HERE WE GO AGAIN: A new controversy has arisen in the
César E. Chávez street-renaming process. But this time,
an ad hoc group hoping to preserve 39th Avenue has brought the
powder-keg issue of immigration into the fray.
When Interstate Avenue almost became César E. Chávez
Boulevard in 2007, preservation advocates insisted their motivations
for resisting the name change were purely economic and civic. They
argued it would cost too much to replace business stationary and that
city council didn’t follow its own street-renaming process.
This year, it’s a different story. The recently formed “Save 39th
Avenue Committee” has issued a special report alleging that many of the
signatures on a petition to rename 39th are from illegal immigrants.
The report says the city failed to verify the status of non-registered
voters as legal residents of the United States.
Street-renaming applications need a minimum of 2,500 signatures from
“legal residents of the city at large” according to a September memo
from the city auditor’s office. The city attorney defines a “legal
resident” as “someone who lives within the city of Portland and intends
to make Portland their home.”
“It seems odd that someone can be illegally residing in the US and
legally residing in the city of Portland,” says Eric Fruits, an
economist who wrote the Save 39th report and runs the committee’s
website.
There are also some fairly complex statistical concerns in the
report about how the city auditor’s office verified the signatures the
César E. Chávez Boulevard Committee submitted. Fruits
alleges the city did not adhere to the signature verification process
it set forth in its September memo. Doing his own calculations in
accordance with the city’s verification plan, Fruits found the
pro-Chávez campaign fell 22 signatures short of the city’s
required 2,500.
In response, City Auditor LaVonne Griffin-Valade announced last
Wednesday, June 3, that their process was valid, and its math is
sound.
“We were given the green light,” says Marta Guembes, head of the
César E. Chávez Boulevard Committee. “If we did not have
valid signatures, the process wouldn’t have started.”
It’s still unclear whether Fruits’ arguments are gaining traction on
city council, but council will vote on the rename effort on June
23.
“Why was the city so lax in the first go-around?” Fruits says. “It
gives the impression that the city process seems to be weighted toward
some preordained result.”
The city’s director of human relations, María Lisa Johnson,
supports the rename, but acknowledges it is a controversial issue.
“My sense is that they are trying to discredit the process because
they don’t agree with it,” Johnson says. “It’s disheartening.”
Why would anyone want a nasty ‘ol tar-filled street named after them, anyways?
Wouldn’t it be far greater to have a scholarship or collage in César E. Chávezs’ name?
Wait what’s the controversy? If the signatures are not legal voters the signatures are not valid.
If that were not the case why wouldn’t anybody just fill out the names with Sesame Street characters and dead people?
It still amazes me that peeps get so upset over changing a street name. If anything, changing a numbered street (39th) to a name street (Chavez) messes with the naming logic. There seems to be hundreds of streets named after dead white guys, one named after a dead black man, and one named after a dead black woman. I’m sure we can make room for a street honoring a dead latino, who was not an illegal immigrant but a US citizen (the haters always forget this part).
César E. Chávez disliked illegal immigrants since they broke his Unions picket lines (sometimes leading to violent reactions from Union members). The biggest problem with this entire fiasco is that there has been NO EDUCATION about who César E. Chávez was, what he stood for, what he accomplished or his failures.
CECBC is a political action group who are intent on flexing their political muscle with complete disregard for the city’s laws, its residents wishes, and César E. Chávez himself. They are incapable of Honoring anyone.
It is not 39th Avenue or Cesar Chavez that I am not in favor. I do not think we should change ANY street name with numbers. The original Portland city planners use numbers because it is practical, universal, and navigational. It is working. If we agree to change any numbered street to a any name, it will be easy for the next group to gather 2,500 signatures and change another numbered street. Putting a name on the street does NOT give us the chance to know who the person is, his life, accomplishments and dreams. Who is Powell (SE Powell Blvd), Foster, Holgate, Morrison, etc. Mr. Cesar Chavez has done a lot to improve the life of our farmers. He deserve a better place to be honored. 39th Avenue have no place to construct a hall that will show his achievements and his dreams for the American laborers. If he is alive, maybe, he will stop this movement, because it is dividing neighbors and friends. I would not want to see the bad comments that I read on the internet. Mr. Chavez name should not be used to denote negative ideas. Let us give his name to a park where we can build a structure that will emulate his good life. My name is Fernando Sacdalan, 71, retired, Manila born, folk artist/sculptor and living on 39th Avenue.
I found this interesting. This was a blog posted earlier in the Merc. Marta Guembes is a degenerate racist and another better class of people should honor Chavez in a respectful manner in which all parties agree and COMPROMISE. It is solely the fault of Guembes that this renaming process has turned into such a hateful fiasco:
—Marta Guembes, co-chair of the César E. Chávez Committee, is “insulted” that four commissioners have agreed to rename 4th Avenue instead of Interstate.
“It’s very insulting,” she says. “They have not called me to let me know they’re working on this.” She found out by reading the paper this morning.
“We proposed Interstate, after we went through many streets to decide what would work for us, and the Latino community.” This new idea, she says, is “these white men who have the power and are telling us what is best for us.”
And she’s sticking to her guns—she wants a vote on the street that the committee proposed, Interstate.—
It doesn’t surprise me in the least that the signatures are in question. I attended a meeting at Ockley Green in ’07 to oppose this nonsense and most of the people who were for the name change needed a translator. Don’t sound like legal residents to me. Just say no to Marta and her racist propaganda.
Btw, OregonLive had a blog about this but are too chicken to let people in opposition to comment for very long. This is the same media outlet that doesn’t include race when it comes to describing people involved with crimes in the Portland area. Cowards. Thanks Merc for being true to Portland and letting comments without pressure or influence from racist idiots who destroy the democratic process.
Why don’t people focus their attention on issues of importance like health care reform, government accountability, education, homelessness, foreign relations or protecting the environment? It is ridiculous that so much time and effort is invested in picking out names for asphalt. I thought the reason we named streets was for navigation not to stroke egos or make political statements. Furthermore, the immigration argument is just politically correct racism. Quit picking on the Mexicans! Viva La Rasa Por Vida!
This same thing happened in San Antonio (68% ‘hispanic’) and they shot it down as well. Apparently changing every single scrap of paper and data that has your business address on it, everywhere, is rather expensive.
I love how the article says “First it was expenses…NOW it’s the validity of the signatures…” like it can’t be both.
Also, I agree that a scholarship would be WAY more useful than an empty, symbolic street name.