Cornelius Swart, publisher of the St. Johns Sentinel—which, by the way, is one of the best neighborhood papers in town—has an editorial today giving the thumbs up to City Commissioners Randy Leonard, Sam Adams, and Erik Sten’s possible compromise solution to the Chávez rename issue. (The commissioners are trying to assemble a panel of civic superheros to debate a few streets, and decide which one’s the best option to carry Chávez’ name.)

The editorial represents the personal view of the publisher, Cornelius Swart, who is himself Hispanic and reflects his concern that further deterioration of the process will lead to dire consequences in the neighborhood if both sides continue on the current path.

A just compromise for Chavez
A new process is needed, but both sides have to be prepared to accept the results

Cesar Chavez fought for social justice. That is a noble cause. The word justice means “fairness or reasonableness, especially in the way people are treated or decisions are made.” Justice is a process, not a result. And so far the Chavez process has not lived up to his legacy of justice.

The walkout of the mayor at the Oct. 25 City Council meeting was a high water mark of sorts for a process characterized by a breakdown in fairness, reasonableness and concern for how people are treated. The situation is getting worse, not better. If the council were to rename the street tomorrow, given the present mood in North Portland, it would not surprise me if residents tore down the new signs the day after they went up.

There is plenty of blame to go around. The city, North Portland residents, and the Chavez Committee have all made very public mistakes. Even the Sentinel should take heat for endorsing Rosa Parks Way and perhaps giving some the impression that Chavez Boulevard would be a cakewalk.

Having broken this story in July, this paper is positioned right in the middle of the issue. On the one hand, the Sentinel is published by an Hispanic American who empathizes with Latinos who want to see some symbol of their contribution to the city made concrete. On the other hand, the business of the Sentinel is to support the interests of North Portland, a community that clearly does not like the proposal or the way residents have been treated by City Hall.

The way out is to start a new process that will respect the concerns of local residents and still achieve the goals of the Chavez Committee. In order to do that, the council must be willing to take over the process. Moreover, both the Latino community and North Portland need to be prepared to accept the outcome…even if it is not exactly what they wanted.

Head to their site to read the whole thing.

Meanwhile, Multnomah County Commissioner Maria Rojo de Steffey wrote a letter to the mayor and city council on Monday, to say “I am struggling here and need your help.”

As much as we would all wish this would all go away and we could go back where we’ve been, you know where this is going; what is causing this painful request for clarification. You know that every day I look at the wall in my office – an office in which each of you has shared with me – and see the photographic images of the two men, aside from those in my family, who are my heroes: Bobby Kennedy and Cesar Chavez. You know that I need to hear a plain, simple explanation of why I, like my friends in the African American and Japanese American communities, cannot celebrate the life of my Mexican American hero by naming Interstate Avenue in his honor.