jpearson23@nul.org

Justin J. Pearson is a member of the Tennessee House of Representatives, representing District 86, a sprawling area along the Mississippi River, spanning from south Memphis through downtown and north to Millington, TN. 

A community organizer, Pearson became the second youngest lawmaker serving in the Tennessee House of Representatives when he was elected to office January 24, 2023, at the age of 28. He is a community organizer and servant leader who prioritizes the needs of the people. When a mass shooter took the lives of six persons–three of them 9-year-olds–at The Covenant School in Nashville, TN March 27, 2023, Pearson, along with fellow state representatives Justin Jones and Gloria Johnson, staged a protest for common sense gun legislation on the Tennessee House floor. Republicans retaliated by expelling Pearson and Jones April 6, 2023. Local authorities in Memphis and Nashville reinstated the legislators several days later, Pearson on April 12.  Pearson ran for the office again, handily winning the Democratic Special Election Primary June 15, 2023. He awaits the General Election Aug. 3, 2023, when he is confident the people of District 86 will elect him once more to serve.

A proud native Memphian, Pearson is the fourth son of five boys born to teenage parents. He graduated from Mitchell High School as Valedictorian and attended Bowdoin College in Maine where he graduated in 2017 with degrees in both Government & Legal Studies and Education Studies.

Today, Pearson is President and founder of Memphis Community Against Pollution (MCAP) and co-founder of Memphis Community Against the Pipeline, a Black-led environmental justice organization that successfully defeated a multi-billion dollar crude oil pipeline project that would have poisoned Memphis’s drinking water and stolen land from South Memphis residents.

Prior to founding MCAP, Pearson served as Special Assistant to the CEO at Year Up, a national workforce development non-profit that focuses on social, racial, and economic justice. There, he helped more than 10,000 young people gain training and access to family-sustaining careers.

Pearson’s advocacy and leadership inspired The Root to name him one of 2022's Most Influential Black Americans, Black Men Crowned to name him Humanitarian of the Year and the Rotary Club to bestow upon him its Environmental Trailblazer Award. Pearson serves Memphis and humanity as a devout Christian and tireless champion for justice. He is engaged to his partner in the struggle for justice and life, Oceana R. Gilliam of Los Angeles, California.