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CESAR E. CHAVEZ BOULEVARD?
Sunday, July 27, 2008 David Reinhard, The Oregonian

CESAR E. CHAVEZ BOULEVARD
Sunday, July 20, 2008 David Reinhard, The Oregonian

Starting fresh on Cesar Chavez - Portland, Oregon, Jul 15, 2008 - HispanicTips

Effort to name Chavez Boulevard renewed in Portland   Monday, July 14, 2008
Associated Press

New hope to rename Portland street after Cesar Chavez
July 12, 2008, MARK LARABEE,
The Oregonian Staff

Si, Se Puede (Eventually)
César Chávez Rename Effort Re-emerges
by Amy J. Ruiz, Portland Mercury
June 26, 2008

VIDEO –
     Loud debate marks Chavez name change meeting

VIDEO –
      outside community meeting – YouTube

Latino Network Press Conference – Nov. 6

No Compromise: Interstate Ave. Vote Likely – Nov 5

Activists fend off Chavez compromise – Nov. 2

Polémica en Portland por Cháve – October 29

Furor goes beyond renaming a street – October 28

Wreck on Cesar Chavez Blvd – October 14

Much ado about a name (Español) – October 4

Much ado about a name (English) – October 4

What would Cesar Chavez say? – October 4

Don't let Interstate debate pull us under – October 8

Interstate Ave. name change could come
    in two weeks; debate rages– October 9

New Options For Interstate Avenue?– October 10

Mayor Potter – Chávez street renaming is an honor
      and opportunity – October 16

Name Calling – Interstate Rename
     Debate Gets Ugly – October 18

Un camino con baches para el Bulevar César E. Chávez  (Español) – September 27

Bumpy road for César E. Chávez Boulevard
     (English) – September 27

City Council looks favorably (Español) – September 13

City Council looks favorably(English)– September 13

Group wants to honor César Chávez
     (Español)– September 13

Group wants to honor César Chávez
     (English)–September 13

 Mayor's open letter to the community– September 26

Race, identity complicate name debates   Thursday, December 06, 2007 James Mayer The Oregonian With the collapse of the idea to rename a street for Cesar Chavez, Portlanders might be wondering: Why do people care so much about a street name? The answer, according to geographers and others who have studied the question, can be found in the complex interplay between identity and history. Streets play a key role in defining the fabric of everyday reality, both for groups trying to hold on to their identity and version of the past, and for those with a new reality demanding to be heard. Derek Alderman, a cultural geographer from Eastern Carolina University in Greenville, N.C., has extensively researched street-renaming controversies, focusing on renaming streets for slain civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. His comments were edited for brevity and clarity. What is it about streets and names of streets that carry so much power for people? I think at a very basic level they are an important part of our identity. Obviously it's the part of your identity that helps get mail delivered to you and gives people some sense of where you live in the community, what part of town you're from, and sometimes it carries positive and negative connotations, depending on what neighborhood you are from. Over time, it gets to be part of what people consider their heritage, what they consider part of their history, their memory. They are actually more than just a street name; they can be a memorial. That's what the Chavez people had in mind here, trying to claim some of that history. There have been some pretty convincing studies that suggest if you look at the history of street naming, so many of our street names carry the mark or carry the memory of largely white male historical figures, and so if you think about this idea of a bigger movement trying to honor and pay respect to minority historical figures and minority historical causes and the impact of Latinos or, in my work, on African Americans, on the historical landscape, then you realize it's pretty important. The street renamings are ways in which certain groups can try to claim the right to have their history heard, and they are ways of making sure that their histories get seen and get recognized publicly. We have to keep in mind, as much as we have a personal connection with our street name, it's still part of public space. They are open to people claiming them and using them and trying to advocate for their cause within and through those spaces. You hear the argument: If you don't live along that street or don't own property on that street, you really shouldn't have a say in whether the street is renamed. Not taking anything away from people who live on that street, but it's worth thinking about these streets as part of a larger public arena. Race was never far from the surface here, although there tended to be a lot of denial. That may be unwelcome, even in a liberal and progressive city like Portland. Although there's still a lot of people who have an ax to grind with the civil rights movement, it becomes about boundaries and turf and who has the power to be seen and heard in certain places versus other places. So, I think any time you start getting into boundaries in cities, you invariably deal with issues of racial boundaries or you deal with people's perception of where the boundaries should be. Does time make a difference? Immigration is such a hot-button issue here; I'm wondering if the battlefield may be too fresh for people to take a step back. With MLK, did it get easier over time? There's no doubt that the number of streets named for King has increased over time. Public acceptance of King and his ideals has increased. But at the same time, I will tell you in many, many communities, it's not any easier than it was 30 years ago. A reporter from Tallahassee e-mailed me over the Thanksgiving break about a rural county on the outskirts of Tallahassee that is struggling to get a street named for King. I thought to myself, as we near the 40-year mark of the King assassination, things for many African Americans have not got any easier at all. Another issue here was the street was in a part of town where people felt ignored, dumped on by the city. There are competing views of marginalization. One group, the Hispanic/Latinos historically and still to this day, has been marginalized. And then you've got people in a section of town who feel marginalized in their own right. Unfortunately, city leaders are put in the position where they really can't make anyone happy. They ultimately realized that and pulled the plug on the whole deal. One of the things I've learned from the King street renamings is that for all that the name changes are supposed to tell you about the past, what's even more revealing is what they tell you about the present. From a social science perspective, which is what I do, street renaming struggles are important indicators of where communities are and how communities feel about things. I think this debate tended to reveal a level of racial tension here that a lot of us would prefer not to address. What I'm always drawn to when reflecting on this is Martin Luther King's letter from the Birmingham jail, where he talked about two types of peace in the world: negative peace and positive peace. Negative peace meant the white establishment just wanted to keep social order, they wanted to keep everything harmonious. Positive peace for Dr. King was social justice, making sure marginalized people got heard and seen and their interests were addressed. In achieving a positive peace, sometimes we're going to have social disharmony, rather than relying on negative peace where everyone just sort of keeps quiet. So in this case, the debate at least made the city aware that people are here and want to be heard. There's no doubt that immigration and Latino/Hispanic issues are a part of this larger debate. I'm also surprised you haven't heard more about Chavez, given his left-leaning politics, worker rights. He is kind of an obscure figure here. I have run into that with King. People say, why King when there are so many others? King and Chavez fall into the same category. He's an important metaphor. Part of this isn't about rewriting history, it's about selecting someone who symbolizes, who has the visibility and name recognition to get us thinking about other folks who need to be remembered. That works the other way, too. It's a reminder of what the issues are with regard to immigration. That doesn't sit well with everybody. We have to realize that street renamings are a civil rights issue. I know a lot of people say that's crazy. Voting, hate crimes, disenfranchising of minorities in prison, these are civil rights issues. But if you think about civil rights as not just about the right to make a living or to vote, if you think about civil rights ultimately as about being seen and heard, having your perspective respected and valued, street renaming is a civil rights issues. If you look at it as a civil rights issue, then it makes all the sense in the world why some proponents don't mind making it confrontational. In fact, they see that it probably needs to be somewhat confrontational. Because as the civil rights movement taught us, we've got to shock the system into some reality. What a lot of people found disturbing about the way the activists went about it in this case was they were so uncompromising. A lot of people asked: Why won't you play the political game? You'll come out ahead if you are only willing to compromise a little bit. That's allowing yourself to be a part of a system that has historically proven that it's not going to serve your interests. King said the word "wait" really means "never" to African Americans. It's not just an issue for African Americans. For many people who are marginalized in this country, they hear somebody say, "Play the game, be part of the process, let's do it the way we need to" -- that's just code language for "Let us try to find a way to make this change, and do it in a way we can deal with, and your interests are going to be secondary." James Mayer: 503-294-4109; jimmayer@news.oregonian.com   ©2007 The Oregonian

Street for Chavez appears likely

It looks increasingly likely that North Interstate Avenue will become Cesar Chavez Boulevard as a compromise collapses and pressure mounts to honor Portland's Latino community with a city landmark.

City Commissioner Erik Sten said Tuesday he has given up trying to forge a deal that would have delayed next week's vote and considered other streets to name after the labor rights activist.

Serena Cruz, one of many speakers at a press conference where city leaders called on the City Council to vote on Cesar Chavez name change.
 

He said he reluctantly will be the third vote for the change, meaning it would pass 3-2.

Waiting will only deepen the controversy and widen the divide between North Portland residents and supporters of the new name, Sten said.

"We're in a room with no door," he said.

At the same time, a cross section of leaders from Portland's minority community turned up the political heat Tuesday, repeating calls for an immediate decision and taking aim at council opponents of the Interstate proposal.

Supporters see more talk as tantamount to the tactics used by segregationists to thwart the civil rights movement in 1960s.

"Justice can't be put on the back burner," said the Rev. Leroy Haynes Jr., vice president of the Albina Ministerial Alliance. He was joined at a news conference by other leaders representing Latino, Native American, Slavic and peace groups.

"In Portland, saying we need more process is code for 'we are still uncomfortable,' " said former Multnomah County Commissioner Serena Cruz-Walsh. "Sometimes we would rather talk about hard decisions than make them."

Charlene McGee, president of the Portland NAACP, singled out Commissioners Sam Adams and Randy Leonard for opposing the Interstate renaming.

"2008 is just around the corner. We are watching," McGee warned.

Adams is running for mayor, and Leonard is seeking re-election next year.

"Sam Adams wants to be mayor. It should be part of the campaign that his word is worth nothing," said Ron Herndon, executive director of Albina Head Start.

"2008 is just around the corner. We are watching," McGee warned.

Adams is running for mayor, and Leonard is seeking re-election next year.

"Sam Adams wants to be mayor. It should be part of the campaign that his word is worth nothing," said Ron Herndon, executive director of Albina Head Start.

Both Adams and Leonard said they stood by their opposition to renaming Interstate, citing the inadequacy of a six-week community outreach plan meant to gather support for the plan, but resulting in fierce resistance at neighborhood meetings.

The council unanimously passed the outreach plan in September at the urging of Mayor Tom Potter.

Adams said he understands the frustration of the Chavez activists, but his support for Interstate always depended on neighborhood support.

"If they don't want to look at any other street than Interstate, I respectfully disagree," he said.

Leonard said he also remains a no vote. "I have yet to cave in to threats," he said.

He blames Potter for empowering the renaming supporters to equate opposition with racism. "Potter has made it a litmus test," he said.

Potter spokesman John Doussard wouldn't comment directly on Leonard's remark.

"All I can say is the folks who spoke at the press conference were far more eloquent than I could ever be on the topic," Doussard said.

Commissioner Dan Saltzman was out of town Tuesday, but he hasn't supported more process and is generally thought to back Potter's renaming proposal.

Many North Portland residents have criticized what they see as an unfair process to rename Interstate, but also say the change would take away their history and undermine the economic renewal that the area has been experiencing since the arrival of light rail.

"I'm saddened that the Latino community could not sit down with the businesses and the community to work out a proposal that works," said Bill Mildenberger Jr., manager of the Nite Hawk Lounge and Cafe and a leader of the North Portland opposition. "We just feel our voice has not been heard whatsoever."

James Mayer: 503-294-5988; jimmayer@news.oregonian.com

Activists fend off Chavez compromise

Renaming - A Latino group wants the labor leader's name to replace Interstate on signs, and members are looking for support

 Friday, November 02, 2007

ANNA GRIFFIN

The Oregonian Staff

Leaders of Portland's Latino community want people of color and progressives citywide to rally behind their fight to rename Interstate Avenue after Cesar Chavez later this month -- and help kill an attempt to consider other streets.

With a compromise looking more and more likely, leaders of the effort to rename Interstate sent out an e-mail to more than 50 civic leaders and community organizers this week seeking their help.

Their message: First, please support renaming Interstate and only Interstate. Second, if approached, say no to serving on a city committee that would consider other ways to honor the labor leader and civil rights activist.

Getty Images
Una demostración a favor del líder sindical
 en Texas. En Portland, Oregon, no se
 ponen de acuerdo para nombrar una calle

Commissioners Randy Leonard, Erik Sten and Sam Adams are recruiting members for such a committee.

All three have said they support renaming a street somewhere in Portland for Chavez, who died in 1993, but they also say the city needs more time and should seek more public comment.

In the wake of last week's disastrous City Council meeting -- Mayor Tom Potter walked out as Sten, Adams and Leonard tried to work out a compromise -- they're trying to find a solution all three can support at a Nov. 14 meeting.

For the moment, the three are looking at creating a five-member committee that would include some of the city's biggest names -- former Mayors Vera Katz and Bud Clark have been mentioned as possible leaders -- to consider several streets, including Interstate.

Leonard said he'd like the first new street signs to go up on March 31, what would have been Chavez's 81stbirthday.

"We are not asking people to help us decide whether to name a street. That is going to happen. It's done," he said. "We want them to help us pick a street, so that this can be something the entire city rallies around instead of what we've seen so far."

In September, at the request of a group of Latino activists, the City Council voted unanimously to begin a six-week period of public comment on renaming Interstate, followed by a vote on the renaming. But to the surprise of everyone involved, the idea of turning Interstate Avenue into Chavez Boulevard generated overwhelming opposition in North Portland.

Business owners said it would cost them thousands of dollars to change signs and advertising. Residents said they feel abused by the city: After neglecting the area for years, the city pushed ahead with the Interstate MAX line and the renaming of Portland Boulevard after Rosa Parks with little public comment.

Potter said Chavez organizers deserve an up-or-down vote on renaming Interstate. Leonard, Sten and Adams all said the process they approved in September was inherently flawed and caused the debate to get intensely personal and unpleasant.

"What I do not want to do is take a group of well-meaning citizens and throw them under the bus again. We've already done that once to the Chavez committee," Leonard said. "What we need is not just five random thoughtful community leaders, but five folks who are recognized instantly for their contributions, have been through the political wars and are prepared for the job we're asking them to do."

An ex-official says no

Those five people cannot all be white, Leonard said. Judging from early returns, that might pose a problem.

Former county Commissioner Serena Cruz Walsh has said no. Roy Jay, a close friend of Leonard's and head of the African-American Chamber of Commerce, said he'd like to help settle the Interstate debate and has some ideas, but hasn't decided whether to serve.

"I'm waiting to see who else they get," he said.

Several civic leaders who received the activists' e-mail, written by Latino Network executive director Maria Lisa Johnson, said they would refuse the assignment if approached.

"It would be disrespectful to the people who have already worked so hard on this issue," said Kayse Jama, executive director of the Center for Intercultural Organizing and a native of Somalia.

Jama said he agrees with members of the Chavez organizing committee that the fierce reaction to the idea of renaming Interstate should bring together people of color. Portland, he said, prides itself on an inclusive attitude that doesn't always exist.

"Chavez isn't a Latino. He's a U.S.-born American. Yet we keep hearing that this is a Latino issue, that he was Latino," Jama said. "That is the discussion we need to have in this city, but that too many people are afraid to begin. Who is an American? What does an American look like?

"Maybe that kind of conversation will be the one good thing to come out of this."

Anna Griffin: 503-412-7053; annagriffin@news.oregonian.com
http://www.oregonlive.com/news/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/news/1193975707224800.xml&coll=7&thispage=1

Polémica en Portland por Chávez
Oposición a bulevard con su nombre

Univision - AP    29 de Octubre de 2007
http://www.univision.com/content/content.jhtml?cid=1331684

PORTLAND, Oregon - Una propuesta para ponerle el nombre del sindicalista César Chavez a una calle de Portland ha generado una prolongada controversia entre dos grupos, latinos a favor del plan, mientras que los residentes del sector norte que se oponen a la idea.

No en mi vecindario

El tema se ha polarizado tanto que el alcalde Tom Potter abandonó súbitamente una reunión del concejo municipal donde se debatía el asunto.

Los grupos latinos no se han mostrado por tolerantes para llegar a un compromiso, de que se nombre otra calle que no sea la Avenida Interestatal.

"No sé lo que quiere decir la gente cuando habla de llegar a un acuerdo, cuando la gente en mi comunidad siente que ya tenemos un acuerdo, a diario llegamos a un acuerdo", dijo Marta Guembes, codirectora del comité del Bulevard César E. Chávez Bulevar.

Chávez, un organizador sindicalista y activista , uno de los fundadores del Sindicato de Trabajadores Agrícolas -UFW por sus siglas en inglés- falleció en 1993. La idea de hacerle un reconocimiento comenzó a dar vueltas en la comunidad latina pocos años después de su muerte.

Finalmente, en julio, un grupo de proponentes se reunió con el alcalde. Potter aceptó la idea y los líderes latinos esperaban poca oposición para cambiarle de nombre a la Avenida Interestatal ya que el concejo solamente enfrentó una oposición silenciosa cuando le cambió el nombre a Rosa Parks, la legendaria activista de derechos civiles.

Los miembros del comité de Chávez acordaron seguir el proceso de comentario público requerido por los miembros del Concejo de la ciudad. El período de comentarios se convirtió en una fuerza de oposición mucho mayor de la anticipada.

Mucha de esa oposición vino de una fuente predecible, propietarios de comercios que se quejaron porque cambiarle el nombre a la calle le costaría dinero a ellos. Pero a ellos se les unieron los residentes del norte de Portland que desde hace mucho tiempo se han sentido olvidados por el Ayuntamiento.

El alcalde le echó la culpa de la hostilidad al temor a cambiar, y en algunos casos, al racismo.

Los detractores del cambio de nombre de la calle se sienten ofendidos de ser calificados como racistas. Dicen que lo único que buscan es preservar el nombre Interestatal, que tiene una larga historia.

Nadie sabe a ciencia cierta qué efecto tiene sobre el tema la salida de Potter de la reunión. El alcalde dice que el sigue oponiéndose a abrir el debate para incluir el cambio de nombre de otras calles.

"Yo, personalmente, me sentiría orgulloso de tener una calle frente a mi casa que se llamara César Chávez, pero no creí que eso vaya a suceder", aseveró Potter. "Lo que escucho en todo esto es que todos quieren rendirle homenaje a Chávez, siempre y cuando no sea en su vecindario", advirtió.

Wreck on Cesar Chavez Blvd.

Two street name changes slid smoothly through why is there so much anger and discontent now? Sunday, October 14, 2007       JAMES MAYER

The Oregonian

The public implosion of the plan to rename North Interstate Avenue for farm labor leader Cesar Chavez was as surprising as it was swift, but anyone who has studied Portland history and neighborhood politics might have seen it coming from blocks away.

First, you have a growing Latino population with no city monument to call its own and a natural yearning for recognition. Then you have a traditionally forgotten section of the city, with a collective chip on its shoulder at its leftover status. Now, add a City Hall that hasn't followed its own renaming rules.

"This has gotten so ugly, can we please start over?" business owner Kathy Chellis pleaded at a community meeting last week.

The factions show no signs of backing down, and the City Council appears divided on how to resolve the standoff: slow down the decision, find another landmark to rename, or push ahead.

To the people who came up with the idea, North Interstate Avenue seemed a perfect candidate to honor Chavez.

The street -- and the neighborhoods it cuts through -- reflect the city's changing ethnic makeup. Census figures show the Latino population of North Portland tripled between 1990 and 2000. Supporters say they don't want to rewrite the area's history, they want to add a new chapter.

What's more, Interstate is a boring name. How much more meaning would the street have as a highly visible tribute to a Latino hero?

But the effort -- endorsed by Mayor Tom Potter -- almost immediately ran into an emotional buzz saw. Two North Portland neighborhood associations overwhelmingly rejected it. A third just withdrew its support and instead decided to remain neutral. Two public meetings devolved into angry volleys across a racial gulf.

Chellis, co-owner of North Star Coffee Shop on Interstate near North Lombard Street, said the city needs to find a way to honor Chavez that doesn't divide the community. Her corner offers a good place to start to looking, she said.

Across the street is open space owned by the Portland School District, and the MAX shelter at her front door features symbols of farm labor as metaphors for social progress.

But looking for something else to name won't change the minds of people opposed to the idea, said Marta Guembes, co-chairwoman of the grass-roots Cesar E. Chavez Boulevard Committee.

"It doesn't matter where we would have gone in Portland. We would hear, 'I love Cesar Chavez, he's great. I want my children to learn about him. But take him somewhere else,' " she said.

Council undecided

The fact that the mayor and the rest of the City Council didn't see this coming speaks volumes to many North Portlanders who historically have felt ignored and dumped on.

Their nerves were already frayed from the City Council's renaming last year, with little public input, of North Portland Boulevard for civil rights figure Rosa Parks. The street intersects Interstate.

To many, the Chavez idea seems like more of the same.

Residents and business leaders say they have nothing against Chavez, but they want to hang onto their history and their identity -- even as light rail and urban renewal cash spark a slow but steady revival.

Potter hasn't settled on a date for a council vote, but the mayor is interested in moving ahead sooner rather than later, said aide Veronica Valenzuela.

Commissioners Randy Leonard and Sam Adams now say they want to slow things down and take more time to make a decision.

"We have to sit down and talk among ourselves," Leonard said. "We are going to name a major street in Portland for Cesar Chavez. The only question is whether it's Interstate or not."

There's no clear majority on the council for what to do.

"It's possible if somebody called the question, do we want to vote now or do we want to slow it down, it might be two and two with me in the middle," said Commissioner Erik Sten. He's not ready to say how he would vote if forced into it.

Sten said there's a good argument for taking more time, but he wants a chance to bring the Chavez committee along first.

"We've never had a civil rights leader who was given a major honor on a split vote," he said. "I'm not willing to give up on the prospect of a unanimous vote and peace in the community."

But smoothing the waters won't be easy. Accusations of racism have poisoned the normally polite Portland dialogue.

One man testifying at last week's packed community meeting said that though neighborhood residents feel "hoodwinked" by the name change proposal, to him it felt more like "a different kind of hood, the hoods worn by the Ku Klux Klan."

The comment drew a gasp of shock from the crowd.

Neighborhood sprucing up

How could things have gone south so badly? The short answer: In process-loving Portland, the process broke down.

But that's not really surprising. The city has never followed its own rules for renaming streets. The City Council got away it with the past two times, with Naito Parkway downtown and Rosa Parks Way. But not this time.

The city's current renaming policy can be traced to 1989 and the turmoil over the renaming of Union Avenue for Martin Luther King Jr., also opposed by many property owners. The issue wasn't resolved until the Oregon Supreme Court ruled that opponents didn't have the right to refer the City Council's decision to voters.

In the wake of that battle, the council adopted an ordinance that provides two ways to change street names. One is an elaborate citizen process that includes gathering signatures, surveying property owners and seeking the opinion of historians and the planning commission before bringing the proposal to the council.

The council also can rename streets on its own, but only to correct errors or clear up confusion. In the Naito and Rosa Parks cases, the council simply waived the code requirements.

In this case, the city has so far bypassed the code. But it's in a precarious spot: Officials can hardly tell Latino backers that their hero doesn't deserve the same treatment as an African American hero.

John Doussard, Potter's spokesman, insists the approach is working: The mayor told the Chavez committee, when it asked for his advice, to find out what the community thinks, and that's exactly what's happened.

"Tom's doing what he always does, talking to the community," Doussard said.

Meanwhile, as the renaming debate attracts attention, the city is quietly working on more tangible changes to Interstate Avenue.

Once home to cheesy motels, gaudy bars and little else, the street is slowly redeveloping, sparked by urban renewal investments in light rail, area businesses, housing and parks.

Since the Interstate urban renewal district began seven years ago, the city has spent $59 million there. The biggest chunk is a $30 million local match for light rail, but businesses also have gotten hundreds of small grants and loans.

The Portland Development Commission is helping finance a 53-unit apartment building on the site of the Crown Motel near North Killingsworth Avenue and is sprucing up nearby Patton Square Park. Upscale businesses such as New Seasons Market have moved in.

A Pearl-like explosion of development around the MAX stations hasn't emerged as many planners had hoped, but the city is working on changing zoning to make redevelopment more attractive.

Walter Valenta, chairman of the citizens advisory committee for the urban renewal district, said the renaming controversy is a sideshow he hopes won't have a lasting effect.

But he noted that bad process wastes a lot of neighborhood energy and capital.

"Every move you make will be harder now."

James Mayer: 503-294-5988; jimmayer@news.oregonian.com

©2007 The Oregonian

Mucho ruido solo por un nombre

Surgen fuertes sentimientos del debate sobre el propuesto Bulevar César E. Chávez

Julie Cortez       Reportera de El Hispanic News

Published in El Hispanic News October 4, 2007 issue

Link to the El Hispanic News issue: www.elhispanicnews.com/archivo/2007/october/100407ehnpub.pdf

Portland, OR — Caramba, si que Julieta estaba errada.

“¿Qué es lo que hay en un nombre?” Bueno, aparentemente historia, sensitividad cultural, dinero, malos entendidos, enojo, y orgullo del vecindario, solo para escribir algunas de un tirón.

El Comité de César E. Chávez Boulevard (CECBC, por sus siglas en inglés) ha aprendido — a veces a través de discursos menos que civiles — que para algunos ruidosos residentes y dueños de negocios del norte y noreste de Portland, la Avenida Interstate con otro nombre no va a ser tan dulce.

El Hispanic News llamó la semana pasada a aproximadamente 13 negocios ubicados en la Interstate, y tuvo cuatro dueños de negocios al teléfono Tres de ellos estaban en contra de cambiarle el nombre a la calle para honrar al activista por los derechos civiles César E. Chávez, aun cuando ninguno había tomado un papel activo en oponerse o apoyar la propuesta.

Como se reportó la semana pasada en El Hispanic News, el Comité encontró fuerte oposición al cambio del nombre en las reuniones de las asociaciones de los vecindarios de Overlook y Arbor Lodge, llevadas a cabo el 18 y 20 de septiembre respectivamente. La particularmente acalorada e indisciplinada atmósfera — que algunos miembros del Comité llamaron racismo — en la reunión de Overlook, provocó llamadas a El Hispanic News de residentes del vecindario deseando distanciarse de las opiniones expresadas allí; cartas para los editores de otras publicaciones locales expresaron sentimientos similares.

Una audiencia pública al principio de septiembre trajo principalmente a partidarios del cambio y el alcalde Tom Potter y los comisionados de la cuidad Erik Sten, Dan Saltzman, y Sam Adams expresaron aprobación por la propuesta. El comisionado Randy Leonard no estuvo presente.

Movidos por acusaciones de conducta abusiva por parte de los asistentes a la reunión de Overlook, Potter hizo pública una carta abierta a la comunidad la semana pasada suplicando por discursos respetuosos, y animando a la gente a atender uno de las dos últimas reuniones con la comunidad en la materia en Ockley Green School. (Una fue llevada a cabo el miércoles de esta semana, la otra será el 9 de octubre a las 6:30 p.m.)

“Yo urjo a los habitantes de Portland a aprender más de este proyecto y lo que significa [para] la comunidad latina”, se leía en la declaración de Potter. “Tómese tiempo de escuchar — y yo quiero decir realmente escuchar — antes de hacer una reacción miedosa a la idea de cambio. Lo más importante en este debate, es que nos respetemos los unos a los otros. Porque cuando hacemos ésto, lo que realmente le estamos diciendo al otro es que ‘Yo respeto su derecho de estar aquí’”.

¿De quién es este vecindario?

Los miembros de l Comité reportaron que las declaraciones tales como “no en nuestro vecindario” y referencias para “esa gente” fueron hechas en la reunión de Overlook, y que ellos fueron tratados como intrusos.

Eric Gale, el recientemente elegido presidente de la Asociación del Vecindario de Overlook, no piensa que muchos de los asistentes enojados se dieron cuenta que varios de los miembros del Comité son residentes del norte y noreste de Portland. El Comité no es “una poderosa organización monolítica que viene de arriba” él explicó. “Éste es una manotada de activistas tratando de hacer algo positivo”.

Gale dijo que la transformación de Portland Blvd. en Rosa Parks Way fue forzada sobre ellos por intrusos fuera de su comunidad. Aun cuando el Comité ha tratado de hacer bastante alcance a nivel local, de acuerdo con Gale mucha gente sintió que cambiarle el nombre a Interstate Blvd. era igualmente “algo decidido y después presionado sobre los vecindarios”.

El copresidente del Comité José Romero dijo que éste nunca ha dicho que el cambio de nombre era un “mate” y que ellos iba a estar “abiertos, dispuestos y ansiosos a reunirse con todos los interesados” desde que ellos empezaron el proceso de buscar el cambio al principio de marzo de esta año.

Romero culpa alguna de la confusión y el enojo circundando la propuesta a la Ciudad de Portland la cual, él dijo, no se ha adherido consistentemente a sus propios códigos sobre el cambio de nombre de las calles, especialmente respecto a Rosa Parks Way.

Tom Griffin-Valade, director de los servicios a los vecindarios del Norte de Portland, dijo que la ciudad ha tenido un record irregular de todos los cambios de nombre en los años recientes, incluyendo Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd., Naito Parkway, y Rosa Parks Way.

“Según mi conocimiento, la ciudad no ha seguido sus propias recomendaciones en ninguno de ellos”, dijo Griffin-Valade.

Griffin-Valade repitió las acusaciones que se levantan repetidamente en la ciberbitácora (blogs) y en conversaciones acerca de Rosa Parks Way: que muchos dueños de negocios y residentes no sabían que Portland Blvd. había sido cambiada de nombre a Rosa hasta que los letreros se levantaron. Él dijo que cuando el consejo de la cuidad recibió la propuesta de cambio de nombre de Albina Ministerial Alliance, el consejo asumió que ya habían hecho adecuado alcance al público y precedieron a aprobar el nuevo nombre.

Brendan Finn, el jefe del personal del comisionado Dan Saltzman, disputa la reclamación que la cuidad ha sido negligente en seguir su código. Mientras que hay un número de requisitos colocados en los ciudadanos y en las organizaciones por el código — incluyendo cual tipo de calles pueden ser cambiadas de nombre, cuantas firmas de apoyo deben ser recogidas, y cuanta información debe proveerse para aquellos afectados con el cambio — de acuerdo con Finn en el caso de Rosa Parks Way el consejo de la cuidad ejercito su derecho de no hacer que Albina Ministerial Alliance fuera por todo el proceso, y en cambio aprobó el cambio y tomó la responsabilidad de alertar a los residentes y a los dueños de negocios. Finn dijo que el consejo gastó ocho meses en el proyecto, llevó a cabo tres audiencias públicas, y envió por correo avisos del cambio a todos en Portland Blvd.

Si algunas personas en el bulevar en realidad no supieron acerca del cambio hasta que los letreros de Rosa Parks se instalaron, Finn dijo, de pronto ellos hicieron lo que muchos de nosotros hacemos — vieron la notificación en su cajillas del correo, asumieron que era coreo no deseado, y la tiraron sin leerla.

“Es literalmente imposible asegurarse que cada cual [sabe]”, Finn dijo. “… La mejor cosa que nosotros podemos hacer es enviar una pieza de correo a sus casas”.

Él agregó, “Yo pienso que nosotros hicimos incluso más de nuestra debida diligencia”.

Las voces de los negocios

Con la cantidad de conversación y prensa que se ha generado con los esfuerzos del Comité, si el cambio del nombre pasara sería más difícil para quienes viven o tienen negocios en o alrededor de Interstate Ave. reclamar que no han oído nada sobre la propuesta del cambio con anticipación. Y mientras que los negocios son las entidades que se podría decir que se afectarían más directamente con el nuevo nombre, los cuatro dueños de negocios quienes hablaron con El Hispanic News la semana pasada todos sabían de la sugerencia y tenían opiniones sobre ésta, pero no se habían activamente envueltos en vencer o promocionar la propuesta.

Sara Sawicki, la copropietaria de Fire on the Mountain Buffalo Wings en 4225 N. Interstate, no ha hablado públicamente en contra o a favor del cambio de nombre, pero dijo que estaba pensando atender uno de las dos reuniones de la comunidad sobre la propuesta en Ockley Green Elementary.

Sawicki dice que ella está “en todo” por el cambio de nombre de Interstate siempre y cuando no le cueste a su negocio mucho dinero, pero prefiere que el nombre permanezca igual si esto resultaría en una carga financiera.

Ken Hatch, el dueño de Ainsworth Drug and Gifts, trasladó su negocio de Ainsworth a 4027 N. Interstate hace tres años y él dice que otro “movimiento” así sea solo en el nombre, va a confundir a los clientes. Él conservó el nombre Ainsworth porque viene primero en la guía telefónica. Él también se opone al cambio del nombre, porque piensa que Interstate describe la avenida mejor.

Jim Jensen, dueño de Jim’s Interstate Auto en 4212 N Interstate Ave., ha estado en esta localidad actual por 11½ años y tuvo otro taller de reparación de carros en otro lugar en Interstate por 25 años. Él dice que no le gusta la idea del cambio de la avenida, porque él cree que esto confundirá su correo y que ésta ha sido Interstate por lo él es capaz de recordar, pero también dijo que no le gustó el tono de la reunión de Overlook. Él estaba especialmente impresionado con el punto de vista de algunos presentes, el cual era que un nombre como Chávez no pertenecía al vecindario.

Jensen no tiene problemas con el nombre de Chávez o con el honrar su herencia, pero él piensa que el cambio haría los negocios más difíciles. “Es difícil tratar de decirle a alguien donde se está ubicado, cuando usted ni siquiera sabe como pronunciar el nombre”, él dijo.

Tanto Hatch como Jensen igualmente citaron el dinero y el inconveniente envuelto en reimprimir todos su materiales — tales como bolsas en le caso de Hatch — con el nuevo nombre de la calle. Ambos reconocieron que los costos no serian altos, sin embargo, y que ellos tendrían que reimprimir materiales de todas formas dentro de los próximos tres o cuatro años, el tiempo estimado antes que todos los letreros de Interstate Ave. fueran bajados permanentemente.

“¿[Pero] porqué debo cambiar algo?” Hatch preguntó, adicionando que él no prevé que el nuevo nombre beneficie a los negocios de alguna forma.

Hatch y Jensen, al igual que la copropietaria de Alibi Restaurant and Lounge Karla White, también están de acuerdo que Chávez podría ser honrado mejor en alguna otra forma, como una escuela, becas, un parque, un centro de trabajo, o una clínica de salud. White piensa que el dinero que iría en los nuevos letreros seria mejor gastada en niños y educación.

¿Otras opciones?

La opinión de White, Hatch, y Jensen es compartida por los miembros de la Asociaciones del Vecindario de Overlook, de acuerdo con Gale, quien fue seleccionado como presidente de la asociación la misma noche que Overlook de manera abrumadora votó en contra de apoyar el cambio de nombre. La tercera moción de la noche, sin embargo, fue la de apoyar un camino alternativo para honrar a Chávez, y esa moción paso unánimemente.

“Yo pienso que mucha gente se sintió mal por oponerse a ésto”, y piensan que honrar a Chávez de otra manera es una buena idea, Gale dijo, pero a ellos no les gusta la forma como el proceso ha sido ejecutado o los gastos potenciales.

Finn dijo que él escucho comentarios similares respecto a Rosa Parks Way — que la campeona de los derechos civiles debería ser honrada, pero que de pronto hay mejores formas que con el nombre de una calle — pero Finn no ve porqué nuestros héroes no pueden ser reconocidos con el nombre de una calle en adición a otras formas. Rosa Parks, por ejemplo, ahora tiene igualmente una escuela en Portland nombrada en su honor,

“Usted no puede escoger una sobre la otra”, Finn insistió. “Usted busca las mayores oportunidades posibles [de honrar a nuestros lideres]”.

Much ado about a name

Strong feelings surge from debate over proposed César E. Chávez Blvd.

Julie Cortez       El Hispanic News Writer

Published in El Hispanic News October 4, 2007 issue

Link to the El Hispanic News issue: www.elhispanicnews.com/archivo/2007/october/100407ehnpub.pdf

Portland, OR — Boy, did Juliet have it wrong.

“What’s in a name?” Well, apparently history, cultural sensitivity, money, misunderstandings, anger, and neighborhood pride, just to rattle off a few.

The César E. Chávez Boulevard Committee (CECBC) has learned — at times via less-than-civil discourse — that for some vocal North and Northeast Portland residents and business owners, an Interstate Avenue by any other name would not be so sweet.

El Hispanic News called approximately 13 Interstate businesses last week, and got four business owners on the phone. Three of the four were against changing the avenue’s name to honor civil rights activist César E. Chávez, though none had taken an active role in opposing or supporting the proposal.

As reported last week in El Hispanic News, the CECBC encountered strong opposition to the name change at the Overlook and Arbor Lodge neighborhood association meetings, held Sept. 18 and Sept. 20, respectively. The particularly heated and unruly atmosphere — some CECBC members called it racist — at the Overlook meeting prompted calls to El Hispanic News from neighborhood residents wishing to distance themselves from the opinions expressed there; letters to the editors of other local publications expressed similar feelings.

A public hearing in early September primarily drew supporters of the change, and Mayor Tom Potter and city commissioners Erik Sten, Dan Saltzman, and Sam Adams expressed their approval of the proposal. Commissioner Randy Leonard was not present.

Prompted by accusations of abusive behavior by attendees of the Overlook meeting, Potter released an open letter to the community last week pleading for respectful discourse and encouraging people to attend one of the final two community meetings on the matter at Ockley Green School. (One was held Wednesday of this week; the other will be at 6:30 p.m. on Oct. 9.)

“I urge all Portlanders to learn more about this project and what it means [to] the Latino community,” Potter’s statement read. “Take the time to listen — and I mean really listen — before making a fearful reaction to the idea of change. More importantly in this debate, let's respect one another. For when we do this, we are really saying to one another ‘I respect your right to be here.’”

Whose neighborhood is this?

CECBC members report that statements like “not in our neighborhood” and references to “those people” were made at the Overlook meeting, and that they were treated like outsiders.

Eric Gale, the newly-elected the new chair of the Overlook Neighborhood Association, doesn’t think many angry attendees realized that several members of the CECBC are North and Northeast Portland residents. The CECBC is not a “powerful monolithic organization coming from above,” he explained. “It’s a handful of activists trying to do something positive.”

Gale said some in the neighborhood felt the transformation of Portland Blvd. into Rosa Parks Way was forced on them from outside their community. Though the CECBC has done a lot of grassroots outreach, according to Gale many people felt renaming Interstate Blvd. was similarly “decided and then pushed upon the neighborhoods.”

CECBC co-chair José Romero said the committee has never said the name change was a “slam dunk” and that they’ve been “open, willing, and anxious to meet with all stakeholders” since they began the process of seeking the change in early March of this year.

Romero blames some of the confusion and anger surrounding the proposal on the City of Portland, which he said has not adhered to its own code on street name changes consistently, especially regarding Rosa Parks Way.

Tom Griffin-Valade, director of North Portland Neighborhood services, said the city has had a spotty record on all of the name changes in recent years, including Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd., Naito Parkway, and Rosa Parks Way.

“To my knowledge the city has not followed their own recommendations on any of them,” Griffin-Valade said.

Griffin-Valade echoed the accusation that pops up repeatedly in blogs and in conversations about Rosa Parks Way: that some business owners and residents didn’t know Portland Blvd. was being renamed until the Rosa Parks signs went up. He said that when the city council received the Albina Ministerial Alliance’s proposal for that name change, the council assumed there had already been adequate public outreach and moved forward on approving the new name.

Brendan Finn, chief of staff to Commissioner Dan Saltzman, disputes claims that the city has been remiss in following its code. While there are a number of requirements placed on citizens and organizations by the code — including what kind of streets can be renamed, how many signatures of support they must gather, and how much information must be provided to those affected by the change — according to Finn in the case of Rosa Parks Way the city council exercised its right not to make Albina Ministerial Alliance go through the entire process, and instead approved the change and took on the responsibility of alerting residents and business owners. Finn said the council spent eight months on the project, held three public hearings, and mailed notice of the change to everyone on Portland Blvd.

If some people on the boulevard in fact did not know about the change until the Rosa Parks signs went up, Finn said, perhaps they did what many of us do — saw the notification in their mailbox, assumed it was junk, and threw it away without reading it.

“It’s literally impossible to make sure everyone [knows],” Finn said. “… The best thing we can do is send a piece of mail to their house.”

He added, “I think we did even more than our due diligence.”

Business voices

With the amount of talk and press that’s been generated by the CECBC’s efforts, should the name change pass it would be harder for those who live or do business on or around Interstate Ave. to claim they hadn’t heard about the proposal in advance of the change. And while businesses are arguably the entities that would be most directly affected by the new name, the four business owners who talked to El Hispanic News last week all knew about the proposal and had opinions on it, but had not been actively involved in defeating or promoting it.

Sara Sawicki, co-owner of Fire on the Mountain Buffalo Wings at 4225 N. Interstate, hasn’t spoken out publicly for or against the proposed name change, but said she’s thinking about attending one of the final two community meetings on proposal at Ockley Green Elementary.

Sawicki said she’s “all for” renaming Interstate as long as it doesn’t cost her business a lot of money, but would prefer the name stay the same if it will result in a financial burden.

Ken Hatch, owner of Ainsworth Drug and Gifts, moved his business from Ainsworth to 4027 N. Interstate three years ago and said he thinks another “move,” even if it’s just in name, will confuse customers. He kept the name Ainsworth because it comes first in the phone book. He also opposes the change because he thinks Interstate describes the avenue best.

Jim Jensen, owner of Jim’s Interstate Auto at 4212 N Interstate Ave., has been in his current location for 11½ years and had an auto shop at another Interstate site for 25 years. He says he doesn’t like the idea of changing the avenue’s name because he believes it will mess up his mail and it’s been Interstate as long as he can remember, but he also didn’t like the tone at the Overlook meeting. He especially wasn’t fond of the point of view of some attendees, which was that a name like Chávez doesn’t belong in the neighborhood.

Jensen doesn’t have a problem with Chávez’s name or with honoring his legacy, but he does think the change would make doing business more difficult.

“It’s hard to try to tell someone where you’re at when you can’t even pronounce the name,” he said.

Both Hatch and Jensen also cited the money and hassle that would be involved in reprinting all of their materials — such as shopping bags in Hatch’s case — with the new street name. Both conceded that the costs would not be high, however, and that they would likely have to reprint materials anyway within the next three to five years — the estimated time before all Interstate Ave. signs would be taken down permanently.

“[But] why should I have to change anything at all?” Hatch asked, adding that he doesn’t foresee the new name benefiting businesses.

Hatch and Jensen, as well as Alibi Restaurant and Lounge co-owner Karla White, also agree that Chávez would be better honored in some other way, such as with a school, scholarship, park, job center, or health clinic. White thinks the money that would go into new signs would be better spent on children and education.

Other options?

White, Hatch, and Jensen’s opinion is shared by members of the Overlook Neighborhood Association, according to Gale, who was elected the association’s chair the same night Overlook overwhelmingly voted against supporting the name change. The third motion of the night, however, was to support an alternative way of honoring Chávez, and that motion passed unanimously.

“I think a lot of people felt bad for opposing it,” Gale said, and think honoring Chávez is some other way is a good idea. But, he added, they don’t like the way the process has been executed or the potential expense.

Finn said he heard similar comments about Rosa Parks Way — that the civil rights champion should be honored but that perhaps there are better ways than with a street name — but Finn doesn’t see why our heroes can’t be recognized with a street name in addition to other methods. Rosa Parks, for example, now has a Portland school named after her as well.

“You can’t pick on over the other,” Finn insisted. “You look for as many opportunities as possible [to honor our leaders].”

What would Cesar Chavez say?

Posted by Galen Barnett

Don't let Interstate debate pull us under

Monday, October 08, 2007    S. Renee Mitchell    OregonLive

When crossing an ocean, the danger is not so much in the distance but the undertow. You never know exactly where it is until you're in it.

Portland, we are in it.

This so-called discussion our community is having about renaming North Portland's artery to the Expo Center as Cesar E. Chavez Boulevard is as ugly as it gets.

Folks on both sides feel disregarded and unheard. Too many people have lost their minds and their manners trying to make their points. And too many have been insulted by the emotionally charged hostility that the messages have come wrapped in, whether it's at public meetings or on various local blogs.

We're disgracing the legacy of Chavez, an American hero who rallied for working stiffs and against illegal immigration. We need to honor his words: "Preservation of one's own culture does not require contempt or disrespect for other cultures."

Most of our city and county leaders, except for Multnomah County Commissioner Jeff Cogen, have been strangely absent from the discussion. New Seasons, which has a store on North Interstate Avenue, has subtly backpedaled on its early support of the name change. And Mayor Tom Potter's public inference that anyone who is against the name change is racist hasn't helped matters either.

Folks, take a deep breath and recognize what's happening here: The undertow is at our heels. Not only must we hold our politicians accountable for preserving this community's livability, but we have to be accountable to each other, too.

So, for all those who insist that race is irrelevant in this discussion, I challenge you to do something:

Ask folks of color who have attended the meetings so far how they interpret the rude mumbling, the thumbs-down gestures and the way folks cheered on Wednesday when someone said he would never refer to Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard as anything but its previous moniker: Union Avenue.

Yeah, it went there. Unchallenged. Unquestioned. Unbelievable.

That says something about Portland, which likes to believe it's so liberal and open-minded. It says something about that individual, too. The words we use, Chavez has said, are an "exact reflection of the character and growth of its speakers."

Words can sometimes do more damage than fists. Even seemingly innocuous ones like:

"I'm not a racist, but . . ."

"Those people. . ."

"I understand them because my friend/neighbor/relative is one."

Ask minorities how they're harmed when these kinds of statements are allowed to linger in the air without anyone publicly noticing how much they stink.

"It's really hard not to feel like everybody is hateful because no one is saying, 'Hey, that's totally inappropriate. Don't talk like that,' " says Marissa Madrigal, Cogen's chief of staff, who is Latina. "Whether or not they were intended to be personal or not, there's no denying that it's being received as personal."

Yet, folks are too angry, too caught up in being right, too triggered by what they're seeing and hearing to actually listen for understanding. We're sacrificing our dignity, our sense of community, because we're so caught up in the emotion of what to name a strip of pavement.

The undertow is a powerful thing. Wondering how to resist it? Consider the words of Chavez: "It starts with your heart and radiates out."

As the next public hearing approaches on Tuesday, it's worth remembering that no matter where you stand on this issue, you cannot destroy community and build community at the same time. So, how we have the conversation matters.

S. Renee Mitchell: 503-221-8142; rmitch@news.oregonian.com. Comment online: http:// blog.oregonlivecom/reneemitchell

Si el alcalde Tom Potter y los comisionados de la cuidad fueran a considerar estas reuniones como un indicador fiel de la opinión publica, sus resultados pudieran tener un impacto significativo en si el Consejo de la Cuidad apoyaría o no el cambio del nombre cuando ellos voten sobre ésto en octubre.