Muslim Jewish Advisory Council
In 2018 and 2019, SUSI Scholars attended events featuring members of the Muslim Jewish Advisory Council. DI/JES board chair Majid Alsayegh facilitated both of these conversations. To learn more about the Jewish-Muslim National Advisory Council, click HERE.
2019 Speakers
Featured presenters: Imam Talib Shareef and Rabbi David Saperstein and Ari Gordon.
2018 Speakers
Raheemah Abdulaleem
Raheemah Abdulaleem serves as Senior Associate General Counsel in the Executive Office of the President of the United States, Office of Administration (OA). She advises OA on compliance with federal administrative laws, and represents OA in administrative proceedings. Raheemah has received numerous awards for her work, including national recognition as one of the top lawyers under age 40. Previously, Raheemah advanced the cause of civil rights as a Senior Trial Attorney for the United States Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division. Raheemah is the Board Chair of a nonprofit organization based in Washington D.C. that works to provide accessible legal scholarship to Muslims and non-Muslims on issues related to Islamic law, particularly gender and racial equity, conflict resolution, and civil rights. Raheemah speaks frequently on tolerance, diversity, and social justice. Raheemah earned her JD from Harvard Law School and her BA from Yale University.
Wa’el Alzayat
Wa’el Alzayat is CEO of Emgage USA, a leading Muslim American civic engagement organization, and adjunct professor at Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service. He previously spent a decade serving in various policy positions at the Department of State, including senior policy advisor to Ambassador Samantha Power; Syria outreach coordinator for Ambassador Robert Ford; and special assistant to Ambassador James Jeffrey. Wa’el was also a provincial affairs officer in Anbar, Iraq, for the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad during the Surge of 2007-08. He previously worked as a multimedia advertising business development executive in the San Francisco Bay Area. He received an MS from Georgetown University and BA in Middle East history and political science from the University of California at Berkeley.
Arsalan Suleman
Arsalan Suleman is a Counsel in Foley Hoag LLP’s International Litigation & Arbitration Practice. He primarily advises sovereign States and State-owned companies in North Africa, the Middle East, and Central, South and Southeast Asia. Arsalan is also a non-resident fellow at the Institute for the Study of Diplomacy at Georgetown University, and was previously U.S. Special Envoy to the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC). In that role he engaged with the OIC, its member countries, and relevant civil society leaders on key foreign policy issues, and worked to deepen and expand partnerships in areas of mutual interest, such as human rights, countering violent extremism, health, education, entrepreneurship, and science and technology. He previously served as Counselor for Multilateral Affairs at the State Department.
He earned a Master’s in International Peace Studies from Trinity College, Dublin, where he was a George Mitchell Scholar. He also holds a JD from Harvard Law School. Arsalan graduated from Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service as an International Security Studies major with a certificate in Muslim-Christian Understanding. He clerked in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, and worked as a litigation associate at the law firm of Debevoise & Plimpton LLP.
