WHAT'S IN A NAME?

Last week, I attended my first City Council meeting as a concerned citizen. Of what was I concerned? There was a proposition by a Portland Planning Committee to rename my street, 39th Avenue, to Cesar Chavez Blvd. A hearing was scheduled for that night, and the Council was to vote 2 weeks later. I was not in favor of the move mainly because I thought it would be a pain in the ass to change all of our legal documents and not so much due to the intended honoree. In fact, I was opposed to renaming my street JFK Way, Obama Ave, or anything else for that matter. It was a classic case of NIMBY, Not in my backyard.

The City Council chambers were full with 2 distinct groups of people: young, brown people and older, white people. I was one of the few "crossovers." There were polarizing forces on both sides: the ardent pro-Chavez ("Cha-vez") folks thought this was pay-back for decades of racism, and they thought re-naming 39th Ave, which is predominantly residential and runs almost exclusively through parts of town populated by white people, would be a way of sending a message. Many on the other side proposed that a park, a farmers' market, or a community center would be more fitting. The worst of the "Save 39th" crowd said that they should name a school after Mr. Chavez ("Shav-ez" in their Anglo speak) because "maybe it will teach those people how to speak English." I must say my perception of the process and Portlanders grew increasingly negative after 3 hours of waiting for my turn to speak.

However, when my time to speak came, I had a greater appreciation for the moderates on both sides. My arguments, summarized below, reflected that sentiment:

"I have lived in 6 other cities and many of them had streets named after MLK or Cesar Chavez ("Cha-vez," thank you), but that did not make them tolerant. In fact, Portland is the most tolerant city, in which I have lived, but I don't feel that tonight. None would argue that Mr. Chavez is not a hero, and none would argue that there has not been discrimination in this country. However, how do we and you (the City Council) move forward and honor Mr. Chavez' contribution and all of our citizens contributions?

We honor Mr. Chavez and all Portland's citizens by promoting tolerance and diversity, by bringing all concerned parties together to find a solution. What an example for our kids. Isn't this what President Obama, whom many have channeled tonight, did in 2008? Isn't this what Cesar Chavez did? Make a lasting and worthy impact and move this city forward by honoring all its citizens including the 90% of residents of 39th Ave who have proclaimed their disinterest in having their street renamed in a recent City of Portland survey.

This is not a black and white issue; this is not a brown and white issue. If symbolism is your goal, be bold and make a lasting impact by naming/building something new, such as the new bridge spanning our river which unites both sides of the city. Unite activism and democratic sentiment! Whatever you do, consider the whole community! Isn't that what Cesar Chavez would have wanted? Isn't that what both sides of this issue want?"

With that, I left the lectern and walked out into the cool night air of the city... that I still love.