(FOX40.COM) — About a week after the city of Sacramento announced Union Plaza was the top contender to replace the name of Cesar Chavez Plaza, Sacramento’s Parks and Community Enrichment Commission decided the city should revisit other options.
“It just does not feel thoughtful,” Commissioner Monique Langer said at Thursday night’s meeting. “It does not feel intentional. It does not feel inclusive. It does not feel ethical.”
Cesar Chavez Plaza was dedicated back in the 1990s to honor the culture and history surrounding the labor movement in Sacramento. The decision to rename the park came after sexual abuse allegations against the late civil rights activist came to light.
“While we do not want to continue having one name that is synonymous with pain and with something horrible that happened, I don’t believe that that should erase the culture of the farmworkers who raised that park together,” Commissioner Victoria Vasquez said at the meeting.
Several commissioners added they believe the name Union Plaza is too broad a replacement.
“I think words are important and powerful,” Commissioner Kelsey Brewer said. “When someone sees the name of a park, I think it best for them to understand the meaning of the name of the park and not leave it so open to interpretation.”
The name came from input from around 2,600 Sacramento residents who responded to a survey, 450 people voted for Union Plaza, which made it the most popular name, followed by Dolores Huerta Park and Farmworker’s Plaza.
“I’m just hoping that it’ll bring unity to the city,” one resident said.
“I think it’s going to be a nice change for the city of Sacramento,” another answered when asked about the city changing the name.
Some Sacramento leaders expressed concern over, effectively, overriding public opinion.
“We talk all the time about people coming in and speaking and voicing their truth,” Commissioner Lindsey King said. “They did that in the survey, so I do want to recognize that.”
Others mentioned that the data may not reflect an accurate picture of the community as a whole. Sacramento has an estimated population of more than 530,000 people, so the data suggests fewer than 0.09% of the community voted for Union Plaza.
“I don’t think that the farmworker community, whom is an incredibly important part of the fabric of Sacramento’s history, should be penalized to lose this honor of having a park named after them simply because of the actions of an individual man,” Brewer said.
Again, the commission ultimately voted for this item to go back to a subcommittee. They suggested city staffers engage with farmworkers, Indigenous people and other directly impacted groups to get their input before moving forward with a name.
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