Stockholm has welcomed its mosque

Many communities in Europe are in conflict over mosque projects. But after a while, once they’ve been around, they tend to be welcomed. In Stockholm, despite growing Islamophobia, locals seem to have accepted and even welcomed their mosque.

The Grand Mosque in Stockholm was inaugurated in June 2000. Located in Södermalm in the south of Stockholm City, it is currently the largest mosque in Sweden. The project was originally delayed because of protests and appeals. 8 years after Mohammad Fateh Atia, a consultant working at the Mosque says that attitudes have changed.

“I would like to say that it has been a quite good, positive response. We find that the situation has changed to the better and the Mosque has been more and more accepted in the society and the community around it.”

Talking about the challenges, she says: “There have been different situations around the world since 9/11 for instance and around 7/7 in the U.K. and this kind of terrorist activities have somehow increased the reactions from the people who don’t like us being here.”

Atia says the community has been supported: “It has been more or less accepted that this mosque is not what they had expected from the beginning. It’s more or less a part of Sweden and a part of their Swedish society.”

About 50,000 people visit the mosque each year. Atia says, “Around 20000 of them are booked visitors, school classes – and there are not less than approximately 30000 un-booked visitors.”

The Mosque itself was originally built as an electric power station. The building is not spectacular from the outside, since the city code of Stockholm prohibits buildings from "striking out,” but the decorative touches that define a mosque can be found inside with enormous crystal chandeliers hang from the ceilings and Islamic patterns can be seen etched by the vaulted windows. The listed building was converted to a mosque during the 1990s.

Residents overall have a positive response to the mosque.

“I think it’s a good thing because you see people from all over the world meeting in the Mosque,” says one. “I think it’s nice. You see Islam in the middle of the city which you didn’t before, so I think that’s good.”

Another says: “The Mosque is a bit of peace and quiet and even if I’m not a Muslim I can still look at it and I feel the peace from it.”

One man who visited the mosque on a guided tour says: “I don’t mind the cultural diversity it brings to the centre of Stockholm. We have the Catholic Church in the middle of the city as well and Sweden is a Protestant country so I don’t mind that – we have the Grand Synagogue as well, so I think it’s a great thing.”

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With Europe quickly becoming a melting pot, cities and towns are starting to see mosques being built alongside churches. They generate fierce debate. And it’s not about building codes and architecture—though the talk is usually focused around that. It’s not really about the buildings themselves at all, but about the people who worship in them. We bring you stories this week about mosque building projects across the continent, and reactions to them. The programme is presented in Marseille, in the south of France, where almost a quarter of the population is Muslim, and which should soon see a grand mosque built. 

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