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A proposal to rename Cesar E. Chavez Boulevard to Campesinos Boulevard will now come before the full City Council next month for a public hearing, City Councilor Loretta Smith’s office said on Tuesday.
Smith proposed the ordinance to rename the street after a New York Times story in March reported that the late civil rights leader and co-founder of United Farm Workers allegedly sexually abused girls for years.
RELATED: Dolores Huerta says Cesar Chavez sexual abuse led to two secret pregnancies
The Portland Planning Commission held a public hearing on the proposal and then unanimously voted June 23 to recommend the name change to the City Council.
Smith’s office said City Council is set to hold its public hearing on Wednesday, Aug. 12.
"Councilor Smith expressed her sincere gratitude for the commission's unanimous support and shared her enthusiasm for the upcoming public hearing, where the community can once again come together to express their support for this meaningful change," her office said in a news release.
The proposed name of Campesinos Boulevard is to honor the farmworkers’ movement, supporters say.
In 2009, Portland renamed 39th Avenue to Cesar Chavez. But after accusations that Chavez, who died in 1993, sexually abused girls came to light, city leaders began to work on changing the name of the street.
