The International Museum of Muslim Cultures in Jackson, Mississippi, was established in April 2001 in what is now the Arts Center of Mississippi and identifies itself as America’s first Muslim museum. It grew from a local effort to address the omission of Muslim-ruled Andalusia from a major 2000 exhibition on Spanish history and royal art. Co-founders Emad Al-Turk and Okolo Rashid, with other local Muslims, organized Moorish Spain: Its Legacy to Europe and the West, and that temporary exhibition developed into a permanent institution. The museum has since focused on Islamic cultures, Muslim contributions to Europe and the wider West, and public education through annual Islamic Heritage Month programs.

Jackson, Mississippi · USA