BMLC
MEET OUR TEAM
Founder and CEO
Salima Suswell
In 2023, Salima Suswell founded the Black Muslim Leadership Council. BMLC is a national nonprofit organization, with a 501(c)(4) arm, dedicated to policy advocacy for urban communities, nonpartisan voter registration and voter turnout, civic education, and leadership development.
In addition, Salima serves as Founder & CEO of the award-winning Evolve Solutions, a government affairs and community engagement consulting firm founded in 2010 to address the racial and socio-economic disparities within urban communities. She also founded the Philadelphia Ramadan & Eid Fund, which provides the community with programming and shared experiences for children, youth, and families while celebrating the rich diversity within the Greater Philadelphia region.
Some of Salima’s other noteworthy contributions include: her role as Chair of the Muslim American Host Committee for the 2016 Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia; her role as Pennsylvania Deputy Senior Advisor for the Biden-Harris 2020 Campaign; and her role as Vice President and key organizer for Women’s March on Philadelphia, which drew over 60,000 attendees. Salima serves on the Leadership Council for the United Negro College Fund (Philadelphia Chapter). In 2017 Salima made history as the first Muslim woman appointed to the Pennsylvania Governor’s Advisory Commission on Women by Governor Tom Wolf. In 2020 Salima was appointed by Mayor Jim Kenney to the Mayor’s Commission for Faith-Based and Interfaith Affairs. In 2023 Salima was reappointed to the Pennsylvania Governor’s Advisory Commission on Women by Governor Josh Shapiro.
501(c)(3) Board
Dr. Quaiser D. Abdullah, Ph.D., (PA)
BOARD CHAIR
Dr. Quaiser D. Abdullah, Ph.D., is the newly appointed Director of Muslim Engagement in the Mayor’s inaugural Office of Muslim Engagement. Dr. Quaiser is also an assistant professor in the Department of Communication and Social Influence at Klein College of Media and Communication at Temple University. He currently serves as the Program Director for the Master of Science in Communication Management at Klein. His teaching portfolio covers undergraduate and graduate courses in conflict resolution, mediation, conflict within educational systems, interpersonal communication, leadership, and organizational Development.
Dr. Quaiser earned his undergraduate degree in Political Science and Religion, with a minor in Asian Studies. He then went on to earn a graduate degree in Adult Learning and Organizational Development and a doctorate in Educational Psychology. Dr. Quaiser currently serves as the board chair for Interfaith Philadelphia (2021-2024), co-president for the Association for Conflict Resolution (2023-2024), co-chair for the Mayor’s Commission on Faith-Based and Interfaith Affairs in Philadelphia, PA (2021-2023), and faculty/staff advisor for the MSA at Temple University. In 2013, SAGE published his chapter entitled “Muslim Leader Formation and Education” under the Religious Leadership project in The SAGE Reference Series on Leadership. His chapter, “Daanaa Abdullah: Exemplar of Community Leadership” was published in Democratic Ethical Educational Leadership: Reclaiming School Reform, in 2015 by Routledge. Dr. Quaiser serves as an expert witness, providing valuable insights on verbal aggression and its effects on community trust, during arbitration hearings for disciplined police officers.
Dr. Quaiser is one of the Imams at Masjid Quba. He has also served as Chairman and COO of Quba Institute, which is a 70-year-old organization that has established social institutions that support the Muslim community in the Philadelphia area. He also served as the conference chair for the Muslim Alliance of North America’s (MANA’s) annual conference in Philadelphia in 2007 and 2008. He previously served on the board of the Association of Muslim Chaplains and as a chaplain with the 18th District in Philadelphia’s Police Department.
Dr. Katera Moore, (DE)
BOARD VICE CHAIR
Dr. Moore is the Environmental Justice Coordinator for the Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control. She is an experienced educator who holds a doctorate in Earth and Environmental Sciences with a specialization in geography and a certificate in Africana Studies from the Graduate Center of the City University of New York. She is an urban geographer who uses an environmental justice lens to focus on and examine how socio-political structures contribute to disparities that impact everyday life.
Prior to joining DNREC in 2022 as ombudsman for the DNREC Division of Waste and Hazardous Substances, Dr. Moore served as a SNAP-Ed program director in Philadelphia, building strategic plans and partnerships to address community public health, an overarching symptom of broader environmental injustice. Dr. Moore received her Master of Environmental Studies and Bachelor of Urban Studies degrees from the University of Pennsylvania.
Aisha Abdullah, (FL)
BOARD TREASURER
Aisha Abdullah, a La Salle University graduate with a B.S. in Accounting, brings a wealth of expertise to the role of Black Muslim Leadership Council’s Treasurer. As the CEO of an esteemed accounting firm and a published author of “We Stepped In Business,” indexed in the self-help genre, Aisha has honed her skills in financial management and strategic planning. Her dedication to accuracy and proficiency, combined with her strong leadership abilities, positions her as an ideal candidate for overseeing and optimizing the financial operations of the Black Muslim Leadership Council.
Latasha Rouseau, (GA)
BOARD MEMBER
Latasha Rouseau is deeply concerned about the devastating effects the carceral state continues to have in our society, as well as its specific impact on communities of color. For over 17 years, she empowered and supported the most vulnerable group among us, our children, by assisting youth and their families within the juvenile justice system. She is currently the executive director of Sapelo Square, an education and media collective that documents and amplifies the Black Muslim experience.
