LANSING, Mich — For the Latino community in Lansing's Old Town, Cesar Chavez Avenue has never just been a street.
It's a symbol. A struggle. And now it's at a crossroads.
- A Lansing city committee introduced a draft resolution Thursday to rename Cesar Chavez Avenue.
- Community members voiced a range of suggestions: from changing the name back to Grand River Avenue, to finding a name that honors both Latino and LGBTQ culture.
- The committee tabled the resolution for 90 days to study how communities across the nation are responding to newly surfaced sexual abuse allegations against Chavez.
WATCH: LANSING INTRODUCES RESOLUTION TO RENAME CHAVEZ AVENUE AS NEIGHBORS SOUND OFF
On Thursday, a handful of neighbors packed a city committee meeting as Lansing leaders took the first formal steps toward potentially renaming the two-mile stretch in Old Town.
The push to rename the avenue comes on the heels of a New York Times report detailing sexual abuse allegations against the iconic labor leader.
The street was first dedicated to Chavez in the 1990s, changed, then rededicated in 2017. Now, less than 10 years later, that dedication could be undone.
WATCH: LANSING MAN WHO HELPED RENAME CHAVEZ AVENUE SPEAKS OUT AHEAD OF POSSIBLE CHANGE
But not without a fight.
"We fought for 24 years for one stupid street and we are prepared to fight another 24," said Lansing resident Ernesto Mireles.
The sentiment in the room was clear: this decision carries weight that goes far beyond two miles of signage.
"This is not something to be trifled with or rushed into," said Mireles
"This is not, to us, just a name," said Lansing resident Maria Garcia.
Garcia said she believes the community must reckon with Chavez's legacy honestly and fully.
"Collectively and culturally we need to heal and we need to bury Cesar Chavez for the second time," said Garcia. "We're prepared to do that."
WATCH: LANSING BUSINESS OWNER REACTS TO POSSIBLE NAME CHANGE OF CESAR CHAVEZ AVENUE
Garcia wants any future name to continue honoring the farm workers movement that Chavez helped build, not the man himself.
"We need to keep the history, acknowledge the harm, remove the icon and move forward," said Garcia.
Not everyone is calling for a new name altogether. Dale Schrader, who owns four buildings along the avenue, suggested the simplest path forward might also be the most familiar: reverting back to Grand River Avenue.
"We're used to it. We're happy to move on and then this all happens," Schrader said. "If it has to be changed, let's consider [Grand River Avenue]."
WATCH: CELEBRATIONS CANCELED AFTER SEXUAL ABUSE ALLEGATIONS OF CESAR CHAVEZ
Business owner Brad Rakowski offered a different vision, one that looks forward instead of backward. Rakowski, who wants the street's name to reflect Old Town's Latino and LGBTQ culture, called for collaboration.
"I would love for my community to work with your community so we can come up with something and honor everybody," Rukowski said.
Mireles urged neighbors not to rush the process, arguing that the sign itself has come to represent something much larger than any one person.
"It became less and less about Cesar Chavez and more and more about the struggle that Chicanos and Latinos in Lansing and in Michigan face," Mireles said.
In the end, the committee moved to table the resolution for 90 days, giving leaders time to see how communities across the nation are responding to the Chavez report. That means the issue could return to the table this summer.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
Want more FOX 47 News? Here's how you download our Roku app
You can also see the latest news from across our mid-Michigan neighborhoods by liking us on Facebook or following us on X.
