Our country: as the area's Muslim population grows, community members hope to spread the truth about Islam.

Like many residents of southwest suburban Orland Park, Robert Barlog grew concerned about the proposed construction of a mosque after an anonymous group put a flier in his mailbox.

The flier not only warned that the mosque would cause serious traffic problems, but also suggested that the people behind it were in some way tied to terrorism. "They are coming from the [neighboring] Bridgeview mosque that has had many allegations of terrorist ties from the federal government," it read.

Over the last 20 years, the south and southwest suburbs of Chicago have seen a steady increase in Muslim immigration. In 2001, about 70,000 Muslims resided in the area, according to a study conducted by Ilyas baYunus, professor emeritus of sociology at the State University of New York. That number continues to rise by about 2.7 percent a year.

Though a large number of Muslims have lived in Orland Park for years, several hundred residents, troubled by the cryptic warnings of the flier, showed up at multiple town meetings in May to protest the construction of the mosque.

Barlog, meanwhile, sent an e-mail to Orland Park Mayor Daniel McLaughlin urging him to exercise caution in approving the proposal.

But, when Barlog heard that one of the three principle backers of the mosque was his father's long-time physician, Ali Kutom, he changed his mind right away. "When I saw Dr. Kutom's name, that added some credibility," he said. "I really think they have good intentions and are well-meaning in what they are trying to do."

In fact, Kutom has been a cardiologist in west suburban Cicero and a resident of Orland Park for 18 years. Born in Bethlehem, Israel, the 44-year-old doctor is an American citizen. He is the father of two boys and two girls, all of whom were born in America.

Kutom and his partners--Orland Park doctor Mohammed Krad and businessman Malik Ali-have been planning the construction of the Orland Park Prayer Center since before Sept. 11, 2001. They believe that local Muslims shouldn't have to wade through the heavy traffic to pray at the nearest mosque in Bridgeview, about 13 miles away.

In June, the prayer center was approved in a unanimous decision by the Orland Park village board. Construction is slated to begin this fall. When completed, the mosque is expected to accommodate up to 50 worshippers a day.

Kutom recently talked with The Chicago Reporter about his plans for the prayer center.

How did you get involved in this project?

Dr. [Mohammed] Krad approached me and said he had decided to put a mosque in Orland Park because of the growing needs of the community to find a place to worship. The closest [mosque] is in Bridgeview and [other mosques are] in Frankfort and Villa Park.

Sometimes it's very difficult to get to because of distance, and everyone would sort of converge to those places at one time and either end up missing the prayer or not making it at all.

What sort of response did your project receive from the officials initially?

It was a very favorable response. They looked at this project like any other project, and they treated us fairly. I applaud Orland Park for having such responsible officials in local government because they upheld the law the way it should be.

Did the Sept. 11 attacks affect the plans for the mosque?

It didn't stall the plans at all. We had more scrutiny on us because we are Muslims and Arabs and Middle Easterners, but we knew what our civil rights called for--as long as we abided by the law, we would be given our day.

Some residents have voiced their concerns about terrorism. Is there a connection, as some have alleged with your mosque and the Bridgeview mosque, which is alleged by the federal government to have a tie to terrorist groups?

No. There's no relationship between this mosque and the Bridgeview mosque. These are two separate entities. Islam is not like Christianity, [for which] there is an archdiocese that decides where churches are built.

This mosque is from the people of Orland Park to the people of Orland Park. And it's going to be open to all to come and see what Islam is.

I think that a lot of people don't understand all the freedoms we have in this country, and this starts with freedom of religion and things that will give the Muslims the chance to present to the world what islam means and be a leader in that area.

Are you planning any community program or activity that will help the public understand Islam?

We have a lot of projects in mind. One of them is to be involved with the interfaith group called the [South-West Interfaith Team]. It's an excellent group of different churches in the area. There was a rabbi there, and we exchanged ideas on the ways to help people understand where the teachings of Islam fit with all of us.

We also want to have an education about Islam, whether it be through DVDs or programs about what it stands for. This is going to be open to all the community. We're going to hold some of the presentations at different churches, actually. Once the mosque is opened, there will probably be either weekly or monthly education programs.

We want people to understand what Islam is, [coming] from their next-door neighbors--not from someone who is living in the mountains or a cave, who has an extreme idea of what Islam is and portrays it with a white flash to everyone and says, 'This is what Islam is.' That is totally wrong.

We invite everyone to see what Islam is from us. We live among them and we are patriotic just like anybody else. This is our country and our kids' country. We want to protect it with all our hearts, our minds and our hands. This will prove to people that Islam is a religion of love, a religion of building the community through community action and working at all levels to get people together. It is not divisive; it is not the hate and terror that people see on TV.

What would you say to those who bad anxiety over the idea of a mosque?

[The planning] is not being done behind closed doors. Everything's open, and they know who the people are supporting this project.

We're concerned about terrorism like they're concerned about terrorism. We're concerned about our kids' safety, like they're concerned about their kids' safety. We're concerned about our community, like they're concerned about their community.

It's like we're all living on a ship, and, if somebody is going to put a hole in that, that would affect all of us.

In fact, we probably want to protect this community more than others, because we are under more scrutiny now and want to prove that we are different from those who want to do those attacks.

Another thing is that we've been living here for years and years and years. Just because we want to bring the prayer center in doesn't change who we are.

Maybe we will have to go through the path that many other minorities went through all through the history of this country, and maybe it's time for us now to walk that path.

In the end, I don't think the mosque will increase the amount of animosity among the community. There are Muslims throughout the community, and they are part of the fabric of Orland Park. It's unfortunate that the minority that did not support the mosque came to the meeting and spoke rather loudly. I feel they spoke out of ignorance. We want to extend a hand to them, because it is now time for us to heal. It is not time to stay divisive.