Mayor Paul A. Young: ‘I Wake Up Every Day Excited About the Opportunity to Help Move Memphis Forward’

I didn’t become Mayor of the City of Memphis, Tennessee, for political reasons; I simply wanted to see my city rise.

I ran for office because I believed I would be able to represent a new generation of leadership for our community. As Mayor, I wake up every day excited about the opportunity to help move Memphis forward. Throughout my first year, crime was a central issue. We tackled high crime rates with a holistic approach. We convened over 20 Mayors from around the country, and together, we shared best practices and strategies for abating crime, uplifting community, and restoring peace. That historic Black Mayors Coalition meeting has led to numerous national conversations that have elevated our network of partners and potential solutions.

I invited those mayors to Memphis because I knew that all of us were invested in seeing our own cities thrive. I knew that Memphis was the right location for the collective work of defining strategies to combat community violence. I want Memphis, America’s largest majority Black city, to be a leader in finding ways to get the community to put our guns down and to solve our gun violence problems; I want Memphis to be the model.

Memphis is not alone. Gun violence is an issue in far too many communities across this nation. Inequalities in systems such as those in our legal, health, housing, and education institutions have significantly impacted historically marginalized communities. Generations of disinvestment and discrimination have exacerbated these inequities and, in turn, our gun violence crisis.

We must speak to the devastating impacts of gun violence on Black communities from a place of love and concern for our community rather than a place of judgment. And as Mayor of America’s largest majority Black city, writing this during Black History Month, I want to be able to look back in a year and see the beginnings of victory in our war on violence. I take my role, and my responsibility to our community seriously.

In my first year in office, I’ve prioritized community- and evidence-based solutions to gun violence while assessing its disproportionate impacts in Memphis. Together with our team, I’ve partnered with local community members, organizations, law enforcement, and other Memphis government entities. Thanks to our entire community’s trailblazing efforts, homicide rates, including gun homicides, were down by 30 percent in Memphis in 2024. The decline in rates of homicides is encouraging, but every life taken is one life too many. 

Despite the reduction we saw in 2024, we are still experiencing too much gun violence in our community. It is traumatizing for residents. Multiple lives are forever changed every time one person chooses to pull the trigger. In our view, the term “survivor” represents those who have been wounded and recovered from a violent incident. It also represents the individuals and family members who are left behind when a loved one is taken by gun violence. In either situation, there is so much pain that is present. 

Everytown Support Fund’s “Beyond Measure” report acknowledges that the trauma of gun violence extends beyond the immediate family members or loved ones of those killed or wounded by gun violence. Gun violence ripples through social systems and extended communities of people who share similar identities or experiences to those taken by gun violence. And if that pain isn’t properly addressed, it can manifest as anger, negative and self-destructive behaviors, and possibly more violence.

When I think about the survivors and trailblazers who are working to end gun violence in Memphis, J. Machelle Pugh immediately comes to mind. J. Machelle Pugh is a mother in our community whose 19-year-old son was taken by gun violence. She has turned her pain into action by founding the Christopher A. Pugh II Center, a nonprofit dedicated to unlocking the potential of young men who are facing systematic and economic barriers. Pugh is a frequent speaker at community events. She shares her son’s story as a way of getting more young men onto a positive path. 

“I want Memphis, America’s largest majority Black city, to be a leader in finding ways to get the community to put our guns down and to solve our gun violence problems; I want Memphis to be the model.”

—Paul Young, Mayor of the City of Memphis, Tennessee

We must continue this work. It is going to take a broad range of approaches to significantly reduce gun violence in our city. In 2025, we remain committed to this cause. We will work to investigate the aggravated assaults and homicides that occur in our community to get criminals off our streets. We will also ramp up our efforts to support the mental health and emotional needs of survivors.

Last year, the City of Memphis partnered with the Shelby County Government to launch the Joint Office of Neighborhood Safety & Engagement. This Joint Office focuses both on violence intervention and prevention. We focus our efforts on supporting community members who are most at risk of engaging in or becoming victims of violent acts. Now, our police force and our Joint Office of Neighborhood Safety and Engagement are both looking at more of the environmental issues and root causes related to gun violence. 

As a city, we are moving the full burden of public safety from the shoulders of law enforcement to the support of other community resources, including:

• Local businesses,
• Nonprofits,
• Grassroots groups,
• Faith-based organizations,
• Victim services, and
• Re-entry programs.

There is no question that Memphis has had a fraught history with gun violence. But I am confident that violence will not be our legacy. Our legacy was formed by the music, culture, and world-shifting industry that was born here. And our legacy will be formed by the strength of our community and our unwavering commitment to each other.

Memphis is the city that made me. It is my continuing honor to serve the residents of my city and to help usher in a new era of growth, change, and empowerment. An era where we say yes to opportunity, peace, and prosperity; an era where we use our innovative spirit to help solve our community violence problem and foster a safer, stronger Memphis for all.