Harringay, Haringey - So Good they Spelt it Twice!
Council Decides to Rename Black Boy Lane
Following my consideration on the origins of West Green's Black Boy name back in the summer, Haringey Council has decided to rename Black Boy Lane in West Green.
The Council have called the exercise a 'renaming consultation', but the online questionnaire offers only the ability to choose from a shortlist of two new names. So it appears that the decision to rename has already been taken with only the choice of name left to be decided.
They have issued the following press release.
The council has launched a renaming consultation with residents and businesses located on Black Boy Lane, as part of the wider Review on Monuments, Buildings, Place and Street Names in Haringey – which was launched on 12 June 2020, in response to the Black Lives Matter movement.
The council believes that the names of our monuments, buildings, places and streets must reflect the values and diversity that we are so proud of in the borough. One of the street names that has been identified as not being reflective of this is Black Boy Lane.
Meanings change over time, and the term “Black Boy” is now most commonly used as a derogatory name for African heritage men.
As part of the consultation, the council is asking residents to consider new alternative names that celebrate some of the borough’s most notable influencers, and truly reflect the borough’s rich heritage.
The two names that have been shortlisted for residents to consider are, ‘Jocelyn Barrow Lane’ and ‘La Rose Lane’. The consultation will launch today, Monday 28 September and will run for a period of 4 weeks to Monday 26 October 2020.
Letters will be arriving on Black Boy Lane residents' doorsteps this week, who can respond to the consultation using one of the following methods:
- Online: www.haringey.gov.uk/renaming-black-boy-lane.
- Email:
- bblconsultation@haringey.gov.uk
- Telephone: 020 8489 3797
- By post: Consultation Co-ordinator, The Communications Team, River Park House, 225 High Road, Wood Green, London, N22 8HQ
If Haringey residents have concerns or queries about place, street or building names in the borough, please get in touch. Send your views to Leader@haringey.gov.uk.
Bios:Dame Jocelyn Anita Barrow (15 April 1929 – 9 April 2020) was a Barbadian/Trinidadian British educator, community activist and politician, who was the Director for UK Development at Focus Consultancy Ltd. She was the first Black woman to be a governor of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) and was founder and Deputy Chair of the Broadcasting Standards Council.
John La Rose was a publisher, poet and essayist. He founded the Caribbean Artists’ Movement and publishing company New Beacon Books which has a bookshop in Stroud Green. In 1975, he co-founded the Black Parents Movement from the core of the parents involved in the George Padmore Supplementary School incident in which a young Black schoolboy was beaten up by the police outside his school in Haringey.
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Tags for Forum Posts: blackboy lane name change, review on monuments, building place and street names
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Xavier on
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Interesting that the form offers a choice of two names, no box to keep the name as it is or for another nominee, the usual pre-decided 'democracy' you'd expect in an Orwellian state, and the result will be 'what the people wanted'.
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Permalink Reply by Alan Stanton on
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No, it's far far finer. The third box is "neutral". Presumably meaning not taking sides in Roses v Barrows poll. And no box for "disagree".
How undignified. Can't we honour both of them with plaques and rooms named after them, say, in a library, with photos and information about their lives and achievements?
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Permalink Reply by Anna on
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Are there any other Black Boy Lane Residents that would like to join me to try to fight this? I was a bit hesitant at first because I didn’t want to look like a bigot but reading all various ‘this is ridiculous’ comments made me realise that I am right feeling this is a useless value signalling move from a council that would better spend his resources elsewhere. I just can’t accept months and months of red tape to make sure all our paperwork is to the right address, passport, deeds, NI / Tax stuff. We’re going to have a nightmare for all of this to sync.
I have no idea how to start this, any advice welcome.
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Permalink Reply by Hugh on
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I’d be very wary of doing anything that will sensationalise this. It will draw up the battle lines and make resolution all the harder.
If I were you, I’d start with my councillors and see if there’s any advice from that angle. But you should be aware that this is a political hot potato for councillors so it might be a matter of getting advice and support from them rather than front line leadership.
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Thanks. I just sent an email to the councillors asking what compensation, assurances and help we’ll get for all the bothersome changes of adresses to come. I made clear that I thought it was a stupid idea but that I wasn’t writing to discuss this, but to know exactly how they’re planning to follow through with helping my neighbours and I.
I found the councillors names and contact details there, if anyone fancies writing them!
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Maybe a petition. I would certainly support it. You can write to your councillor. I wouldn’t bother with the MP Mr Lammy. One point, being a resident of Black boy lane, were you not all asked whether you agreed with the change? It appears to me that it’s the Council leader who has the issue and is leading the change. What I’d like to know is who choose this leader and what can residence do to have him removed.
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Hi Nick. No, we received a letter in June saying that it will happen and that in October, we’d be given the choice between 2 names.
I have now contacted my councillors and got a few neighbours on board. I actually got some insider info, who told me they estimate this little exercise in feel good to cost upwards £200k to the council, which is outrageous and Could go to actual BAME families in difficulty. I do hope a lot of people will join me fighting this.
write to
joseph.ejiofor@haringey.gov.uk
with St Ann’s councillors Julie Davies and Mike Hakata in CC.
Julie.davies@haringey.gov.uk
this is not just my street’s fight, it’s the whole of Harringay.
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I’ve already written to mine as I’m angry this money is being wasted. I will write to yours as well and to the council leader. Thanks for sharing the letter but you will need more people living on the street to write too as they don’t realise as per the council notes posted here by Hugh the residents will be required to contribute to the cost of changing their bills, insurances and so forth to the new street name. Has anyone started a petition requiring the council to put it to a whole Haringey vote?
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I was being helpful in pointing out that it was possibly Haringey and not Harringay which is important in this context. It s not me who is getting aeriated.
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Permalink Reply by Michael Anderson on
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Hang on, if there was a proposal to rename the street I lived on I wouldn’t want that to be the subject of a borough wide plebiscite - the decision should be down to the people who live there. Also, you’re complaining about the cost of the proposal - can you imagine how much a borough wide ballot would be?
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Permalink Reply by Christina Davis on
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Anna, why don't you start by asking the other people on the lane what they think. You may find they are mainly in favour (in which case you have your answer) or you may find they are mainly opposed (in which case you know you are not alone) but at the very least you will know some more of your neighbours which is prob a good thing.
I would be very surprised if there are not a good chunk of them (perhaps not English speaking or in transient HMO households) who will be completely unaware of what is going on despite the council letter through the door.
Residents may also have no idea of the inconvenience/cost of the kind that you detail above that might ensue for occupiers after a name change. Sounds like a nightmare.
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