ACORN is a membership organization of low-and-moderate income tenants, workers, and residents. Recently much of our organizing has been with tenants.

Around the world, rental prices are going up while wages stagnate. Renters find that they have few rights and those that they do have are not enforced. Landlords have the power as they control the roofs over our members’ heads, and line politicians’ pockets.

Alone, tenants rarely win. As ACORN members, together with our community union, they can and have won. 

How does the ACORN model win for tenants?

ACORN uses direct action. Direct action is when those affected by a problem take action themselves to resolve it, instead of relying on politicians, lawyers, or non-profits to do it for them.

In tenant organizing, direct action can look like many things:

• Picketing a landlord’s office to shame them into making repairs
• Forming a human blockade to prevent an eviction
• Collectively refusing to pay a proposed rent increase
• Street theater parodying a landlord’s cries of decreased profits
• And much more

Beyond protecting our members, ACORN fights for policies that protect all tenants. We use direct action, coalitions, story telling, reports, and other tactics to get these protections passed.

These policies include:

• Rent controls, freezes, and caps
• Energy efficiency requirements and utility caps
• Landlord licensing and public databases
• Eviction bans and protections
• Regulation and limitation of short-term rentals such as Airbnbs
• Elimination of burdensome fees
• Ending the practice of using quasi-law enforcement for evictions

I’m a tenant. How do I join?

Below are ACORN affiliates organizing tenants. Contact your affiliate to get involved and get organized!

Canada 

England

France

Ireland

Scotland

United States

Wales

Recent Tenant Wins