[Congressional Record Volume 152, Number 124 (Thursday, September 28, 2006)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1860-E1861]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




           IN HONOR OF TENANTS RIGHTS ADVOCATE MICHAEL McKEE

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. JERROLD NADLER

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                     Wednesday, September 27, 2006

  Mr. NADLER. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to an 
extraordinary advocate and organizer, Michael McKee, who has worked 
tirelessly on behalf of New York City tenants for over three decades. 
Unfortunately, I was unable to attend the reception honoring him, so I 
hope to honor him now.
  A veteran housing activist, Mr. McKee has made fighting on behalf of 
tenants his life's work. His combination of committed leadership and 
innovative organizing has grown the tenant movement into the important 
force it is today. Few activists have proven as forward-thinking and 
savvy as Mr. McKee.
  When the state legislature began phasing out rent control and rent 
stabilization in 1971, Michael joined with housing activists statewide 
to begin a lobbying campaign on anti-tenant legislators. The groups 
called not only for the restoration of rent laws that would protect 
tenants in New York City, but also for reforms that would benefit 
tenants in parts of the state without rent regulation.
  The tenant movement became firmly grounded in legislative action, and 
gave birth in 1974 to Tenants & Neighbors, an advocacy organization 
that has been at the forefront of tenants rights since its inception. 
Under the leadership of Mr. McKee, the leaders of Ten ants & Neighbors 
focused on the warranty of habitability law and the Senior Citizen Rent 
Increase Exemption. They urged passage of the Emergency Tenant 
Protection Act, which restored rent control and rent stabilization. 
Later, they led the fight to elect tenants to public housing boards 
outside of New York City, and helped pass the Disability Rent Increase 
Exception. Mr. McKee soon joined other advocates to create the People's 
Housing Network, a program to develop tenant leaders across the state.
  As a tenant organizer for the Metropolitan Council on Housing and the 
Brooklyn Tenants Union, Mr. McKee taught thousands of New Yorkers how 
to fight for their rights in a meaningful and lasting way. When Tenants 
& Neighbors began a major overhaul in 1994, membership increased 16-
fold in response to Mr. McKee's direct mail and phonebanking programs. 
This new grassroots approach brought tenants together to pressure 
elected officials and create a fundraising base.
  Mr. McKee is now building on the voter education efforts of Tenants & 
Neighbors by pouring his energies into political organizing. All too 
often, tenants lose when their needs are weighed against the financial 
interests of landlords and property owners. Mr. McKee has successfully 
encouraged tenants to take an active part in the political process, and 
has helped to make tenants rights organizations a powerful force in 
pushing government officials to address tenant issues.
  Michael McKee has been not just a key strategist in many of the 
battles New York City tenants have faced over the past 30 years, but 
also a graceful public face. On behalf of tenants throughout the five 
boroughs, I commend his work on behalf of thousands of New Yorkers, and 
look forward to another 30 years of successful activism.

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