Dominic Anthony Walsh/Houston Public Media
Relatives of the late Joe E. Ramirez, who is having a Houston street renamed after him, attended a city council meeting on May 27, 2026.
Two months after a bombshell report leveled sexual abuse allegations against a prominent Latino labor leader, the Houston City Council on Wednesday renamed César Chávez Boulevard after Joe E. Ramirez, a Korean War veteran from Houston.
Joe “Chaco” Ramirez fought in the U.S. military during its assault on North Korean communists in the 1950s. According to his obituary, he was shot and captured in 1950, released in 1953 and awarded the bronze star for heroic combat action and the purple heart for injuries, among other awards. The lifelong Magnolia Park neighborhood resident died in 2020 at the age of 89.
His son, who shares the name Joe Ramirez, became a brigadier general in the U.S. Army.
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“I became the man I became because of him, and probably the proudest day of my life was when I became a brigadier general and, you know, General (David) Petraeus pinned one of my stars, and my father pinned the other one,” Ramirez told Houston Public Media after the vote. “He taught us that you’re supposed to love three things in your life — you love your God, you love your family, you love your country — and I learned all that from him.”
His father was an active member of the American Legion post in Magnolia Park until his death, Ramirez said.
“When you think about Magnolia Park, it’s a rich history of military veterans,” said council member Joaquin Martinez, whose east Houston district includes the boulevard.
Chávez co-founded the United Farm Workers union in 1962 with Dolores Huerta. In a New York Times investigation published in March, Huerta accused him of raping her. Chávez was also accused of sexually abusing young girls. He died in 1993, and his name adorned streets and schools across the country.
RELATED: Houston mayor says the city ‘started the process’ of renaming César Chávez Boulevard
The city initially considered renaming the street after Huerta, before she said she didn’t want her name on public facilities that previously held Chávez’s name.
As the Houston Chronicle reported, the city’s public works department began issuing work orders for street signs bearing Huerta’s name as early as April.
“I’m responsible because we were on the fast track to order the signs,” Mayor John Whitmire said on Wednesday. “This brings conclusion, but it’s also a new beginning for recognition of someone we swear to never forget.”
According to the city’s planning department, 12 of 20 speakers during recent public comment sessions expressed support for renaming the street after Ramirez. At least two property owners along the street opposed the renaming, according to the department.
The department also reported receiving signed petitions and letters of support from multiple elected officials, including state Sen. Carol Alvarado.
“It’s a great day for our community,” Alvarado said. “It’s important that we remember heroes like ‘Chaco’ Ramirez.”