Staff

Allison Riggs leads the voting rights program at the Southern Coalition for Social Justice, an organization she joined in 2009. In March of 2020, she also took over as Interim Executive Director of the organization. Her voting rights work over the last decade at SCSJ has been focused on fighting for fair redistricting plans, fighting against voter suppression, and advocating for electoral reforms that would expand access to voting. Full bio.

Ryan Roberson joined SCSJ's Board of Directors in 2016, where he has served as both Treasurer and Chairman. In 2020, he stepped down as Board Chair to become SCSJ's inaugural Co-Executive Director for Administration. Ryan is the Founder of RER Capital, LLC, a Charlotte, NC-based proprietary trading company that focuses on intraday and longer-term market trends and movements. Full bio.

Tazeen Dhanani joined the Southern Coalition for Social Justice in May 2020 as the Communications Director. Prior to joining SCSJ, she was a Senior Communications Specialist at the Public Health Institute, where she worked on a USAID-funded contract to develop partnerships and strengthen the capacity of global health professionals and organizations. Before that, Tazeen worked in strategic communications and marketing as a Senior Consultant working with, and for, U.S. veterans on public health and mental health issues, specifically PTSD. Full bio.

Tyler Whittenberg joined Southern Coalition for Social Justice in 2020 to lead the Justice Systems Reform program. Prior to joining South Coalition for Social Justice, Tyler was Deputy Director of Advancement Project’s Ending the Schoolhouse-to-Jailhouse Track project. In this role, he supported grassroots campaigns led by youth of color fighting to end the criminalization of Black and Brown students and create learning environments that are reflective of the world they envision for themselves. Full bio.

Jeff Loperfido is a Staff Attorney with SCSJ’s Voting Rights group. His practice focuses on litigation and policy advocacy that ensures the fair and full participation of all voters. Full bio.

Hilary Harris Klein joined Southern Coalition for Social Justice in 2020 as Counsel for the voting rights program. Full bio.

Chantel Cherry-Lassiter is a Staff Attorney at SCSJ whose work focuses on criminal justice. She grew up in rural Northeastern North Carolina. She earned her M.P.A from Strayer University and her B.S. in Criminal Justice from Elizabeth City State University. Prior to attending law school, she worked for Elizabeth City State University in the Accounting Department. Full bio.

Mitchell Brown is a native of Fredericksburg, VA, but has familial roots in Greensboro, NC. Mitchell graduated from the New York University School of Law in May 2017 where he served as the Chair of the Black Allied Law Students Association (BALSA). Mitchell also graduated from North Carolina A&T State University in May 2012, earning a B.S. in Business Economics and a minor in Philosophy. Full bio.

Marcus Pollard joined the Southern Coalition for Social Justice as a Staff Attorney with the Justice System Reform team in June 2020. Marcus is a licensed attorney in North Carolina as well as the District of Columbia. Before working with the Southern Coalition for Social Justice, Marcus worked with the Orange County Local Reentry Council advocating for fair housing and employment opportunities. Full bio.

Jonathan C. ("Jay") Augustine serves as of counsel with the Southern Coalition for Social Justice. He joined SCSJ in September 2020 and is a member of the Voting Rights team. Full bio.

Amanda Ford serves as SCSJ’s Networks Director for Voting Rights and helps to lead the organizing efforts for the non-litigation work of SCSJ’s Voting Rights Team. Amanda specializes in grassroots organizing and base building having led several successful grassroots efforts in electoral politics across the South and Midwest. She has over 6 cycles of political campaign experience and 15 years of professional experience in politics and nonprofits. Amanda is a proud native of North Carolina who believes strongly in southern organizing and preserving the right to vote for all citizens. Full bio.

Imade Borha joined the Southern Coalition for Social Justice in June 2020 as a Communications Advocate for the Justice Systems Reform team. Before joining SCSJ, she worked as an award-winning journalist and a communications professional at a mental health organization. Full bio.

Irving Zavaleta joined the Southern Coalition for Social Justice in August 2020 as the Communications Manager. He is a well-known and highly regarded leader, educator and speaker with in-depth knowledge and experience in the areas of inclusion and equity. Irving has firsthand experience and knows best practices for working with underrepresented populations including students of color, LGBTQIA communities and first-generation college students. Prior to joining SCSJ, he worked as an Assistant Director for the North Carolina Campus Compact. Full bio.

Sala Abdallah is a formerly incarcerated man dedicated to righting his wrong through outreach to the youth, and bringing consciousness to the community by making them aware their voices are heard and opinions matter. Full bio.

Christopher Ketchie serves as the Southern Coalition's in-house demographer and data analyst, where he specializes in research, analysis, and spatial visualization of demographic and electoral data to provide an evidence base for advocacy, community organizing, and litigation. Full bio.

Candela Cerpa serves as the GIS Specialist and Data Analyst at the Southern Coalition for Social Justice. She joined the team in August 2020. Candela graduated from the University of Maryland, College Park in May 2020, where she earned her Bachelor of Science in Environmental Science and Policy. Full bio.

Katelin Kaiser serves as the Voting Rights Legal Fellow at the Southern Coalition for Social Justice’s voting rights program. She joined SCSJ in September 2020. Full bio.

Talia Ray serves as a paralegal at the Southern Coalition, where she assists the Voting Rights team on both litigation and non-litigation projects. After earning her Bachelor’s degree from Sarah Lawrence College in Bronxville, New York in 2013, her passion for community organizing lead her to political campaign work at the local and state levels. Full bio.

Stacy Hamilton has served as SCSJ’s Office Manager since November 2015. In that capacity, she manages SCSJ’s finances, oversees office administration, and provides human resource services. Full bio.