Hannibal B. Johnson is a graduate of Harvard Law School. He did his undergraduate work at The University of Arkansas, where he completed a double major in economics and sociology. Johnson is an attorney, author, and independent consultant. Johnson has also served as an adjunct professor at The University of Tulsa College of Law, Oklahoma State University, and the University of Oklahoma.

Johnson is past president of Leadership Tulsa, past president of the Metropolitan Tulsa Urban League and past president of the Northeast Oklahoma Black Lawyers Association. He directed Anytown, Oklahoma, a statewide human relations camp for teens, for more than a decade. Johnson served as Chairman of the board of directors of The Community Leadership Association, an international leadership organization, during 2001 - 2002. He is a founding director of the Oklahoma Appleseed Center for Law and Justice, serves as Chairman of the board of directors of the Oklahoma Department of Libraries, and is a member of The Rotary Club of Tulsa.

 Johnson's books include: Black Wall Street --From Riot to Renaissance in Tulsa's Historic Greenwood District; Up From the Ashes -A Story About Community (children's book); Acres of Aspiration -The All-Black Towns in Oklahoma; Mama Used To Say -Wit & Wisdom From The Heart & Soul; No Place Like Home -A Story About an All-Black, All-American Town (middle reader); & IncogNegro: Poetic Reflections on Race and Diversity in America. Johnson's play, Big Mama Speaks-A Tulsa Race Riot Survivor's Story, has been performed at the Tulsa Performing Arts Center, Philbrook Museum of Art, and was selected for the 2011 National Black Theatre Festival. Johnson has also penned articles for the Encyclopedia of African American History (2010).

Johnson's honors include: the "Don Newby/Ben Hill" award from Tulsa Metropolitan Ministry; the "Keeping The Dream Alive" award from the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Commemoration Society; the "Outstanding Service to the Public Award" from the Oklahoma Bar Association; the "Ten Outstanding Young Tulsans" award from the Tulsa Jaycees; the "Distinguished Leadership Award" from the National Association for Community Leadership; and the 2005 "Ralph Ellison Literary Award" from the Black Liberated Arts Center; and the 2006 Oklahoma Human Rights Award from the Oklahoma Human Rights Commission; induction into the 100 Black Men of Tulsa, Inc. “Hall of Honor” in 2007; and the “Goodwill Appreciation Award” from the Islamic Society of Tulsa in 2008. In 2004, Mr. Johnson graduated with the inaugural class of the national "Connecting Community Fellowship Program" based in Richmond, Virginia.