Status: Home Leads Effort to Rename Street and Reclaim Atlanta’s Housing Legacy

Every city has streets that speak, some whispering stories of progress, others echoing histories long overdue for change. In Atlanta, one such change is quietly unfolding. A proposal to rename a street to Ullman Court may seem like a simple act of bureaucracy. But it’s far more. It’s a correction, a tribute, and a message about the kind of city Atlanta wants to be. At the heart of this movement is Status: Home, the city’s longest-standing provider of permanent housing for people impacted by HIV/AIDS.

Since 1988, Status: Home has anchored its work in restoring dignity to lives often overlooked, providing housing, support, and a pathway toward self-sufficiency. But the contradiction was hard to ignore: one of its apartment communities sat on a street still named after a legacy of exclusion. In response, the organization launched a campaign to rename it after one of its own founders, Evelyn Ullman, a woman whose behind-the-scenes leadership changed lives but never sought the spotlight.

From Confederate Shadows to a Legacy of Care

Street signs are meant to offer direction, but sometimes, they reflect the wrong one. For residents of one Atlanta neighborhood, the name doesn’t just mark a location, it casts a shadow. It conjures up a history of exclusion and white supremacy, a Confederate echo that feels misaligned with the lives of those now living there, many of whom are low-income, living with HIV, and supported by Status: Home’s housing and services.

The movement to rename the street Ullman Court isn’t an attempt to erase history. It’s a call to tell it more truthfully, and to uplift the parts that have too often gone unsung. Evelyn Ullman, one of Status: Home’s co-founders, helped pioneer a model of housing rooted in compassion and permanence during the height of the HIV/AIDS crisis. Replacing the original name with her name is more than symbolic, it’s a statement about who deserves to be honored in the spaces we move through every day.

Evelyn Ullman: Centering the Unseen Builders of Justice

Evelyn Ullman’s leadership built the foundation Status: Home stands on today. She was one of three founders of what began as Jerusalem House, a response to the devastating AIDS crisis of the late 1980s. At a time when few wanted to be associated with the epidemic, Ullman helped build a place where people could live, heal, and thrive.

While cities often name infrastructure after politicians, businessmen, or military figures, Ullman represents a different kind of contribution, one rooted in compassion, not conquest. Renaming the street to Ullman Court would carve out rare and deserved space for a woman whose legacy lives not in fame, but in the quiet dignity she helped restore to others.

Maryum Phillips: Expanding the Mission, Reclaiming the Map

Today, that legacy is being expanded by Maryum Phillips, President and CEO of Status: Home. Since taking leadership in 2021, Phillips has brought more than two decades of nonprofit expertise to an evolving Atlanta. Under her direction, the organization has acquired five new apartment buildings, an urgent, strategic response to the city’s skyrocketing rental costs.

Phillips also serves as chair of the board for the National HIV/AIDS Housing Coalition, positioning her as a national voice in housing equity. Her support for renaming the street is emblematic of her broader approach: understanding that justice doesn’t just happen in programs or policy, it happens in what a city chooses to name, fund, and elevate. Through her leadership, Status: Home is not just expanding its services, it’s shaping the story Atlanta tells about its own values.

A Rare Honor for Women, but One That Must Become Common

Statues, street signs, and public buildings overwhelmingly bear the names of men. That’s not a coincidence, it’s a reflection of whose contributions have been historically seen as “worthy” of permanence. But women like Evelyn Ullman, organizers, caregivers, and system-builders, are often the reason cities function, even if their names rarely make it onto plaques.

Ullman Court would be a rare and radical tribute. It would place her legacy alongside the physical infrastructure of Atlanta, reminding future generations that strength can look like service, that leadership can be quiet, and that justice often begins with showing up, even when it’s inconvenient. In doing so, it opens the door to redefining who we choose to honor, and why.

Beyond the Sign: When Symbol Meets System

Changing a street name won’t solve housing insecurity. It won’t undo decades of discrimination or reverse the trauma of homelessness. But symbols matter, especially when they’re backed by systems doing real, daily work. And that’s where Status: Home shines.

The organization now houses nearly 500 people each year and operates with the support of federal, state, and local government, as well as foundations and private donors. Its model integrates housing with healthcare resources and support services, providing a comprehensive path to stability. Naming a street after Evelyn Ullman is not a standalone action, it’s an extension of the work, a way to ground a moral mission in a physical place. 

Conclusion: When a Street Becomes a Statement

As the Atlanta City Council considers the renaming of this street, the question isn’t just about nomenclature, it’s about priorities. What kind of city chooses to honor those who uplift instead of those who upheld inequality? What kind of legacy does Atlanta want its residents to walk through every day?

Through the leadership of Maryum Phillips and the foundational vision of Evelyn Ullman, Status: Home is offering a bold answer. It’s saying: justice is not abstract. It’s a home. It’s a name. It’s a choice. And when a city chooses to honor a woman who fought for housing equity, it sends a signal far louder than any street sign, it tells the world what kind of future it’s trying to build.

If Atlanta chooses to rename this street to Ullman Court, it will be taking more than a symbolic step—it will be reaffirming its commitment to inclusion, truth, and justice. To learn more about this ongoing effort and Status: Home’s continued leadership in housing equity, reach out to Ellie Arbee for media inquiries or partnership opportunities.