Alexis McGill Johnson, President and CEO of Planned Parenthood, on Why Liberation Has To Be Joyful

About this episode

Alexis McGill Johnson is president and CEO of the Planned Parenthood Federation of America and the Planned Parenthood Action Fund. A longtime champion of reproductive freedom and racial justice, Alexis leads one of the most recognizable names in healthcare and politics. Before she led health equity initiatives, combed through data to understand who needed her help, and led Planned Parenthood, she was inspired by the women she loved. Growing up, Alexis loved the hair salon because she got to share space with the grown women in her community and learn about their private lives. During our conversation, she talked about how powerful access to women she knew, and seeing women like Condoleezza Rice on television, expanded her idea of what was possible for her. She shared the story of her grandmother’s daring flight away from a future of sharecropping to New Jersey for love and freedom, which shapes her own bravery. Alexis isn’t just telling the women she serves to draw on bravery in the face of harrowing political elections; she’s doing it. In our conversation, we explored how Alexis became interested in advocacy and organizing, and why she believes voting is the best way to protect