Iowa: Controversy over North Liberty City Officials Plan to Lease Land Intended for Muslim Youth Camp

April 7, 2003

Source: Chicago Tribune

http://www.chicagotribune.com/archives

On April 7, 2003 the Chicago Tribune reported that "in a post-9/11 world and with America at war in an Islamic nation, the debate about the [Muslim Youth] camp has become much more than just how tall the buildings should be and how the sewage should be treated... Distrust and fear of Muslims is palpable when paging through the more than 100 letters and e-mail messages that have been sent to the corps as part of a recent public comment period on the potential environmental impact of the proposed camp... An extensive environmental impact study was completed late last year, and the corps recently asked for public feedback... Though the majority of the comments were based on environmental concerns, some focused exclusively on the religion of the lease applicants and fears about possible links to terrorism."