'One Memphis:' New mayor Paul Young emphasizes unity, hope as he is sworn in

About 20 years ago, Pastor Dianne Young dreamt that her son Paul would one day become mayor of Memphis. At the time, he was an engineering student at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, and he said, “Mama, I’m not going into politics.”

But his heart didn’t lie with engineering. With a desire to rebuild neighborhoods, he changed his trajectory, earning a master’s degree in city and regional planning from the University of Memphis. In 2016, he became the city's director of housing and community development, and in 2021, he was named president and CEO of the Downtown Memphis Commission.

On Monday, Young was sworn in as mayor of Memphis at the Cannon Center for the Performing Arts, fulfilling his mother’s dream and ushering in a new era for his hometown. With his right hand in the air and his left hand on a bible being held by his children Zoë and Paxton, he took the oath of office, administered by municipal court judge Kenya Hooks. When the oath was completed, hundreds of people who had piled into the auditorium cheered wildly. In his speech, Young channeled the optimistic and energetic spirit of his campaign, painting a picture of hope for a city that has been riddled with crime in the last few years.

"We all feel it, the city feels like it is in a crisis. Families are mourning... the chaos has taken a toll on our collective psyche; it threatens to derail all of the progress of what Memphis can be," Young said. "We are Memphis, and the future depends on what we do right now... Together, we can make history, we can make America’s largest majority minority city... America’s safest city. We can make that America’s cleanest city, we can make that America’s city with the fastest growing economy… it’s not going to happen tomorrow, but it will happen."

The elected City Council members were also sworn in on Monday, with council chairman JB Smiley Jr. noting that it is the first time in history the local city council has a female majority. And as Young spoke, he emphasized that he is committed to collaborating with the council members to move Memphis forward.

"This is the future of our city, and I am committed to working closely with our city council to advance our city," he said. "I want you all to know, collectively, we are on a mission to save our city."

Taking over as mayor

He won the mayoral election on Oct. 5 by garnering about 28% of the vote and defeating 16 other candidates, including Shelby County Sheriff Floyd Bonner, former Memphis Mayor Willie Herenton, and former Shelby County Commissioner Van Turner.

Now, as he takes the mayoral reins from Jim Strickland, Young must tackle a host of issues and complete the goals he’s laid out for his administration.

Related: Memphis Mayor-elect Paul Young makes next round of administration appointments. Here's who

Young has emphasized that crime will be one of his top focuses, and he has previously said he wants more law enforcement on the roads and “less chaos on the streets.” Evaluating how officers use their time is also expected to be a part of combatting crime, as is data sharing. Young wants data-sharing agreements between organizations, which could help identify troubled youth when they first become truant or interact with law enforcement. And this ties into a point he has hammered home time and again: there’s a major need for early intervention that is life-changing but not punitive.

“I always tell people it's not 'either-or.' It's both: holding people accountable and making sure we're arresting folks that are creating crimes and terrorizing our neighborhoods, but it's also being smart about how we intervene and prevent the crime in the first place,” Young told The Commercial Appeal in late August when he was on the campaign trail. “And we have to be equally committed to doing both.”

Coming together

Crime, however, is just one of the many issues Young wants his administration to tackle. Improving neighborhoods and decreasing blight is another priority for him, and an area where he has experience, given his tenure as director of housing and community development.

“If things look like they're headed in the right direction,” he said after being elected, “it changes the way it feels, it changes the way people behave.”

Young also wants to provide the Memphis youth with more to do and lean into the local arts and culture scene, while bringing people together, whether they voted for him or not.

And this importance of unity ― of the community being one “Team Memphis” ― is a point he made clear at the end of his inaugural speech on Jan 1.

"We have not been made small by those who have tried to tear us apart. We’ve been made stronger. We are forged by fire, and we have become united," he said. "It’s the power of us, collectively... This is a ‘We' thing ya’ll, and we are one Memphis. And as your mayor, I’m honored and humbled to serve you and work with each of you. Let’s go Memphis."

As Young finished his remarks, the audience again erupted in applause. The Tennessee Mass Choir came out and delivered a rousing performance of "Oh Happy Day," and crowd members swayed back and forth to the sound of the music, amid the start of a new year and a new era for Memphis.

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Memphis mayor Paul Young sworn in, emphasizes unity, hope