Katie Couric's Notebook: Mosque Near Ground Zero
Among the protesters near Ground Zero this weekend - a woman held a sign that read "Unmask the Mosque." It had a cartoon sketch of President Obama on it - and the implied message needed no interpretation. In speaking out about an Islamic group's right to build a center there, the President had given another shred of evidence to a growing conspiracy theory that he is Muslim. He is not.
The Pew Research Center found 18 percent of Americans believe that...and a whopping 43 percent are not sure what religion he is. For the record he's Christian.
It might be Islamophobia, Obamaphobia, or both...but when loud speakers are blaring "Born in the USA" and signs say "No Clubhouse for Terrorists" it's clear we aren't just talking about a mosque anymore.
There is a debate to be had about the sensitivity of building this center so close to Ground Zero.
But we can not let fear and rage tear down the towers of our core American values.
That's a page from my notebook.
I'm Katie Couric, CBS News.