A Memphis City Hall debate over Elon Musk’s expanding data center operations erupted into disorder Tuesday, with angry residents accusing council members of putting corporate interests ahead of the community. Punches were reportedly thrown during the confrontation.
The Memphis City Council delayed its third and final vote on a proposed temporary halt to new data center construction. The decision sparked a chaotic scene, forcing council members to leave the chamber as police officers moved into the building.
Video from the meeting showed protesters shouting at elected officials while bullhorns amplified chants including “bought and sold,” “sellouts” and “no justice, no peace.”
As people in the gallery stood and continued calling out, an open microphone captured one council member asking, “Is that a bullhorn?”
Councilwoman Yolanda Cooper-Sutton was escorted from the meeting following a tense exchange with protesters and fellow council member JB Smiley.
The rest of the session was put on hold while the police presence inside the building was significantly increased. Outside, advocates linked arms and continued demonstrating near the main entrance.
Among them was Indivisible Memphis, which shared a post on Instagram days earlier declaring: ‘Memphis belongs to Memphis, not Elon Musk.’
The meeting had initially carried the expectation that the proposed ordinance would clear its third reading. Instead, council members scheduled a work session for Thursday, October 8, to resolve outstanding questions.
A Memphis City Hall meeting focused on Elon Musk’s controversial data centers descended into chaos Tuesday
The Memphis City Council postponed its final vote on a proposed pause for new data center projects, prompting a heated confrontation and a heavy police response
If approved, the moratorium would suspend new data center development for as long as 12 months, or until Memphis establishes a regulatory framework for future projects.
Before the proposal was deferred, Councilmember Michalyn Easter-Thomas suggested extending the moratorium from one year to 18 months, according to Local Memphis.
Meanwhile, city committees are considering several plans that would establish permanent data center regulations instead of relying on a temporary moratorium. One proposal, prepared by City Attorney Allen Wade, merges elements from multiple competing measures into a single ordinance.
At an earlier meeting, Council Chair Jana Swearengen-Washington emphasized that the measure was not a “ban,” but a limited pause, according to the Memphis Flyer.
She said the proposal was not intended to block economic growth, but to give Memphis officials and residents “time and a voice” as the city weighs the projects’ future.
Council member JB Smiley Jr described the measure this way: “The moratorium is a temporary pause intended to give the City time to study the issues, engage the community, assess potential impacts, and develop permanent regulations for large-scale data centers and high-density computing facilities.”
Musk’s presence in the Memphis area has expanded sharply over the last two years, beginning with construction of the Colossus 1 data center just north of Southaven in 2024.
Two additional data centers had been announced by January 2026. Then, in July, the billionaire disclosed another project, called Minihard, in a reply posted on X.
Video showed furious residents confronting council members as bullhorn-led chants of “bought and sold,” “sellouts” and “no justice, no peace” echoed through the meeting
Councilwoman Yolanda Cooper-Sutton was removed after a heated confrontation involving protesters and fellow council member JB Smiley
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The moves have sparked an outcry, with residents demanding that the temporary moratorium be passed.
‘Data centers are churning out emissions, disrupting folks’ quality of life with piercing noise and are drawing millions of gallons of water from the Memphis Sand Aquifer,’ environmental justice advocate Richard Massey previously told the Memphis Flyer.
He stressed the need for a moratorium to protect marginalized communities, citing Southwest Memphis’ history of environmental racism and arguing that data centers continue a pattern of environmental injustice.
‘We need a data center moratorium so we can close the floodgates and effectively put real safeguards in place that protect our most vulnerable communities,’ Massey added.
Musk was looking for a location where he could quickly train his AI with abundant electricity and water, and Memphis proved a willing partner, according to Time Magazine.
Because Tennessee does not collect a state income tax, which it phased out in 2021, local governments rely heavily on businesses to generate revenue through property taxes.
‘Property taxes are the mother’s milk of how government is funded,’ Bobby White, chief government affairs officer at the Greater Memphis Chamber of Commerce, told the outlet.
‘And we have not, historically, had people tripping over themselves to get to Memphis. We have to go get it out of the mud,’ he added.
Meanwhile, resident Easter Knox, 78, who lives three miles down from a data center, told the outlet last year that she began smelling gas in the air and was forced to stop opening her windows.
‘It smells like rotten cabbage early in the morning,’ she said. ‘It’s been a struggle, breathing this little air that’s coming through.’
