City Council Unanimously Passed Councilors Loretta Smith and Tiffany Koyama Lane’s Ordinance to Change César E. Chávez Blvd to Campesinos Blvd

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PORTLAND, Ore. - Yesterday, Portland City Council unanimously passed an ordinance introduced by Councilors Loretta Smith and Tiffany Koyama Lane to rename César E. Chávez Blvd to Campesinos Blvd. The vote follows revelations that the street's previous namesake sexually abused women and girls as young as 8 years old.

The ordinance acknowledges that farmworkers, or campesinos, have historically provided - and continue to provide - the labor that puts food on our community's tables while often facing food insecurity themselves. It asserts that the City stands in solidarity against indiscriminate deportations, the targeting of the Latinx community, and ongoing unlawful federal overreach, and that a swift renaming to Campesinos - rather than an erasure of previous labor, partnership, and process - is the most equitable, just, and collaborative path forward.

Lead sponsor of the ordinance, Councilor Smith, said: "We are reminded that a movement is never built by an individual. It is built by the workers in the rows, bent over in the sun, enduring back breaking labor from dawn until dusk, so that families across our city and state have food on their tables. By dedicating this corridor to our campesinos, we honor the hands that feed us."

Council held first reading last week and second reading, with the final vote, on Wednesday. Councilors noted that the original organizers who renamed the street for Chávez had followed a painful, multi-year process, adhering to the letter of the code at every step, and that it would be unfair to ask today's advocates to repeat that same arduous path in order to remove Chávez's name from the street signs.

Last week, lauded community leaders in the local social justice movement provided verbal testimony, including Marta Guembes, Jose Romero, Kathleen Saadat, Ron Herndon, Maria Cecilia Hinojos Pressey, and Ernesto Fonseca, alongside current and past political figures such as former Mayor Tom Potter, who served as acting mayor during the original renaming process. The proposal to rename the street Campesinos Blvd drew support from a wide range of community advocates and organizations: civic organizations, labor, civil rights, immigrant and refugee rights, faith, and community groups, representing thousands of Portland residents across the city and state.

Councilor Koyama Lane said, "Naming a street is one of the most visible, permanent ways a City can honor historical legacies, communities and movements." She called for swift action, noting the City's responsibility to support survivors of sexual abuse by removing Chávez's name from Portland's streets as quickly as possible.

Opponents of the name change cited ease of navigation, consistency with neighboring streets, costs to the City and residents, and a desire to avoid renaming the street again in the future, alongside pushback on "woke" politics and objections to honoring the Latino community outside of a Latino neighborhood. Some suggested naming a park, community center, or market after farmworkers instead of a street. One 25-year resident who testified asked Councilors to "restore some numerical order to the City and some navigational predictability." Another cited tradition, saying, "Our forefathers were very logical in naming Portland's streets." Others simply urged the Council to follow the existing code as it currently stands.

Councilor Koyama Lane, along with a majority of the other councilors, noted the need to amend that code, pointing out that every street renaming in Portland's recent history has required waiving some element of it - from the change from Union Ave to MLK Jr. Blvd, to the most recent change from SW Jackson to SW Rose Hill St. Councilors vowed to work on revising the code to create a more equitable, expeditious process going forward.

In recognition of survivors and the urgency of removing Chávez's name from Portland's streets, Councilor Koyama Lane introduced an amendment waiving the code's five-year double-signage requirement, giving the City flexibility to change signage as quickly as possible. The amendment passed unanimously, as did an amendment from Councilor Steve Novick changing the ordinance's language from "widespread consensus" to "widespread support" for the name Campesinos Blvd.

Councilor Koyama Lane quoted the ordinance's lead sponsor, Councilor Smith, who said at first reading: "We are making history." Koyama Lane continued, "This is true. History is now, and I hope the history books tell the story of a community that took a stand to honor labor leaders, survivors, and marginalized community members - and ultimately changed the code to make a better process for everyone."

What Portland residents need to know: Residents may keep physical ID cards (driver's license, permit, ID) showing the old address and are not required to obtain a new card until their normal renewal or replacement date. The DMV no longer issues change-of-address stickers. An optional replacement card is available for $30. Councilors said they will work to find support for small businesses.