We are the Astoria Tenants Union, a group of renters organizing Astoria to build the power of working class tenants against landlords and real estate developers. We do this by supporting each other to organize strong, democratic Tenant Associations in our buildings. We are not a legal aid or other type of non-profit organization; we are all tenants and volunteers ourselves who receive training from other tenants and independent tenant unions. We provide resources; share knowledge and tactics; and organize meetings, canvasses, trainings, and other actions to combat unsafe living conditions, evictions and displacement, landlord harassment and retaliation, and attempts to undermine rent stabilization and tenant power.

In our free time, we specifically support Astoria tenants in the following ways:

Information Sharing and Skills Building

• Sharing resources to educate ourselves on our rights as tenants in New York City

• Hosting trainings and educational events to understand our options to take action

• Sharing and attending upcoming tenant organizing events citywide

• Requesting and analyzing our rent history for possible illegal rent overcharges or apartment deregulation.

• Forming discussion groups to learn about the history of tenant organizing in NYC and how we can build lasting tenant power at a city and state level

• Connecting to other tenant associations across NYC to share tactics and support each other with tenant organizing

Organizing a Tenant Association With Your Neighbors

*A “tenant association” is a group of tenants in the same building that work together, rather than individually, against landlord neglect and illegal actions.

• Talking to tenant neighbors and identifying common problems and solutions in our buildings

• Designing and printing flyers to organize our neighbors

• Supporting communication between neighbors, including forming group chats (e.g., WhatsApp) and translation for tenants who speak different languages

• Supporting with planning and facilitating tenant meetings and social events

• Writing a demand letter or email to our landlords to get building issues resolved

• Organizing a call-in campaign to demonstrate our tenant solidarity and power to our landlords

• Organizing a rally or press event to raise awareness about the issues in our buildings

There are many ways to give and get support with the Astoria Tenant Union, whether you're organizing your own building, supporting a Tenant Association elsewhere in Astoria, or supporting ATU in a variety of ways. We typically meet the third Thursday of each month.