Mapping Controversies: Park51 is a detailed researched account on the current globally and locally charged controversy of Park 51 in Lower Manhattan, New York. The proposal is for an Islamic Community Centre, open to all New York citizens, that is to be built 3 minutes walk from the Ground Zero 9/11 Memorial site. The debate may now once again be stealing the media spotlight due to the recent death of the extremist leader Osama Bin Laden, infamously known as the head of the terrorist group al-Qaeda, who have claimed responsibility for the 9/11 attack.
Mapping Controversies is an area of research which forms part of the curriculum of third year study at Manchester School of Architecture, led by Dr.Albena Yaneva. A controversy is a "debate surrounding a technique or scientific fact that has not yet been determined." The philosophy and teaching of mapping controversies was developed by Bruno Latour, a French sociologist and anthropologist in the twentieth century.
The significance of studying a contemporary architectural controversy is that it confronts the student architect with a broader spectrum of subjects which relate to architecture. These cover politics, economics, ethics and social sciences. Analysing an architectural controversy enhances our individual understanding and appreciation of architecture.
Our aim is to investigate the primary actors and concerns regarding the controversy of Park 51 and create objective 2D and 3D visualisations to illustrate our research.
Park 51 is a multi-storey Muslim Community Centre located two blocks away from the site of the previous World Trade Centre towers in Lower Manhattan New York. On 11th September 2001, terrorists flew two commercial passenger airliners into the 7 towers, causing nearly 3,000 deaths to civilians and rescue workers. Since the event there have been growing feelings of misunderstanding, fear, and hatred towards the Muslim population in New York. Park 51 is a project that, according to its organisers, proposes to counter these misconceptions and build more positive relations between Muslims and non-Muslims, as well as serving as a community leisure centre for the entire local population, regardless of religious beliefs.