this proposal has created, I believe that preventing the project from being built would run counter to our proud constitutional rights of freedom of speech, freedom of religion, and freedom to assemble.  I stand with many in our community, including Mayor Bloomberg and the local community board, in supporting the rights of the project’s planners to build in lower Manhattan, which I believe will signal to the world that the terrorists will never be able to destroy the American traditions of openness and tolerance."