Posted on 05/20/2011 7:15:04 AM PDT by Responsibility2nd
In a vote that split down ethnic lines, the City Council on Thursday approved changing the name of Durango Boulevard in honor of civil rights activist and labor leader César Chávez.
Though they all said Chávez should be honored in some meaningful way, none of the non-Latino council members — Ivy Taylor, Reed Williams, Elisa Chan and John Clamp — voted in favor of the proposal. The council's seven Hispanic members supported the initiative.
Opposition vacillated from the pragmatic to the philosophical and included arguments that changing the street name would be too great a burden on residents and businesses, and that Chávez could be better honored with a park or monument where people could gather and learn about the leader's life.
For supporters, however, it was clear that the time was right for making the change.
“The question to me really is, ‘Is the legacy of César E. Chávez significant enough to change the name of Durango Boulevard?'” Mayor Julián Castro said. “For me, the answer is ‘yes.'”
Castro's comments capped more than three hours of public input and council deliberation on the issue.
Taylor said she was aggrieved by some of the day's discussion because it was marked by divisiveness.
“Mr. Chávez's legacy and his impact is not part of the debate today,” she said. “I think almost everyone here in the chambers can agree on the important impact that he's had on all Americans, and the fact that he serves for a particular point of pride for Latino Americans.”
Taylor said the main reason behind her opposition is the cost. The city estimates it will cost $99,853 to change street signs.
“I know it's been pointed out that $99,000 is a minuscule portion of our city budget, but it's still $99,000 that could pay for sidewalks, it could pay for street repairs, speed humps, more animal control officers — in a time when public dollars are really scarce,” she said.
Williams, another dissenting vote, dismissed some of the opposition arguments, including the expense of the change.
“To me, it's about principle,” he said. “I never met César Chávez, but I watched his life all of my life, and it was inspiring. And I think this process should be an exemplification of his life.”
But Williams said he didn't believe the proposal had gone through the inclusive, deliberative process that the council typically employs.
“This action feels different to me. It feels like a political majority is pushing its will, and it doesn't have to,” he said. “It's going to happen. But it's not happening in what I consider a method that is mutually respectful, with trust.”
Responding to calls to slow down or restart the process, Councilman Philip Cortez said that there had been no action since a 1999 attempt to rename Commerce Street after Chávez and that paying homage to the labor leader was long past due. Cortez, who is leaving the council at the end of the month because of term limits, said he understands the opposition's concerns.
“I know that change is difficult, and not everybody likes change, but if César Chávez thought that way, the civil rights that many of us enjoy today may not have ever happened,” he said.
“So change is difficult, but it doesn't mean we just must give up and accept the status quo. We've been talking for years about this, for honoring this man — well, the time is now. The time is today to honor César E. Chávez.”
When Cortez made a motion to name Durango Boulevard after Chávez, raucous applause echoed through the council chambers. People yelled, “ Si, se puede!” and waved the red flag of the United Farm Workers of America.
Also, the majority of San Antonians DO NOT WANT the unnecessary costs of paying $100,000 to rename Durango Blvd.
But our city council is made up of a Mexican-American majority, and they saw the opportunity to stick it to the minorities here, and they went for it.
But do they have a Martin Luther King Jr Boulevard?
See, the latino’s have had an agenda to rename something to Cesar Chavez Blvd. for a long time. First they wanted to rename Commerce St. (a MAJOR downtown street). That got shot down and so they felt the need to regroup and pursue the attack.
Rather than naming a newly contsructed road after Chavez, they picked on Durango Blvd. which has had the name of Durango Blvd. since the 1800’s.
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Taylor said she was aggrieved by some of the day’s discussion because it was marked by divisiveness.
“Mr. Chávez’s legacy and his impact is not part of the debate today,” she said.
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She’s right. This was not about honoring Chavez at all. It was sticking it to the whites.
Sure they do. Wanna know what Martin Luther King Jr Boulevard USED to be known as in San Antonio???
Lord Rd.
(No, I’m not kidding)
Is cesar chavez the best these folks have? Why not hugo chavez, or Santa Ana, or Henry Cisneros (LOL)?
Haven’t they ever noticed that streets named MLK or cesar chavez are destined for high-crime status? Politically correct is seldom politically smart.
They should have named a sewage plant after chavez, like San Fran did with President Bush.
What is happening to San Antonio? First the filming of kids lunch trays by the food police and now this. Totally ridiculous. Last time we went to Fiesta Texas it was totally trash. Once beautiful city going down the tubes IMO.
By chance, I am friends with a man who was one of Chavez’s personal attorney’s for some 20 years, up to his death.
Whenever he hears of the way Chavez’s name is being used in such pandering moves he is livid.
Cesar Chavez was an American who did not hyphenate his name or use the ‘ in the spelling of his name and who opposed illegal immigration.
I also have to chuckle seeing how they now wish to impose such “honors” on the man while acting to undermine all the years of his work by advocating illegal immigrants work farms for less than what he fought for farm workers to receive.
I sent this to my friend and he replied, “Self-defined “Latinos” who have done nothing of value with their lives are doing nothing more now than using Cesar Chavez’ life to poke “Non-Latinos” in the eye. He, who never called himself a “Latino” or “Hispanic” or “Chicano,” unified; they divide.”
of note and pertaining to similar action taken by liberal progressives in Portland, Oregon: "The City Commissioners of Portland, the Principality of Progressive Political Correctness, at the urging of a handful of self-described "Latinos" who collectively and individually have done little or nothing to actually aid the cause of Cesar Chavez in the fields of California (as there has been little or no UFW organizing effort in Oregon), carried out this insult to the memory of Cesar Chavez over the all but universal opposition of the citizens who actually live on 39th Street and despite the fact that Cesar's own son, Paul, who has devoted his life to the UFW, stated in an interview by the Oregoian that his father would consider it a "waste of time" to work to name a street for Cesar Chavez when there is so much to do."
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