Mosque debate not about race, religion

Kudos to Randi Marshall for visiting the mosque in Bethpage, as Town of Oyster Bay officials have also participated in its events over the years [“Familiar feeling at Bethpage mosque,” Opinion, Oct. 8]. She is mistaken in suggesting that traffic and safety concerns are not at the heart of the dispute over the proposed new mosque in Bethpage. They are. Newsday ignored that in just one year, more than 4,775 red-light violations occurred at this intersection.

Even more troubling is Marshall’s characterization of some Bethpage residents as racist — a false and unfair claim. The mosque has operated peacefully at this same location for nearly 30 years without interruption or protest. The current debate is not about religion; it is about the scale of the n

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