Masjid Abu-Bakr Al-Siddiq (Metairie)

The Jefferson Muslim Association was founded in 1984 to meet the needs of the growing Muslim community in the New Orleans area. The group originally met in an apartment building, and then in the clinic of a doctor in the community, but eventually outgrew those temporary spaces. Masjid Abu-Bakr Al-Siddiq was constructed in 1988. It is the only mosque in the New Orleans area purpose-built as a mosque, and is also the largest. The masjid is a one-story rectangular plan building, with a large pointed entrance archway and rounded arch windows. The building has a minaret, and a large geodesic dome with star-shaped skylights. Currently, the dome and the top of the minaret are green. Inside, the entrance leads to a wudu (ablution) area and the main prayer space. A staircase leads to the women's area in a balcony above the prayer hall.The mosque suffered nearly no damage during Hurricane Katrina.Sources:Jefferson Muslim Association. "Masjid Abu Bakr." Accessed April 14, 2015. http://www.jmanola.org/index.html.The Pluralism Project at Harvard University. "Masjid Abu-Bakr Al-Siddiq." 2006, accessed April 14, 2015. http://www.pluralism.org/profiles/view/68724.U.S. Department of State IIP Digital. "Mosques of America: New Orleans." Accessed April 14, 2015. http://iipdigital.usembassy.gov/st/english/inbrief/2011/08/20110805192622esiuol0.3115183.html?CP.rss=true#axzz3XJgzvxQ9.