Constructing an Islamic environment in Northern Ireland

This paper describes the difficulties that Muslims in Northern Ireland have experienced in establishing an Islamic environment. Northern Ireland has a long tradition of religious and political conflicts between its Catholic and Protestant communities. The nature of these political events in the region, and the history of the local Muslim community, have had implications on the establishment of Islamic spaces and the ways in which Muslims organize their religious lives. However, at the risk of endangering relationships with the Protestant community, Muslims still feel the need to build a formal mosque.