Islam In the Heart Of Dixie

"It was fortunate because it helped create a different image and a dialogue," Rashid said.

Abdul Kasem, 15, who attends the Muslim Academy in Gretna, La., recently visited the museum with his ninth-grade class. He and several other students enjoyed trying out traditional instruments, including djembe drums. Fellow student Salah Salem, 16, said the museum expanded on topics he had learned about in school.

An estimated 30,000 people have visited the museum, which has become a place to showcase the role Muslims have played in the history of the state's development and foster an understanding of the culture's worldwide impact.

The museum's first home, a small, one-story building, was razed to make way for a new city convention center. Now the museum is housed about a block away, on the second floor of the Mississippi Arts Center.

The museum's current exhibit, "The Legacy of Timbuktu: Wonders of the Written Word," opened in November. The "Islamic Moorish Spain" exhibition also is being reinstalled in the new facility.

The Timbuktu show features handwritten manuscripts donated from that African city's Mama Haidara Manuscript Library. The documents, some dating back more than 700 years, help establish the literate culture of Africa, Rashid said.

Library General Manager Abdel Kader Haidara traveled from Timbuktu to attend the exhibition's opening on Nov. 28. Speaking through an interpreter, Haidara said it was important to reintroduce the manuscripts to the world. Haidara stressed a message of peace, equality and tolerance that he feels the world needs to understand about Islamic culture.

The manuscripts, written by various authors including some women, show ideas for government and conflict resolution. The most profitable trade industry in the city was the sale of books, Rashid said.

The show also includes an interactive portion featuring the Muslim roots of Mississippi's traditional blues music by identifying some similar tone and melody changes.

An estimated 7 million Muslims live in the United States, according to Ahmed.

The Pluralism Project, a study done by Harvard University, said about 4,000 Muslims live in Mississippi; the state's population is about 2.9 million.

Ahmed believes museums and exhibitions that focus on the history of Islamic culture can help society see that the religion is a part of the "fabric of society."

"It's also a sign to show the maturity and the integration in Muslims in the U.S.," Ahmed said.