RALEIGH, N.C. — The Raleigh community continues to express concerns about the uncertain future of the mosque on Shaw University’s campus. It’s been about three years since services stopped at the building because of the pandemic.
According to the school’s website, the chapel on campus has community worship services every Saturday, but members of the Muslim community say public services at the mosque have not been allowed to resume.
The mosque on Shaw University’s campus has been closed for public services since the pandemic began in March 2020
Meanwhile, the school’s website says the chapel on campus has community worship services every Saturday
One member of the Muslim community says this is discrimination and wants the mosque to be opened again
A university spokesperson says the mosque is open to students who coordinate with university officials
“This is one of the first mosques that was established in Raleigh, North Carolina. One of the oldest mosques established 40 years ago. For many people it was the very first mosque they would attend services at,” said Nigel Edwards, an attorney and board member at the King Khalid Mosque.
Since March 2020, Edwards and other members of the Muslim community haven’t been able to worship at Shaw’s mosque.
“COVID-19 happened, and there was an agreement that we would have no public gatherings because of the pandemic, and we understood. Three years later, we are still locked out of the building because of COVID, apparently,” Edwards said.
A sign currently on the door says the mosque is closed until further notice. Meanwhile, the school’s website says a weekly community worship service is held every Saturday at the university’s chapel. That’s why Edwards continues to organize protests. He wants people to have that same kind of access to the mosque.
“First and foremost, stop the discrimination. We have two houses of worship on this campus. We have one pandemic, supposedly one university. But for whatever reason, different rules for each place of worship,” Edwards said.
Spectrum News 1 reached out to Shaw University on Tuesday about the situation. A spokesperson sent the following statement, dated February 27, “In response to recent inquiries regarding the International Studies Center, the campus mosque has been and continues to be open and available to currently enrolled Shaw University students who coordinate access through the university’s Office of the Chaplain. Neither the mosque nor the campus chapel is generally open to the public for standard church meetings, prayer vigils, or worship services; all events are and will continue to be confirmed through scheduled programming that is managed by the Chaplain’s Office.”
The statement continues, “As a matter of practice for students of varying faiths and beliefs, Shaw University offers a list of external resources and facilities in the local community where students, faculty, or staff members may seek support or houses of worship to pray and/or practice their faith and religious obligations. Those resources are readily available to the campus community.”
Edwards, however, doesn’t believe those reasons are valid arguments about why the mosque is still not open to the public like it used to be.
“It's very confusing considering the ample video evidence of services being offered within the chapel of Shaw University. The various programing that's being offered by the chapel of Shaw University. To say that it's not open to the public, then why is it that members of our own community have gone there for their own services?” Edwards said.
This is all happening as the university filed a rezoning request for 17 properties, including the land the mosque is on.
“As long as the university is redeveloping its properties for its future, we wonder if we are part of that future. And for many, the answer to that question is undoubtedly no,” Edwards said.
Edwards has at least four more protests planned in the near future. The next one is set for Friday at 11:30 a.m.
