Byron settled in Pilsen, a historic working-class immigrant neighborhood in Chicago, and worked as an adult education teacher, founding the bilingual adult education program at the University of Illinois at Chicago. He became politically active after former Mayor Rahm Emanuel announced the closure of a neighborhood public school, where Byron volunteered as a soccer coach and led the community’s efforts to keep that school open, which was ultimately successful. Byron later served as a director of the Pilsen Alliance, where he was a leader in the fight against gentrification and displacement, and co-founded the campaign to lift the ban on rent control in Illinois.

In his first term as Alderman, Byron advocated for the rights of tenants, homeowners and was the lead sponsor of an ordinance to reduce harassment of homeowners who have been targeted by predatory developers. In his second term, he has now been appointed as the Chairman for the Committee on Housing and Real Estate and remains a member of several City Council Committees, where he has consistently supported the expansion of the City’s fair and affordable housing initiatives.