Ida B. Wells Avenue - it's about time

Preservation Chicago shared link about Ida B. Wells street being renamed

First comment: 

Timothy Eischen "“Street names should reflect the population,” Duster said. “There needs to be more proportional representation. It helps people to see themselves in public spaces, and it helps others to learn and be inspired by people who don’t look like them.” - I disagree. This very statement is itself 'racist', because it perpetuates the idea that we, as a people, are forever divided by skin color. And the very concept that place names ought to continually change to reflect the changing racial demographics of an area is also hugely problematic and a very dangerous slope. Nothing at all against honoring Ms. Wells - but the way to do so is by naming something new in her honor and not by replacing what already is.

My response:

A) Congress parkway didn't honor anyone in particular, it's a thing not a person, so nobody's getting bumped. Are you still outraged that 12th street got renamed Roosevelt? or that 22nd became Cermak? We chose to honor Roosevelt & Pulaski for their contributions to upholding our collective values, for shaping the country we love. Ida B. Wells is a Chicago hero that we can all find pride in, who fought for people's civil rights and their very lives. Naming a street after her is a no-brainer and a win for all. Nobody is hurt by this, it's not even a very long stretch of road. Maybe you should think a little deeper about why this stirs such discomfort in you.

B) Nobody is trying to divide people by skin color here, it's not a street only black people can drive down or anything. I suppose you think it's somehow "creating division" just because Duster is acknowledging that Chicago's demographics don't match the demographics of street honors. But simply seeing that our society is currently divided by skin color (as it has been historically) is not racist. It's factual; we live in a segregated city (sources below). It would be racist if someone were saying they wanted our society to remain divided, wished it were more divided, or wished it could be downright only one skin color. The definition of racism is to believe one group of people is superior or inferior to another, but ignoring the fact that racism has ever existed just allows it to perpetuate, because a lot of racism is built into our institutions, our assumptions, and unconscious biases.
All groups of people have an equal capacity for brilliance in a variety of forms, so if there were no divisions or no racism we would already see proportional representation in our street names and other such honors. It's because of racism that we don't, because lots of Chicagoans unabashedly believed black folks were inferior, so Ida B. Wells could never be a hero in their eyes. Honoring her now is righting that wrong, and has nothing to do with separating people, since it's a street traversed by all kinds of Chicagoans who can all share in being proud in the memory of Wells. By inviting all folks to enjoy black history together we're bringing racial groups together, the opposite of being "forever divided by skin color."

C) Racism is fueled by lack of information. When you've never seen anyone of that race be doctors or lawyers or heroes, then maybe you think they just don't have the capacity. That leads to less people from that group being hired or being honored, meaning they have less financial stability, less inclusion in society, and perpetually less visibility. If you look at the historical record, our heroes are diverse. Queer folks, immigrants, people with disabilities, and people of all skin colors from every continent built this city, kicked ass, and make it amazing. But everyday Chicagoans aren't digging into historical documents everyday, and they don't see that diversity because it was actively hidden from them by racist policies, historians, teachers, and politicians of the past. Naming a street may seem like it's not a big deal, but it's part of how the public learns about history and it's how we build collective identity around values that will ultimately combat racism in everyday actions beyond the confines of one street. Acknowledging Wells now isn't some slippery slope towards chaos or some fad. Black people are integral to Chicago history and always have been. It's about time for an Ida B. Wells Drive.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4886656/
https://chicago.cbslocal.com/2015/05/04/chicago-is-the-most-segregated-city-in-america-analysis/
https://www.wbez.org/shows/wbez-news/new-redlining-maps-show-chicago-housing-discrimination/37c0dce7-0562-474a-8e1c-50948219ecbb