Museum Information
Museum Mission
This reproduction of an antique astrolabe may be seen in the Museum’s Islamic
Moorish Spain exhibit. The astrolabe originated in Greece and was introduced to
the Islamic world during the eighth century. Astronomers and mapmakers used it to
determine time of day or night and the location of celestial bodies.
The International Museum of Muslim Cultures is dedicated to educating the public
about Islamic History and Culture.
The Museum also celebrates the contributions Muslims have made to the city of Jackson,
the state of Mississippi, the region, the nation, and the world. In educating the
public about the diversity of the area's cultural and religious heritage, the Museum
describes the Muslim experience and places it in context with other cultural and
religious groups.
Through research and the collection, preservation, exhibition, and interpretation
of objects that promote the understanding of Muslim culture, the Museum strives
to facilitate multicultural and interfaith tolerance, reducing religious and racial
bigotry and advancing religious and civic dialogue.
Museum History
In December 2000 a group of Jackson, Mississippi, area Muslims identified the need
for the development of a national museum to educate the public about Islamic history
and culture and the contributions of Muslims to world civilization. The founders
also sought to increase citizens’ understanding and appreciation of the richness
of Mississippi’s diverse cultural and religious heritage and the role that Muslims
have played in the state’s history and development.
Located in downtown Jackson's Arts District, the International Museum of Muslim
Cultures (IMMC) is the first and only Islamic history museum in the country. The
Museum opened in April 2001 with a major exhibition, Islamic Moorish Spain: Its
Legacy to Europe and the West, that was featured concurrently with The Majesty of
Spain, an international exhibition that ran for six months in Jackson at the Mississippi
Arts Pavilion, less than a block away. The proximity and complementary theme helped
contribute to the Museum’s attracting 2,000 visitors in its first month of operation.
IMMC, in its new location at the Mississippi Arts Center, is next door to the Russell
C. Davis Planetarium, the Mississippi Museum of Art, Thalia Mara Hall (City Auditorium),
the new telecommunications center, and within walking distance of the Old Capitol
Museum, the War Memorial Building, and the Farish Street Historic District—all significant
educational and cultural attractions in the heart of the capital city. This synergy
has stimulated visits by tourists as well as school groups to the Museum and bodes
well for the future. Since opening, the Museum has received some 27,000 local, national,
and international visitors representing more than 40 states and 45 countries. The
tragedy of September 11, 2001, coming only six months after the Museum’s opening,
has had the dichotomous effect of increasing interest in educational programs about
Islam while deterring some visitation.
The goals of the Museum are to educate the public about Islamic history and civilization
and to help provide educational tools for teaching global consciousness, historical
literacy, and multicultural appreciation. IMMC seeks to continue to grow as a cultural
tourism destination and serve the community as an educational and research center
as well as a repository for Islamic objects having cultural, artistic, aesthetic,
and historical significance. Additionally, IMMC seeks to facilitate multicultural
and interfaith understanding; reduce cultural, religious, and racial bigotry; and
advance Mississippi and America's cultural, religious, and civic discussions to
provide a better atmosphere for working together for the common good.
In the last five years IMMC has reached an important milestone. Under the leadership
of a full-time executive director and board of directors chairman—two of the institution’s
founders—and its board of directors, the Museum successfully transitioned from being
a religious satellite institution to a tax-exempt 501(c)(3) independent museum with
national impact.
The board of directors governs IMMC, with oversight and management responsibilities
vested in the two founders, Emad Al-Turk and Okolo Rashid, who serve as board chairman
and executive director/board secretary, respectively. Ms. Rashid manages the day-to-day
operation of the Museum and will serve as the project director for The Legacy of
Timbuktu.
Ms. Rashid holds a B.A. in economics from Tougaloo College and a Master’s in public
policy/administration with specialty in community and economic development from
Jackson State University. Before the Museum was founded, she owned her own firm,
specializing in consulting and project administration with a focus on community
development projects, including historic preservation, working primarily with inner
city community and grassroots organizations. She has more than 20 years’ experience
in community and organizational development.
Mr. Al-Turk holds a B.S. and M.S. in civil engineering from the University of Mississippi
and Mississippi State University, respectively, and an M.B.A. from Millsaps College.
Mr. Al-Turk was chief operating officer of Waggoner Engineering, Inc., a leading
engineering firm in the southern region of the United States, for almost 15 years,
where he was responsible for the day-to-day operation of the firm. He was also involved
in planning, design, construction, administration, and overall project management
and funding for well over $100 million in construction projects. He is an independent
businessman in the Jackson, Mississippi area.
Building on the successes of five years of operation, the mounting of a one-half
million dollar long-term exhibit in six months’ time, and the development of strong
links to the academic community, business and community at-large, the Museum is
preparing for an expansion. With its new move to the state of the arts Mississippi
Arts Center, the Museum will offer a venue of considerable interest to Mississippi
and the nation with the mounting of a newest exhibition, The Legacy of Timbuktu:
Wonders of the Written Word.
Project Team
For a list of Who's Who of the Museum Project team please follow this link
Traveling Exhibit Program
The Traveling Exhibit Program ("TEP") enables the exhibitions developed
at IMMC to reach communities all over the world. By packaging the TEP exhibits for
display through a select national and international network of partner facilities,
IMMC seeks to foster dialogue between communities around the world to enrich all
our lives and interactions.
More information about IMMC Traveling Exhibition Program coming soon.
Contact Information
The International Museum of Muslim Cultures
Mississippi Arts Center
201 East Pascagoula Street
Jackson, Mississippi 39201
(to open November 28, 2006. Museum is currently closed until relocation to this
new address.)
P.O. Box 31075
Jackson MS 39286
Museum Membership
Become a member of the International Museum of Muslim
Cultures. You can sign up online or email us at info@muslimmuseum.org.