Gutsy decision: Goldsboro City Council made right call on Muslim cemetery

The Goldsboro City Council should be commended for approving a Muslim cemetery to be built at the site of an Islamic center on Fedelon Trail.

The decision could not have been an easy one.

Opponents of the cemetery had argued for months that it would encroach on the privacy of neighboring residents and landowners and could contaminate groundwater because of the Muslim practice of burying their dead without embalming.

But none of the arguments held water. And it would be difficult to argue that there was not some anti-Muslim sentiment at work.

After studying the issue at length, council members on Monday night unanimously gave their approval to the rezoning necessary for construction of the cemetery.

It was the only decent way to go. The burial of loved ones in a manner consistent with a person's beliefs is a right that should not be denied to anyone, regardless of their religion.

Published in Editorials on May 4, 2016 11:33 AM