OLÉ News
ALBUQUERQUE — The ‘Tenant Terrors’ community gallery project invites you to join them for a thought-provoking exhibition showcasing the challenges faced by renters in New Mexico.
This event will highlight the strength of the community, the power of renters, and the essence “home”.
“We all came together to put on this show because we want people to see what NM renters are dealing with. We can’t continue to ignore the way that landlords are skirting the rules, retaliating against renters at every turn, treating us unfairly due to race and income, and so much more. We’re here because we’re leading the movement to bring power back to New Mexico renters.” -Mohammad, OLÉ member
“Tenant Terrors” is a collaboration between tenants across New Mexico, OLÉ, Amparo, Arts Hub, Working Classroom. This unique community gallery project combines art and advocacy to shed light on the difficulties renters in New Mexico encounter daily. This exhibition aims to create a space for dialogue and reflection on the challenges and triumphs experienced by renters, ultimately emphasizing the importance of community and tenant empowerment.
“The life of renters isn’t just about struggle. We work, contribute to our community, connect with our family, and enjoy community spaces. That’s what ‘home’ means for us. But it can be difficult to feel connected to community when we deal with infestations, broken appliances, discrimination, safety issues, and more. And we have very few options to fix these problems. I don’t think it’s right to have no control over serious health and safety issues where you pay to live.” -Mark, OLÉ member
The exhibition will feature photography by renters in Albuquerque who are photographing their own living conditions and experiences as renters. Participants, renters and advocates will share their perspectives through creative expression, emphasizing the importance of returning power to renters and limiting power imbalance and abuse by landlords.
Note: due to the very real concern of landlord retaliation, some OLÉ members being interviewed are requesting that their faces and/or names be obscured for protection.