Abstract

Some of Badiou and Žižek’s most disquieting claims include their opposition to liberal multiculturalism, tolerance discourses and particularist “ethics” concerned with respecting the “Other.” This has particular relevance to recent liberal media coverage of the hotly-debated “Islamic Cultural Center” slated to be built near the ground zero of 911 in Manhattan . In this article, I argue that the positions of Badiou and Žižek are valuable for examining the seemingly benign, “tolerant” position held by the American liberal Left that purports to be the sole logical, “moderate” stance to assume in this debate. However, this dangerous construction, offers a fallacious notion of choice: one has the “freedom” to choose either a Right or Left-side stance with respect to Park51; however, one risks condemnation if one chooses to stand with the Right. In this article, I will adapt and expand upon Badiou and Žižek’s converging viewpoints in order to fashion an examination of American liberalism’s media presence and its self-conception as the force of “good” within the post-911, “Ground Zero Mosque,” tolerance debates. Ultimately, I aim to show how the Left’s structure of thought within and around the Park51 contention betrays a fundamental infidelity to the 911-event. The proposed building of an Islamic cultural center near ground zero represents a new kind of problem that American, liberal media cannot meet head-on, I propose that we begin to question the central role of tolerating the Other within discourses concerning American “rights.”.