Our Work
We organize low-income, Memphian tenants to organize and build power to improve our housing conditions for ourselves and our broader Memphian community.
With organizing of local tenants at the center, we build and join coalitions at the local, state and national level to amplify our impact. We do this through forming tenant unions building by building.
We work with tenants who want to organize collectively to form a tenants union. We support low-income, mostly BIPOC tenants who are willing to work together, fight their landlord and win. Our first tenants union is the Memphis Towers Tenants Union and we are now working in several other buildings to support them to form their unions by 2026.
Organizing the Memphis Towers Tenants Union
Memphis Towers is a 296-unit building located in the medical district. Memphis Towers is predominately Black, elderly, disabled, and women. Memphis Towers was owned by mega-slumlord Millennia Housing Company. Millennia purchased the building with plans to create affordable housing/section 8 in Memphis. All the while, Millennia was not keeping up the buildings at Memphis Towers. Tenants experienced no hot water during the winter months, elevators completely off and not working, pests, harassment from management and staff, retaliation, lack of security, the list goes on. Tenants grew sick and tired of being unheard and disrespected. Tenants reached out to the Memphis Tenants Union to voice their complaints and come together. Since banding together, tenants have won a hot water boiler for the building, 24/7 security, new mailboxes, a renovated community room, key cards, and working emergency pull cords. Our biggest win has been to successfully get Millenia kicked out as the owner! Memphis Towers tenants are still fighting for what they deserve under new ownership.
Into the Future
Gospel Gardens is a HUD property meaning they assist with section 8 vouchers, disability, and any other affordable housing programs with over 200 residents. MTU has surveyed Gospel Gardens for several months before pursuing a tenants union. Previously known as Tulane Apartments, residents have been complaining of housing violations for years. Complaints such as pests, leaks, holes in the walls, extra fees, safety concerns and more! Gospel Gardens is a HUD property meaning they assist with section 8 vouchers, disability, and any other affordable housing programs. This ALSO means that the owners of this property receive government funding for offering said housing. MTU has talked to over 100 of residents who said they are tired of being unseen and unheard. Residents are starting to come together with the help of local, faith based group MICAH to start a tenants union and hold public officials and owners accountable for not investing tax dollars back into the property. If you are a resident at GG or live in the area feel free to reach out to MTU and see how you can become more involved!
Our Work
Our City-Wide Fight
Building on our wins organizing Memphis Towers, in 2025 we launched our city-wide campaign to improve local housing policies. We’ve partnered with MICAH to organize more residents throughout Memphis that live in properties subsidized by the City of Memphis. At the center of that fight is the Health, Education, and Housing Facilities (HEHF) Board which is appointed by the city government to distribute and oversee millions of dollars in tax credits to developers and landlords. In Tennessee currently, renters have almost no options when their landlord isn’t holding up their end of the deal by making repairs, doing pest maintenance, or providing heat/ac. We’ve been able to secure big wins for renters at Memphis Towers by arguing that Memphis taxpayer money should be accountable to Memphians - not out of state slumlords. We’re bringing that same strategy to the thousands of renters across Memphis!
What is the HEHF Board?
The HEHF is the Health, Education, Housing Facility Board. Representatives on the board are appointed by the mayor to approve and hand out tax breaks to developers seeking to develop in Memphis. We discovered this board through a campaign at Memphis Towers. MTU found out that the board meets monthly to examine properties that have received PILOT tax credits. What we discovered is that if a property has one of these PILOTS they have received money to create affordable housing in the city. The primary issue with this is that the HEHF board rarely enforces these companies and developers to stand true to investing back into our communities. Recently, MTU escalated at HEHF board meetings to put a hold on the Memphis Towers PILOT. This was a tactic used to ensure that tenants would see changes in their housing if the funds are to be held. MTU sees the HEHF as a point of leverage for residents in the city of Memphis seeing as though this board is responsible for new developments in the city and are funneling several thousands of dollars to out of state companies.
Statewide Coalition Building: Housing for All Tennessee
MTU is a co-founder of a state-wide coalition, Housing for All, Tennessee, focused on expanding protections for renters and people experiencing homelessness. In February 2025, through our work with this coalition, MTU co-organized a “Day on the Hill” with over 130 residents from across Tennessee. Several tenant leaders from Memphis Towers Tenants Union met with legislators and made assessments about their willingness to pass legislation. As this newly formed coalition progresses, we will continue to engage our tenant leaders on what legislation most directly addresses their needs and pressure legislators to bolster Tennessee’s extremely limited protections.