After nearly a year of posturing and arguing, the so-called "Ground Zero Mosque" is inching closer and closer to losing the mosque part and becoming an "interfaith cultural center." But some of the controversies it inspired in the past are still being settled: the NJ Transit employee who burned a Koran on Sept. 11 at a protest of the proposed center, and was subsequently fired from his job, has won his lawsuit against the state, and will get his job back.
Derek Fenton, who worked for NJ Transit for over 11 years, will be reassigned to his $86,110-a-year job as a conductor and as an assistant train-consist coordinator. He will also get $25,000 for pain and suffering, as well as back pay equal to $331.20 for every day since his firing. He will not be receiving a free car however. "Our government cannot pick and choose whose free speech rights are protected, based on whether or not they approve of the content of our statements or actions. This is the very essence of the First Amendment," Fenton said in a statement.
Fenton, who allegedly shouted "I'm Mapplethorping the Quran!" at the time, was officially terminated for violating the NJ Transit code of ethics, a move which was backed by Gov. Chris Christie, who said in February, "I knew he was going to be fired, and I had no problem with it. And I still don’t have a problem with it." He added that he didn’t ask for the dismissal but thought it was appropriate because "that kind of intolerance is...unacceptable."
It seems that everyone else disagree with Christie, however. The Council on American-Islamic Relations, a prominent Muslim group, said they thought Fenton should keep his job: "Our question was always, was his action in any way related to his duties on the job? Apparently it wasn't. What he did, however reprehensible, should not impact on his employment," spokesman Ibrahim Hooper said today. The ACLU, who brought the suit on Fenton's behalf, will also be paid $25,000 in legal fees by the state. "The governor’s thoughts are misguided and un-American. What makes us special as a nation is the First Amendment," said Deborah Jacobs, executive director of the ACLU in New Jersey.
