The Rev. Al Sharpton has purchased the National Action Network's new headquarters in Harlem, transforming the organization from a renter to an owner in the historically Black neighborhood. This was reported by Qazaqyia.kz citing Associated Press.
At the opening ceremony on June 16, 2026, in New York, Sharpton declared that NAN is now an owner, not a renter. "I want to make something permanent," he said. "When people see that you've bought a building, they say, 'Wait a minute, they're not going nowhere.'"
NAN's new permanent home is the former Faison Firehouse Theater on Hancock Place, near the intersection of 124th Street and Manhattan Avenue. George Faison, a Tony Award-winning choreographer known for "The Wiz," bought the firehouse in 1999 and converted it into a community theater. Faison chose to sell to NAN rather than a large developer.
"I'm 71 years old — if I was just trying to do it as an Al Sharpton personal fan club, I could just keep renting," Sharpton told AP. "I'm buying it to show I want this to be an institution. I want it to last beyond me."
Although the renovation is structurally complete, Sharpton expects weekly Saturday rallies to resume in the new headquarters this summer.
NAN was founded in 1991. It first met at P.S. 175 in Manhattan, then rented space at 125th Street and Madison Avenue. In 2006, Sharpton moved NAN to a rented space at 145th Street and Malcolm X Boulevard, where it operated until January 2026.
NAN's headquarters was named the "House of Justice" by his late mentor, the Rev. Jesse Jackson Sr. From his Harlem base, Sharpton organized direct-action protests for Black men killed or brutalized by police in New York City: Abner Louima, Amadou Diallo, the exonerated Central Park Five, and Eric Garner.
"Harlem means home," Sharpton told AP.