Jesse Gray, born on this day in 1923, was an activist in Harlem who organized tenants against NYC slumlords. In 1963, Gray and tenants brought rats, both dead and alive, from their housing directly to the Manhattan Civil Court. They won.

Jesse Gray was born in Junica, outside Baton Rouge, Louisiana. As a worker, he became a leader with the National Maritime Union (NMU). While working as a NMU organizer, his global travels introduced him to many social justice movements, including Scotland's Tenant Movement.

Gray settled in New York City in the early 1950s and began to organize local protests with groups such as the Harlem Tenants Council and the Harlem Tenant and Welfare Council. Gray was not deterred from his activism despite being arrested and beaten by police.

In 1963, Gray led one of the most famous of the tenant strikes in Harlem, New York, in protest of "sub-human" living conditions. Beginning in November, thirteen families living in slum housing on 117th street withheld rent.

On December 30th, 1963, these tenants were expected to appear in Manhattan Civil Court to defend themselves against the landlords who ordered their evictions. With news media looking on, they brought rats, both dead and alive, to the court to demonstrate terrible living conditions that the property owners subjected them to.

These tenants also presented evidence that the heat, electricity, working plumbing, and rodent extermination were routinely denied to them. Their cases were dismissed and the tenants' plight was prominently broadcast on news media.

In 1969, Gray decided to quit his work as a tenant activist and pursue elected office as a Democrat. He was elected to the State Assembly in 1972 and was defeated in 1974.