Mosqueone.com is the first-ever oral history project of Muslims in Canada. It is a window into Toronto’s first mosque, which was an old shop, purchased in 1961, at 3047 Dundas Street West. Oral history is a way of putting people’s own memories and perspectives on the record, unmediated by outside observers.
The Dundas St. mosque touched the lives of many new Muslim immigrants to Toronto. Mosqueone.com captures the stories of eight of its pioneers. Their stories are a powerful corrective to the prevalent image of Muslims as newcomers unable to adjust to the norms and values of Canada. Snippets of their perspectives can be viewed here in edited video clips, with full transcripts available for those who want more depth.
This website is a virtual museum of the Dundas St mosque. It is a powerful resource for researchers wanting to learn more about the history of Muslims in Canada, as it compiles relevant photographic, textual, legal and scholarly documents that relate to the mosque. To orient visitors to the project, we recommend starting with the About Project Page. Meet the participants, read some transcripts, then view some video footage. This ought to provide a context for the photographs and other textual documents, which include a “History of Muslims in Toronto,” written in 1967; legal deeds; and other academic work related to the mosque.
Malcom X visits the Dundas St mosque
This project was made possible with a grant from The Olive Tree Foundation and co-sponsored by the International Development & Relief Foundation. The Tessellate Institute is extremely grateful to both these organizations for their support, as this project would not have been realised without them.
The material contained in this website is copyrighted, and may not be reproduced without permission.