Muslims In Brooklyn: Historical Society Debuts $200K Project

BROOKLYN, NY — The Brooklyn Historical Society is spending $200,000 on a project called “Muslims in Brooklyn.” The two-year initiative seeks to “challenge assumptions” about the borough’s “rich ethnic and religious heritage.”

It is being funded by a grant from the Ford Foundation, according to a press release.

Components of “Muslims in Brooklyn” will comprise an oral history collection, comprising interviews conducted with up to 50 members from local Muslim communities and guided by a set of themes: migrations (physical and spiritual), cultural formations, neighborhood geographies and change, civic engagement and artistic creativity.

An interpretive website will feature essays by schools and community members, an interactive timeline and a map of Muslim communities throughout Brooklyn.

An educational curriculum for students in K-12, as well as post-secondary teachers and students, will aim to provide historical context about Islam and the cultural expressions of Muslims in NYC. Public engagement events will include a day-long performing arts festival, panel discussions with scholars and residents and listening sessions for interfaith communities, civic leaders and public servants.

Curated audio clips from the oral history collection will be featured in a series of segments, called “Voices of Brooklyn,” on BHS’ monthly podcast “Flatbush + Main.”

Finally, an accompanying publication will highlight Muslim artists and their work that will be featured in an exhibition centering on visual artists, photographers and poets who live and work in Brooklyn. The exhibition will illustrate a timeline of the history of Muslim communities in the area.

“The story of Muslims in Brooklyn is not a monolithic story,” Deborah Schwartz, president of the Brooklyn Historical Society, said in the release.

“This history includes diverse communities of African Americans as well as immigrants from all over the world, people who have arrived here over centuries for multiple reasons and whose struggles, aspirations and creative contributions are unique and impressive.”

“Muslims in Brooklyn” will be led by BHS oral historian Zaheer Ali, a scholar of the history of Islam in New York City, who previously managed Columbia University’s project on Malcolm X.

Photo credit: Chester Higgins