SACRAMENTO, Calif. — A majority of the Sacramento City Council declared support for renaming Cesar E. Chavez Plaza after allegations of sexual abuse were published Wednesday against the civil rights leader.

Mayor Kevin McCarty and Council members Karina Talamantes, Phil Pluckebaum, Caity Maple, Eric Guerra and Mai Vang in comments to The Sacramento Bee voiced their support for Chavez’s alleged victims and sought to involve the community in renaming the plaza.

“As Latino leaders who have worked in the fields and whose parents were farmworkers, this news is personal and devastating,” wrote Talamantes and Guerra in a statement. “We will be meeting with other leaders to begin the conversations of how we move forward together as a community.”

Chavez was accused of sexually abusing children and raping Dolores Huerta, another civil rights icon, in a New York Times report. Sacramento has long been associated with civil rights and labor leader Cesar Chavez, who visited the state Capitol frequently.

Just across from City Hall, the plaza hosts summer concerts and protests. It is also a microcosm of the capital city’s struggles with homelessness.

McCarty said he was appointing Talamantes, Pluckebaum and Guerra to a subcommittee to guide renaming the downtown park. “We’re stewards of our past and the present, and recognize our responsibility to act,” he said.

Councilmember Roger Dickinson said he hadn’t yet read the New York Times story, but believed it was too soon to think about stripping Chavez’ names from the park out of respect for former Mayor Joe Serna, who led the 1997 effort to rename the park.

“Let’s just be … prudently deliberate,” he said.

The mayor and council members added that the legacy of the United Farm Workers union’s fight for labor rights should endure.

“We must also separate the individual from the movement,” Maple wrote.

Councilmember Lisa Kaplan said she had not immediately reviewed the New York Times’ bombshell report. Councilmember Rick Jennings did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Opening day in 1997

Mariachi music filled downtown Sacramento on Oct. 13, 1997, for the grand opening of the Cesar E. Chavez Plaza. The labor icon’s family, close confidants and Dolores Huerta all arrived at the park just blocks from the state Capitol.

The day began at the Cathedral of the Blessed Sacrament with three of Chavez’s grandchildren. Dozens swung union banners and shouted during a procession to the new plaza as the commemoration began, according to The Bee’s archives.

Joe Serna Jr., Sacramento’s first Latino mayor, had pushed in 1997 to rename the plaza in Chavez’s honor after the civil rights leader died in April 1993. Serna died in 1999, and his son, Phil Serna, who serves on the Sacramento County Board of Supervisors did not immediately return a phone call Wednesday.

On April 15, 1997, the City Council voted unanimously to rename the plaza, once called Plaza Park, according to The Bee’s archives.

Mohammad Mohanna, a prominent Sacramento developer, threw his support behind renaming the plaza as a way to acknowledge America’s diversity.

“Cesar Chavez acted as any true American should in his support of these principles,” he wrote in an April 1997 letter to the City Council. “By renaming our historic Plaza Park ‘Cesar Chavez Memorial Park’ Sacramento will again uphold true American values and the spirit of Mr. Chavez’ efforts will go on for generations to come.”

Present day

Cesar E. Chavez Plaza is the backdrop for Sacramento’s highs and lows.

It’s where Sacramento applauded a Sacramento musician who won NPR’s Tiny Desk concert. It’s where civil unrest over the murder of George Floyd reached a fever pitch. It’s where officials offered COVID-19 tests amid a global pandemic.

The area also struggles with homelessness and crime. Sacramento restaurateur Ernesto Delgado spoke at City Hall repeatedly this year after his downtown eateries near the plaza suffered break-ins. He did not immediately comment when reached Wednesday.

Anchoring the plaza is Delgado’s creation, La Cosecha. The spot suffered earlier this month in what he called an overnight break-in. Delgado said he still believes the plaza can be transformed and revitalized into a welcoming space.

Prior to Wednesday’s news report, Pluckebaum had contemplated potential city efforts to help address Delgado’s concerns. Those efforts include more programming and once again turning on the fountain, Pluckebaum said.

Now, the effort to rename the park accelerates any push to ensure the park’s safety, he said.

“This is just an opportunity for us to reset the park and also to acknowledge people that have been positive impacts on the community,” he said.

The city of Sacramento, like many municipalities, remembers Cesar Chavez by offering employees a holiday on March 31, Chavez’s birthday.

How will the park be renamed?

Community members and elected officials can propose names for parks, buildings and other open spaces.

Those names are reviewed by the city’s Youth, Parks, & Community Enrichment Department to ensure they align with city policies before appearing in front of the Parks and Community Enrichment Commission.

The commission will make a recommendation that is forwarded to the City Council for a vote.

Vang, Maple, Talamantes and Guerra called for the community to be involved in the process for selecting a new name for the plaza.

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