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Alencia Johnson discusses Flip The Tables with Joy-Ann Reid

Unlock the Courage to Lead Change

Overcome personal barriers, reimagine your vision, and impact your community with the author of Flip the Tables: The Everyday Disruptor’s Guide to Finding Courage and Making Change.

How do you find the courage to challenge the status quo and make a lasting impact? Alencia Johnson, cultural strategist and former Biden advisor, reveals the path to personal and community transformation.

In Flip the Tables: The Everyday Disruptor’s Guide to Finding Courage and Making Change, Alencia Johnson provides a clear, actionable framework for anyone ready to break down personal barriers, reimagine possibilities, and become a catalyst for positive change. The book explores three stages of disruption: self, vision, and community. Through personal stories, real-world examples, and practical tools, Johnson empowers readers to embrace their authentic selves, clarify their purpose, and spark meaningful change in their careers, communities, and lives.

Joy-Ann Reid, host of MSNBC’s The ReidOut and an influential voice in political commentary, will moderate the conversation. Known for her incisive questions and dynamic interviews, Reid will guide a compelling discussion that connects Johnson’s insights to today’s pressing social challenges including:

• How to confront personal fears and embrace authentic leadership
• Strategies for reimagining personal and professional possibilities
• Practical steps to become a change agent within your community
• Behind-the-scenes insights from Johnson’s work in politics, activism, and corporate leadership
   

Alencia Johnson is an award-winning social impact leader recognized for her work in politics, corporate advocacy, and cultural change. As the founder of 1063 West Broad, she connects brands, organizations, and communities to purpose-driven solutions. Johnson’s career includes serving as a senior advisor to President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris, as well as leading public engagement strategies for Senator Elizabeth Warren’s campaign. Her initiatives, such as Planned Parenthood’s Stand With Black Women, highlight her ability to merge social justice with cultural movements, making her a trusted voice in advocacy and leadership.

This conversation offers the opportunity to explore solutions to common barriers in leadership and advocacy and discover how to activate your unique potential for impact.

For reasonable accommodations, please contact the Center for Accessibility at 202-727-2142 or DCPLaccess@dc.gov. For ASL or tactile interpretation, please allow at least seven (7) days notice.

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About the Speakers

Alencia Johnson is an award-winning social impact advisor and cultural commentator. She founded 1063 West Broad—a media and social impact consultancy leading at the intersection of culture, impact, and purpose. She has advised the presidential campaigns of Vice President Kamala Harris, President Joe Biden, Senator Elizabeth Warren and President Barack Obama, in addition to her work with leading advocacy groups, entertainers, brands and corporations. She is regularly seen on MSNBC, CNN, and ABC, and has been featured in NPR, Washington Post, ESSENCE, Glamour and more. Alencia is a proud member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. 

Joy-Ann Reid is the host of “The ReidOut with Joy Reid,”  and a political analyst for MSNBC.

Reid is the author of several New York Times best sellers including “The Man Who Sold America: Trump and the Unraveling of the American Story” (Harper Collins, 2019); “Fracture: Barack Obama, the Clintons and the Racial Divide” (William Morrow/Harper Collins, 2015); and “We Are the Change We Seek: The Speeches of Barack Obama” (Bloomsbury, 2016), which she co-edited with Washington Post columnist E.J. Dionne. Reid most recently published “Medgar & Myrlie: Medgar Evers and the Love Story that Awakened America,” which debuted in February 2024 at #1 on The New York Times best-seller list.

Previously, Joy hosted the MSNBC show “AM Joy,” offering distinctive analysis and insight on the news every weekend morning. She also previously hosted the weekday program “The Reid Report.” From 2011 to 2014, Reid served as the Managing Editor of theGrio.com, a daily online news and opinion platform devoted to delivering stories and perspectives that reflect and affect Black audiences, while also serving as an MSNBC contributor. She has worked in local and national TV news, talk radio and as a press secretary during two presidential campaigns, including Barack Obama's Florida campaign in 2008. Her columns have appeared in The New York Times, The Guardian, The Miami Herald, New York Magazine and The Daily Beast.

Reid graduated from Harvard University with a concentration in film in 1991. She taught a course on “race, gender and media” at Syracuse University's Newhouse School of Communications’ New York City annex from 2017 through 2018. Reid and her husband Jason own a documentary film production company. They reside in Maryland and have three children. 

About the Book 

From cultural critic and social impact leader Alencia Johnson comes Flip the Tables--A Guide for Everyday Disruptors Ready to Find their Courage, shake up the status quo, and create a better world from exactly where they are. We all crave lives of meaning and purpose but figuring out how to start can feel overwhelming. The truth? Your unique gifts and perspectives are needed--right now. It just takes a little courage to tap into them. In Flip the Tables, Alencia guides readers through three key stages of disruption:

Disruption of Self - Break down barriers and confront the fears that hold you back from stepping into your boldest, most authentic self.
Disruption of Vision - Radically reimagine what's possible for your life and the world around you.
Disruption of Community - Use your courage and fresh vision to make an impact--becoming the light needed in a dark world.

Flip the Tables is the playbook for those who want to create change--right where they are. Full of personal stories, real-world examples, and actionable tools, this guide helps readers ignite transformation by starting with their own lives. Alencia draws from her experiences--overcoming insecurities, fighting for women's rights, and advising top leaders and four presidential campaigns. Through behind-the-scenes insights and inspiring movements, she shows readers how to live with purpose, joy, and the belief that greatness lies within. Because the world doesn't just need disruptors--it needs you.

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