Justin J. Pearson for Congress in Tennessee’s 9th District
Our Revolution is proud to endorse Justin J. Pearson for Congress in Tennessee’s 9th District — a bold fighter for racial justice on the frontlines of the struggle for democracy and working people in the South.
Before entering elected office, Pearson organized his neighbors to stop the toxic Byhalia Pipeline from being built through a Black working-class community in Southwest Memphis — a major grassroots victory against environmental racism and corporate pollution.
Then, after leading protests demanding gun reform following a school shooting in Nashville, Tennessee Republicans expelled him from the State House for standing up to the NRA and refusing to stay silent.
Voters sent him right back.
That spirit of organizing and resistance defines Justin Pearson’s campaign for Congress.
And now he’s taking on an even bigger fight.
Following the Supreme Court’s recent ruling on the Voting Rights Act, Tennessee Republicans rushed through a gerrymandering plan to redistrict the state’s majority-Black congressional district, which had been based in Memphis. Pearson has emerged as one of the loudest voices fighting back — both politically and legally — while organizing directly within his community.
Pearson had already been hard at work building a serious grassroots challenge against longtime incumbent Rep. Steve Cohen, an AIPAC-backed Democrat who consistently sided with corporate interests and supported blank checks for war abroad. Before Republicans redrew the district, Pearson’s insurgent campaign had gained major momentum and exposed growing hunger for a new kind of leadership in Memphis.
Now the race has shifted again, with Cohen dropping out and MAGA Republicans State Senator Brent Taylor and State Representative Todd Warner jumping in. But Pearson knows the path forward is organizing — especially among Black voters, young people, and working-class communities – to spread his message throughout this new 200-mile district that sprawls from the southwest corner of the state, all the way to the Nashville suburbs.
And his campaign is centered on exactly the issues working people are demanding action on:
- Affordability
- Gun reform
- Environmental racism
- Protecting democracy
- Expanding opportunity
Pearson has also become a leading voice challenging Elon Musk’s xAI data center project in his district and warning about the intersection of corporate greed, environmental injustice, and political corruption.
At a moment when too many Democrats play it safe, Justin Pearson represents something different: movement politics rooted in courage, grassroots organizing, and a willingness to directly confront entrenched power.
This campaign is about proving that bold progressive leadership can compete — and win — even in the face of voter suppression, corporate money, and MAGA extremism.
Justin Pearson has already shown he’s willing to stand up when it matters most.
That’s why Our Revolution is proud to stand with him.
When we organize, we win. ✊