Excerpt:
A dozen Minnesota Muslim groups have called for Gov. Tim Pawlenty to retract the statement he made Friday slamming a proposed mosque near Ground Zero in New York City.
The groups, who sent a letter to Pawlenty's office Monday, wrote that the Minnesota governor should respect freedom of religion, and asked that he meet with local Muslim leaders to "understand how his comments have negatively impacted the Minnesota Muslim community."
"Our governor has engaged in collective guilt by saying that all Muslim activities and images anywhere near Ground Zero are degrading and disrespectful," Taneeza Islam, civil rights director for Minnesota's chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), said in a statement.