United Kingdom: the Middlesbrough Mosque opens its doors to dispel prejudices

In Middlesbrough, a city in the northeast of England located in the county of North Yorkshire, the Masjid Maryam mosque welcomed more than 200 visitors on Saturday during an open day placed under the sign of dialogue. The objective: to allow everyone to ask their questions about Islam, “without fear of being judged”. “This asked for courage from some people who came with apprehensions or popular ideas,” said Zak Mahmoud, head of the event. “But we discussed, exchanged, and we left by shaking our hands. »»

Visitors, sometimes who have come for several kilometers, were able to discover the places of prayer, dialogue with the faithful and ask frank questions about sensitive subjects, such as the place of women in Islam or prejudices related to terrorism. “We wanted to create a safe space where everyone could express themselves freely,” said Mr. Mahmoud. This local initiative takes a particular resonance in a British climate marked by the rise of disinformation and online Islamophobia. By opening its doors, Masjid Maryam illustrates a proactive approach to living together: going to meet the other to dispel fear, deconstruct the clichés and retrieve social ties in cities still weakened by distrust.