Alexis McGill Johnson

McGill Johnson was born in New York City in 1972 and raised by her mother and father.[3] Her mother worked her way up from a secretary to an executive-level position at AT&T. McGill Johnson's childhood was strongly influenced by her parents' pride in black culture.[4]

In 1993, she graduated from Princeton University with a bachelor's degree in political science and a focus in Latin-American social movements.[5][6] She went on to receive a Master of Arts from Yale University in 1995, also in political science.[7][8][9]

McGill Johnson taught political science and African-American studies at both Yale and Wesleyan University. She served as political director for Russell Simmons' "Hip-Hop Summit Action Network", and was the executive director of Citizen Change during the 2004 election season, launching their "Vote or Die!" campaign.[10]

Johnson speaks at a rally against abortion restrictions in North Carolina, 2023

In 2009, she co-founded the Perception Institute (formerly known as the American Values Institute), a research group studying bias reduction and discrimination, and was their executive director. She co-created the curriculum for Starbucks' racial bias training in May 2018.[5]

On July 16, 2019, McGill Johnson was announced as Planned Parenthood's acting president after the termination of Leana Wen. McGill Johnson was previously a board member and was the board's chair from 2013 to 2015.[11] At that time, the Perception Institute listed her as being "on leave."[12] On June 26, 2020, she was elevated to permanent president and CEO of Planned Parenthood.[13]

McGill Johnson has also served on the boards of New York Civil Liberties Union, the Center for Social Inclusion, and Citizen Engagement Lab.[10]

She lives in New York City. She is married to Robert Johnson, who is the president of the Institute for New Economic Thinking.[14] They have two daughters.[15]