Council Criticized

The Los Angeles Times quotes Councilman Hal Bernson as saying that Mayor Bradley is “sticking his nose in my district” by condemning the restrictions placed on the design of a Granada Hills mosque. Councilman Bernson has once again displayed the incredible arrogance that has come to characterize his entire term of office.

It doesn’t take a constitutional scholar to see that there is a very good likelihood that the City Council has infringed upon the religious freedom of the Muslim community by dictating the design of their place of worship.

I was taught to believe that every American has the right to choose his or her own religion and not to be persecuted for that choice.

Mayor Bradley has done the right thing by asking the Cultural Affairs Commission to get in on the act. With their help in developing guidelines for designing religious buildings, perhaps events such as this will not occur again.

As a resident of Bernson’s district, I apologize to the members of the Islamic Center of Northridge for the insolence and lack of sensitivity displayed by our councilman. Although you may have disagreements with your neighbors in Granada Hills, I am sure you can work these out over time.

We do not persecute people because of their religious beliefs in this country, in spite of what Hal Bernson might think.

WALTER N. PRINCE

Northridge