Congresswoman Analilia Mejía is diplomatic, but never shies away from confrontation. As the first Afro-Latina elected to the United States Congress and a daughter of Dominican and Colombian immigrants, she's spent 25 years learning how to build trust across real political and cultural differences.
This conversation covers clarity of purpose as the anchor for adapting across cultures, a concrete framework for disagreeing without becoming disagreeable, and a surprising tactic she uses in the highest-stakes rooms in the country.
This conversation is for you if you've ever wondered how much of your accent, your culture, or your real self you're allowed to bring into a room that doesn't look or sound like you.
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Timestamps
0:00 Introduction
0:40 Adapting to the room versus editing who you are
2:44 Clarity of purpose as a center of gravity
4:33 The housing story, and what assumption got wrong
7:55 Disagree without being disagreeable
10:51 Letting go of microaggressions, honestly
13:00 Never pick doormat
13:37 The language-buffer tactic
16:26 Building trust with someone who sees the world differently
19:05 People power and the Overton window23:03 The best question to ask anyone you admire
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THE GUEST
Congresswoman Analilia Mejia represents New Jersey's 11th Congressional District. Born in Elizabeth, New Jersey, to Colombian and Dominican immigrant parents, she spent 25 years as a labor organizer, policy advocate, and coalition builder before winning a special election to Congress in April 2026.
Her organizing career included leading the New Jersey Working Families Alliance, serving as Bernie Sanders's national political director during the 2020 presidential campaign, and later serving as deputy director of the Women's Bureau at the U.S. Department of Labor.
As a member of Congress, she also sits on the House Homeland Security and Small Business committees.
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/analiliafornj
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/repanalilia/
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THE HOST
Tannia Suárez is an executive communication coach who works with senior leaders, directors, and founders navigating high-stakes professional environments in English as non-native speakers.
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tanniasuarez/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/asktannia/
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THE COMMUNITY
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Watch more episodes of Leadership English: https://www.tanniasuarez.com/podcast