Outrage: Sculpture Celebrating Saudi Arabia Goes Up in Most Horrifying Location Imaginable
It’s one of those things that leaves people shaking their heads in disbelief. It is hard to imagine this really happened, but, astonishingly, it has.
When the United States was attacked on 9/11, it was one of the most horrifying things many Americans had ever experienced or witnessed. To this day, it continues to have a deep impact on the country.
Fifteen of the 19 hijackers responsible for the destruction and devastation were from Saudi Arabia. So it would seem in poor taste, to say the least, to display a monument to Saudi Arabia on the World Trade Center’s grounds.
Even worse, according to the Observer, the monument is “a stone’s throw away from the 9/11 memorial.”
The purpose of the statue is to celebrate “Saudi Arabia’s place in the G20 Summit.” And of every location the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, which installed the sculpture, could have used, it chose the one that would be the most offensive to Americans.
Seriously…. who approved this at the World Trade Center? @NYGovCuomo @PhilMurphyNJ @PANYNJ @EMPIREREPORTNY @Azi pic.twitter.com/drH3Ya1xRy
— Michael F. Longo (@MikeLongoNYC) January 8, 2019
It would be easy to ask what the people responsible were thinking, but clearly they weren’t. At least not about decorum or decency. Or America.
Almost three thousand innocent lives were lost on that fateful day in 2001. Now, the country that bred the majority of their murderers is being celebrated close to where the victims are being memorialized.
And it just gets worse. The statue is designed to look like a piece of candy and “bears the Kingdom’s emerald flag emblazoned with the Arabic inscription, ‘There is no god but Allah, and Mohammed is the prophet,'” wrote the Observer.
Saudi Arabia is a Sharia-law compliant country. Shariah law is the antithesis to the United States, its Constitution, and freedom, as a whole.
Why a piece of candy? The Observer noted that the creator of the statue, French sculptor Laurence Jenkell, made that one as part of a larger collection.
The other statues in the collection are also on display at the World Trade Center campus. They may be found outside the Oculus shopping center near the 9/11 memorial.
The collection, “Candy Nation” is dedicated to G20 nations. The piece of candy is meant to depict the countries as “sugary delights.”
Although, some would say this “candy delight” is more like the kind you get on Halloween. And then check carefully before consuming … or not.
And as to the religious phrase on the statue, where is the outrage from liberals? If it was a biblical passage, surely lawsuits would have already been filed.
A news release about the installation, issued in December, began by stating that, “In its continuing efforts to transform the World Trade Center site into a dynamic space in Lower Manhattan, the Port Authority announced that beginning today it will showcase famous candy sculptures around the World Trade Center campus crafted by renowned French artist Laurence Jenkell.”
Included in the release was this statement from Rick Cotton, the Port Authority Executive Director:
“This special art exhibit continues our ongoing efforts to provide a strong bond between the World Trade Center campus and the Lower Manhattan community, and advance our mission of making this campus a dynamic hub for creative, cultural and community activities.
“We strongly recommend that those who work or live in Lower Manhattan as well as those who visit the site this holiday season take time to view these unique works of art.”
The exhibit will continue at the World Trade Center through February 28, 2019.
Did the Port Authority believe that displaying an art collection that celebrated the country of terrorists who killed so many from that area would actually “provide a strong bond” with “the Lower Manhattan community?” Did its officials care that it might be found to be in poor taste and as offensive?
Apparently the “celebration” of G20 countries was more important than anything else. Including being respectful of those who were killed not so far from that site.
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