Kathryn Stiadle: 'History repeats itself'

Taylor Clark | By Taylor Clark | The Post-Standard
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on October 04, 2010 at 8:58 AM, updated October 04, 2010 at 9:01 AM

Kathryn Stiadle, a junior at Southern Cayuga High School, wrote this essay for The Post-Standard's Oct. 4 Voices page.

kathryn stiadle.JPGKathryn Stiadle

By Kathryn Stiadle
Contributing writer

You know the saying “history repeats itself?” This phrase accurately describes America since the Puritans first emigrated here in pursuit of religious freedom. The recent controversy over building a mosque near Ground Zero is yet another example of Americans stereotyping certain religions in order to make themselves feel “safe.” In my school, I’ve heard many students say that building a mosque near Ground Zero is dishonorable to those who died on 9/11 because they were killed by Muslims. But, this does not mean that all Muslims are terrorists.

The First Amendment guarantees freedom of religion. But there are many examples of people not receiving religious liberty in America. Italians, for instance, were discriminated against when they emigrated to America in the 1800s because they were Catholic. This same type of bigotry occurred later when John F. Kennedy was running for president. Because he was Catholic, American citizens feared that he was working alongside the Pope and would do horrible things to the United States.

It’s true that the terrorists who attacked the World Trade Center and the Pentagon on 9/11 were Muslim. But this does not mean that all Muslims are terrorists. The Japanese blew up Pearl Harbor, but as we came to find out, this doesn’t mean that all the Japanese are bad. In fact, some Japanese-Americans fought with the United States in World War II. The same goes for this situation. Some of the people who died in the World Trade Center were Muslim. Some of the soldiers fighting for us in Iraq are Muslim. It is extremely unpatriotic to say that these heroes are terrorists. There is no reason why these people should be stripped of their religious rights. After all, they are Americans, just like you and me.