Alencia Johnson + Stephanie Brown James in Conversation at MLK Library

RSVP for this engaging talk at MLK Library.

Doors: 6pm.

Start time: 6:30pm

MLK Library Address: 10601 Euclid Ave, Cleveland, OH 44106

Parking is available at the old MLK Library lot on Stokes Blvd. Additional parking is available at Library Lofts parking on Reserve Ct for a fee (parking will be validated for up to two hours). 

Alencia Johnson is a sought-after cultural commentator, bestselling author, advisor, and leader at the intersection of social justice and culture change. She is the Founder of 1063 West Broad — a social impact consultancy and media company connecting brands, organizations and people to purpose driven solutions. Her debut national bestseller, “Flip The Tables: The Everyday Disruptor’s Guide to Finding Courage and Making Change” is available everywhere books are sold.

Alencia Johnson

Alencia has worked for the presidential campaigns of President Barack Obama and Sen. Elizabeth Warren and was a senior advisor to both President Biden’s 2020 campaign and Vice President Harris’ 2024 campaign. She also held national roles at Planned Parenthood and GEICO -- leading efforts in each organization to address issues facing marginalized communities through popular culture, brand engagement  and narrative strategies. During her six years at Planned Parenthood, she was one of the architects behind the “Stand With Black Women” branding and framework as well as led the organization’s election media strategies with Secretary Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign. 

Alencia has been recognized by Harvard University with a "Woman of the Year" award, EBONY Magazine’s “Power 100” list of influential African Americans, PRWeek’s “40 Under 40” list and more. Her board service includes the Warner Music Group/Blavatnik Family Foundation’s Social Justice Fund as well as Human Rights First and she was appointed to the Virginia Council on Women by Governor Ralph Northam. She was a Georgetown University Institute of Politics Fellow. 

Alencia is a sought-after thought leader and cultural critic regularly featured on MSNBC, CNN, ABC, BET, NPR, Washington Post, ESSENCE, Glamour and more. She is a proud member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. Alencia can be found on Instagram at @AlenciaJohnson.

Stefanie Brown James, Co-Founder & Executive Director

An experienced social entrepreneur and civic engagement strategist, Stefanie Brown James is the Co-Founder and Senior Advisor of The Collective – a network of five affiliated organizations which includes The Collective PAC, The Collective Super PAC, Elect Black Democrats Super PAC, Collective Future and The Collective Education Fund – dedicated to supporting and funding Black candidates to win elections on the local, state and federal levels and the engagement of Black voters in the political process. The Collective is strategically focused on creating an equitable democracy where Black people are fully represented in positions of power to create the policies necessary to progress our communities forward.

Founded in August of 2016, The Collective has raised over $50 million from 200,000+ individual contributions; helped 417 Black leaders win elected office; trained over 1,500 candidates and campaign operatives to run successful campaigns; and in 2020, organized one of the largest Black voter engagement campaigns in the country -- registering over 114,000 voters and providing over 100,000 free rides to and from the polls.

In 2013, Stefanie and her husband Quentin James, created Vestige Strategies LLC; a civic and community engagement consulting firm that assists nonprofits, corporations, foundations, and countries to take action and win tangible results for their constituents. Stefanie continues to serve as the firm's CEO and has created a number of successful campaigns for domestic and international clients including the Environmental Defense Fund, Google, Open Society Foundations, and the former heads of state in Lagos, Nigeria, and Trinidad and Tobago.

A native of the Cleveland, Ohio area, Stefanie previously worked at EMILY’s List, the nation’s largest resource for women in politics, as the organization’s Vice President of Training and Community Engagement. In this position, Stefanie rebuilt the organization's community engagement department and established the Ignite Change Program to train women of color interested in running for public office.

In 2012, Stefanie served as the National African American Vote Director for the Obama for America Campaign and created the national strategy to engage Black leaders and voters to re-elect President Barack Obama, helping to garner the highest Black voter turnout in history. Formerly the National Field Director and Youth & College Division Director for the NAACP, Stefanie developed and administered the national field organizing strategy for the NAACP’s 2,200+ units; serving as the youngest woman to hold this position.

Initiated into Alpha Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Incorporated, 21 years ago, Stefanie is a member of the National Board of Directors and Co-Chair of the National Social Action Commission for the nation's preeminent service and social action-based sorority comprised primarily of Black, college-educated women. Stefanie is also a former member of the Board of Trustees at her alma mater, Howard University in Washington, DC.

A frequent political contributor on ABC News, the BBC, CNN, and MSNBC, Stefanie is the recipient of numerous awards including The Grio 100, the Root 100, the Cleveland NAACP Social Justice Champion Award, and Social Justice honoree for the Culture Creators' Awards. Stefanie’s greatest accomplishment, however, is marrying her business partner Quentin and being the mother of two amazing little boys, Carter & Elijah.