Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., tweeted a response to the tragic fire that destroyed much of the Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris on Monday, but she left out an important detail in her remark and was quickly reminded online of the omission.
As the world looked on in horror, the 850-year-old cathedral was engulfed in flames as firefighters battled for hours. The devastating fire destroyed the iconic structure’s roof and collapse its spire.
“Art and architecture have a unique ability to help us connect across our differences and bring people together in important ways.,” Omar said in a tweet. “Thinking of the people of Paris and praying for every first responder trying to save this wonder.”
Art and architecture have a unique ability to help us connect across our differences and bring people together in important ways. Thinking of the people of Paris and praying for every first responder trying to save this wonder.
— Ilhan Omar (@IlhanMN) April 15, 2019
But Omar, a Somali refugee and one of the first two Muslim women to be elected to Congress, treated the place of worship as if it were a museum or an art display.
An ironic take, given that conservative commentator Mark Steyn all but compared the Notre Dame Cathedral to a museum.
Appearing on “Tucker Carlson Tonight,” Steyn said that “Christendom is in retreat in Europe,” adding that the secular French are “among the most Godless people in that sense.”
“There is no sense of Christianity outside of the walls of that cathedral,” Steyn said. “And it was after that that I went to then Notre Dame because you do have the sense that a living, breathing faith is just becoming actually a museum.”
An observation he supported by saying he has previously visited a Catholic church outside of Paris in Saint Denis, describing it as a “Christian museum in the heart of what is now a Muslim suburb in effect.”
According to The Economist, Paris and its metropolitan area has the largest number of Muslims of any city in the European Union — up to 1.7 million.
Omar’s Notre Dame tweet was criticized because, much like her remark belittling the 9/11 terrorist attack at the hands of Islamic extremists, it is insensitive. At its best. At its worst, it is disrespectful.
Her remark that “some people did something,” which came as she spoke at a CAIR fundraiser about being “tired” of being treated like a “second class citizen” because she is Muslim, became fodder for her critics:
Did something happen to some building?
— Harry Khachatrian (@Harry1T6) April 15, 2019
Here’s a sampling of some of the more popular responses from Twitter:
Well, the “architecture” that the art was housed in is a cathedral. While Biblically Christ is wherever His people are, Notre Dame is a significant and storied icon of faith. https://t.co/bsckz26qHe
— Dana Loesch (@DLoesch) April 16, 2019
"Art and architecture" https://t.co/UGMik3q7TL
— Larry O'Connor (@LarryOConnor) April 16, 2019
"Art and architecture," what a joke https://t.co/GPMUUFllxD
— Ryan Saavedra (@RealSaavedra) April 16, 2019
Did the Louvre burn, or was it a storage facility for overflow art? Or was it a Catholic cathedral? Can't tell from this word salad. https://t.co/6wgpaM9SaQ
— Derek Hunter (@derekahunter) April 16, 2019
https://twitter.com/NoahPollak/status/1118003706086080514
https://twitter.com/Mel_Med_/status/1118190125702422528
The #NotreDameCathedralParis is the Catholic Bible carved in Stone,the cornerstone is Jesus and faith is its foundation https://t.co/vJd5kurwiG
— C’mon man (@ToadonaWire) April 16, 2019
9/11 ~ ‘Some people did something’
Now ~ ‘Art and architecture’ caught fire
— Wojtuś (@WojReport) April 16, 2019
The only question in all of this seems to be does Omar know what she’s doing here, as Erielle Davidson, senior contributor for The Federalist, suggests.
I have the keen sensation that she knows precisely what she's doing. https://t.co/JxBxXp6uYy
— Erielle Davidson (@politicalelle) April 16, 2019
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The longest-tenured writer at BizPac Review, Tom grew up in Maryland before moving to Central Florida as a young teen. It is in the Sunshine State that he honed both his passion for politics and his writing skills.
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