Su’ad Abdul Khabeer
Founding Director and Senior Editor
Su’ad Abdul Khabeer is a scholar-artist-activist whose work explores themes of race, religion and popular culture. She is currently an assistant professor of Anthropology and African American Studies at Purdue University. Su’ad received her PhD in cultural anthropology from Princeton University and is a graduate from the School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University.A Brooklyn native, Su’ad is unashamedly Black, undeniably Latina, and unapologetically Muslim. Follow Su’ad on Twitter.
Nsenga Knight
Co-Founder and Managing Editor
Nsenga Knight grew up in a big Black Caribbean-American Muslim family in Flatbush, a Caribbean colony in Brooklyn, New York. She was born in the 80’s and gained a love for culture and everything Black in the 90’s. She left her parents home in 1999 via a full scholarship to Howard University where she studied Film Production and French. Nsenga later earned a Masters of Fine Arts degree at the University of Pennsylvania. She chose to study film and fine arts because of her desire to document and share the stories of African American Muslims in all of our complexities, depth, and eccentricities. This personal mission is at the core of what she does at Sapelo Square. You can learn more about her artistic work and keep up with her exhibitions at nsengaknight.com or follow her on twitter.
Malikah A. Shabazz
Arts and Culture Editor
Malikah A. Shabazz is a Detroit born Brooklyn based media professional. She works in the television industry as a content and production coordinator. She is the director and producer of the short docs “The Vortex” and “Transplants”. She is the founder of the weekly blog “Detroit Girl In A NY World” and is also the curator of #BilalianExperience, an online collection of positive images of Black Muslims in America. She is currently in pre-production for her first short narrative film.
Rasul Miller
History Editor
Rasul Miller is a PhD student in History and Africana Studies at the University of Pennsylvania. His research interests include Muslim movements in 20th century America and their relationship to Black internationalist thought and West African intellectual history.
Will Caldwell
History Editor
Will Caldwell is a doctoral candidate at Northwestern University. He specializes in the history of early twentieth-century African American Muslims, with a focus on issues of race, empire, and internationalism. Follow Will on Twitter.
Ryan Hilliard
Religion Editor
Ryan Hilliard is a Chicago native serving as the visiting speaker-in-residence at The Green Room, a safe space for Muslim youth in northern Alberta. He is the former Youth Director for the Islamic Association of Collin County in Plano, Texas, as well as US Liaison for SeekersHub Español. He currently lives in Edmonton, Alberta with his wife and daughter. Follow Ryan on Twitter.
Bashirah Mack
Social Media Coordinator
Bashirah Mack is an Atlanta native who resides in the city of Chicago. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science, Black World Studies and Islamic World Studies from Loyola University Chicago.
Bashirah joined Sapelo Square as the Social Media Coordinator. She develops and manages the Sapelo Square brand across various social media platforms. Her passion to educate communities on the intersection of being black and Muslim in the U.S. is achieved through her work.
In her leisure, Bashirah enjoys travel to places that have significant African and African diaspora histories and cultures. She traced the forced migration routes of her black and Muslim ancestors by exploring the southern coastal U.S., West Africa, the Caribbean, Europe, and South America. Follow Bashirah on Twitter.
Nisa Islam
Politics Editor
Nisa Islam is a graduate of Hartford Seminary, Class of 2017, with a Masters in Islamic Studies and Christian Muslim Relations, and a Graduate Certificate in Islamic Chaplaincy. She interns at Howard University as their Muslim Chaplain. She is the Politics Editor. Follow Nisa on Twitter.
M. Ihsanulhaq Sarfraz
Website Development
M. Ihsanulhaq Sarfraz is currently working towards his PhD in the School of Electrical and Computer Engineering at Purdue University. His research interests lie in the areas of secure systems and applied cryptography, databases and cloud computing. He is the author of several peer-reviewed conference and journal articles. His passions and inspiration include web development, the study of human computer interface and the psychology of human/computer interaction. He is proficient in several web programming languages and builds websites that delight and inform.
Aïdah Aliyah Rasheed
Special Projects
Aïdah Aliyah Rasheed recognizes the power of art and culture as means of cultivating communal awareness and connectivity. She is an interdisciplinary artist and multi-media producer. She has worked with world renowned artists, museums, and educational institutions. Additionally, she carries more than a decade of civic engagement and interfaith service, creating innovative solutions to the economic and racial injustices facing communities around the United States. Rasheed holds an MFA from the California College of the Arts and a BFA from Morgan State University. Follow Aïdah on Twitter.