Mosque-erade

Islam: Floridians sue to block construction of an Islamic center they say has terrorist ties | Mark Bergin

Altaf Ali poses in front of a replica of the doors of Kaba at Mecca in his Davie, Fla., office

For more than two decades, the Islamic Center of South Florida (ICOSF) has operated quietly in an upscale area of Pompano Beach, just east of Interstate 95. But last year when the religious center announced plans to move two miles northwest across the freeway into a low-income, mostly African-American neighborhood, community protest broke out.

City Commissioner E. Pat Larkins, representative of the district where the new mosque would be located, delivered an inflammatory public condemnation of Muslims: "They don't contribute a nickel to any cause in terms of improving the community. Most black folks see them as people that come in to rape the community and go away."

That remark sparked outrage from Muslim leaders but did little to alter their building plans. A group of Christians now hopes litigation will prove more effective.