Feel-Good Street Renaming Meeting Turns Sour As Famous Photographer Faces Accusations of Using Religious and Homophobic Slurs

This week, Community Board 7’s Transportation Committee heard proposals to give secondary names to four Upper West Side Streets.

Guidelines for secondary street renaming require groups or individuals to provide proof that residents of the block and the honoree’s family have no objections. A petition with at least 100 signatures from the area must be included, along with evidence that notices were posted to confirm there were no objections. Additionally, the CB7 website states that institutions and major organizations must be informed.

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Secondary street names are reviewed every ten years. They cannot promote political organizations, and there must be compelling evidence that the honoree contributed in an extraordinary way to the welfare of the block, community or country.

If the honoree is deceased and there is no official acknowledgment of them in the district, nor any plans to do so, they are eligible. Additionally, if their untimely death contributed to greater awareness of their cause of death and led to a concerted effort to address the problem, they are also eligible.

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Non-profits must be located on the proposed block and have made a transformative contribution to the community for over 25 years. Alternatively, if the year marks a significant event for the institution (e.g., the 250th anniversary of service to the community), the naming should be limited to that year.

Shanell Deas was the first to present, proposing the secondary naming of the southeast corner of 105th and Amsterdam Avenue in honor of her grandmother, Ethel Deas. Born and raised in Charleston, South Carolina, Ethel Deas was an ordained minister and bishop. She moved to the Upper West Side in 1958 with her husband, Julius, who served in the U.S. Army. They had eight children together. Deas lived in the Frederick Douglass Houses, a public housing project with buildings between 100th and 104th streets, until her passing in 2021.

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Ethel was a crossing guard for 36 years, taking on various posts before being permanently assigned to 105th and Amsterdam Avenue, located by P.S. 145, which she held for 33 years. “It wasn’t uncommon for her kids, upon entering adulthood, to revisit her post, to introduce the next generation attending P.S. 145. Those actions spoke volumes for community trust,” said Shanell, who also mentioned that community members had approached her about the street renaming. “Her impact and lifelong dedication to something bigger than herself make her worthy of such an honor, making her a Community Hero.”

When it came time to vote, CB7 Transportation Committee member Ken Coughlin said, “I typically abstain or vote against these. I predicted about ten years ago that eventually every corner would have a secondary street name, and maybe we’ll have to start having drop-downs.” Board member Doug Kleiman responded, “Wouldn’t it be great if we did have a name on every single street? We can learn the history, as long as it doesn’t confuse anyone in terms of traffic safety.”

ALSO READ: UWS Streets Named After Famous People

Council member Gale Brewer, who joined the meeting via Zoom, expressed support specifically for Shanell Deas. Brewer added, “We just passed a bill that the Department of Records is implementing, which will put every sign on a city website and list the background of the person.” She also mentioned that they are beta testing using QR codes and working with Google to include the details in Google Maps so people can learn more about the individuals being honored.

The vote was taken, with ten members in favor and none opposed or abstaining. (Coughlin ended up voting in favor of the secondary name.)

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ILTUWS just recently reported that the building on this corner was purchased by a Korean church which has been accused of being a cult.

Cayle White, a resident of 215 West 98th Street (The Gramont), asked CB7 to consider renaming the northeast corner of 98th and Broadway to Oscar Abolafia Way. White highlighted that Abolafia was a resident of The Gramont for over 40 years and was known to everyone in the building as the unofficial Mayor of the Upper West Side. “He made it his business to meet and get to know everyone who came across his path or passed his folding chair on the sidewalk,” said White. He welcomed everyone from the homeless to shopkeepers, workers, community residents, and especially kids. “Unfortunately, Oscar and his wife were not able to have children, but they adopted all of the children in our building and all of the children in the neighborhood,” White said. She noted how generations of children cherished the toys Oscar would surprise them with after school or when they got a good grade on a test, and he was always ready with words of encouragement and advice about listening to their parents.

“He was actually a world-renowned celebrity photographer and would jet set around the world with the who’s who of 20th century pop culture for over 50 years. His subjects included Frank Sinatra and the Rat Pack, Twiggy, Sophia Loren, Elizabeth Taylor, Elvis Presley, and the list goes on and on,” said White, who added that his book, Icons by Oscar, was a best seller.

Multiple members of the community spoke in favor of Abolafia, who passed away in 2020, but others expressed opposing views, which shocked White. One anonymous resident of the Gramont called Abolafia “rude, crude, and obnoxious.” Another neighbor referred to him as a “busybody and a gossip who enjoyed stirring things up amongst various individuals in the building.” It was also said that Abolafia used homophobic and demeaning religious slurs. This surprised White, who asked why these accusations were not brought to her attention earlier. Transportation Committee co-chair Mark Dillard had to calm down the gallery on multiple occasions.

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The allegations led the Transportation Committee to hold a vote on whether to prepare a no-decision report on Oscar Abolafia for the City Council, which makes the final decision. The vote was 7 in favor, 0 opposed, with 4 abstentions (the committee at 11 members, compared to 10 earlier).

QUIZ: Name These Upper West Side Streets!

Teniqua Cooper spoke in honor of her late mother, Linda Carter Cooper. Teniqua, who grew up at 150 West 84th Street, said, “My mother’s life was a testament to service, resilience, and unwavering commitment to the Upper West Side community, which she called home for over 40 years.” She described her mother as a pillar of the community and highlighted her role as community coordinator at the Board of Elections. Linda was also a devoted member of the Democratic Club, where she worked “tirelessly for equality, inclusivity, and justice values,” said Teniqua.

“One of her most impactful roles was as a tenant organizer,” said Cooper, who detailed how her mom would fearlessly confront slumlords and illegal evictions, standing up for those with unsafe living conditions with courage and determination while educating tenants about their rights. In 2022, Linda Carter was awarded the Good Neighbor Award from Goddard Riverside Community Center.

The vote to rename the northeast corner of 84th and Amsterdam in honor of Linda Carter Cooper resulted in 9 members in favor, none opposed, and 1 abstention, with the committee consisting of 10 members at the time of the vote.

The final presentation was by Leora Amira, who proposed to renaming the southwest corner of West 109th Street and Broadway in honor of Thich Nhat Hanh. Amira referenced a New York Times article from 2022 which described Hahn as “one of the world’s most influential Zen masters, spreading messages of mindfulness, compassion, and nonviolence.” He was also nominated by Dr.  Martin Luther King Jr. for the Nobel Peace Prize in 1967.

”It is important to know that in addition to being a peace activist, he was a prolific author of over 100 books; a poet, a teacher, and an artist,” said Amira, who noted one of his key insights was the need to first create peace within oneself in order for peace to be possible in families, in communities, in countries, and among nations. From 1961 to 1963, Hanh traveled to the U.S. to study comparative religion at Princeton before coming to Columbia University to teach and research Buddhism, where he lived at 306 West 109th Street. He passed away on January 22, 2022.

Amira mentioned she attempted to have a plaque installed at the location Hahn lived, but the owner never responded. As a result, they turned to secondary street naming. The vote resulted in 8 in favor, none opposed or abstained.

The next steps in the above proposals will take place at the full board meeting on October 1 at 6:30 p.m.