The Christian Action Network has received thousands of emails about the cover of our new documentary, Sacrificed Survivors: The Untold Story of the Ground Zero Mosque. This controversy could result in protests at the premiere of the film in New York City on October 28. We regret any hurt feelings caused by the use of only the Turkish flag on the cover of the film. We did not mean to single out Turkey and therefore, the cover will be altered to include the flags of Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, Iran, Sudan and Syria.
The decision to include these flags is being made in order to reinforce one of the themes of the film: Radical Islam seeks to bring the world under Sharia law and the U.S. is no exception. The flags that will be depicted are of countries that have instituted Sharia law in their country and/or sponsor the spread of radical Islam.
Turkey was chosen because the country serves as a reminder of what can happen if “stealth jihad” is successful. Turkey was once a staunchly pro-American ally with a secular identity. Unfortunately, it is today governed by Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his Justice and Development Party, which has brought Turkey in the opposite direction.
Erdogan and his party’s initial 2002 election victory encouraged the Muslim Brotherhood, with its political chief saying the victory came as a result of the “exposing of the failure of the secular trend.” Turkey has become a leading provocateur of Israel and bastion of anti-Americanism. Erdogan has moved the country much closer to Iran, Syria and Sudan, going so far as to oppose U.N. sanctions on Iran for their nuclear program. He has even said, “I do not think that Hamas is a terrorist organization.”
The Turkish flag was originally chosen because of the presence of the Islamic star and crescent on the flag. As the CIA World Factbook explains, “the crescent moon and star serve as insignia for the Turks, as well as being traditional symbols of Islam.” Those symbols were chosen to signify Turkey’s status as a country with a Muslim identity—and will be used in the same fashion on the American flag should the country be overtaken by radical Islamic forces.
We do not mention this to try to portray a negative image of the Turkish people. Although their votes put Erdogan’s party (and therefore, him) in power, we know not all Turks can be characterized as Islamists. Polls show the vast majority of Turks oppose Osama Bin Laden, Hamas and Hezbollah, and we hope the election next July will reflect this opposition to radical Islam and the aligning of Turkey with enemies of the West. But the fact remains—the “stealth jihad” of political Islam has been successful in Turkey. And this is something the West must learn from.
The flags of Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, Iran and Sudan were chosen because their governments are using Sharia law as a basis for government and because of their support for the spread of radical Islam. The Syrian flag was chosen because, although the government is secular, it undoubtedly contributes to the spread of radical Islam by sponsoring terrorist groups like Hamas and Hezbollah.
The cover of Sacrificed Survivors: The Untold Story of the Ground Zero Mosque will not single out Turkey, but the editing omission should not take away from the film’s premise and the stories of the survivors of 9/11 and the families of the victims as the Ground Zero Islamic center and mosque controversy continues.