- Haringey Council has come under fire for spending close to £190,000 on renaming a road due to ‘racial connotations and colonial links’.
- The former name of the road, Black Boy Lane, was changed in the wake of George Floyd’s murder in 2020, with social justice campaigners pushing for change.
Black Boy Lane in N15 was renamed La Rose Lane following ‘calls from Haringey residents’, Haringey Council said. La Rose Lane is named after John La Rose, a former black Haringey resident, poet and political activist.
The history of the name of the road is widely debated and its origins aren’t clear.
Some speculate that it was an after-effect of the impact that slavery had on race relations against black people in British history, whilst others believe it was named after young chimney sweepers in the 18th and 19th centuries.
It is estimated that the name change would cost the taxpayer approximately £186,000.
Despite this, not only were many residents actually against the idea of renaming the road but the family of John La Rose himself were also opposed, the Daily Mail reported.
Resident Anne Taylor said, ‘The La Rose family issued a statement forbidding the use of La Rose name to rename Black Boy Lane.’
‘They said it was a tokenistic gesture at too great a cost for Black Boy Lane residents and that John la Rose would have hated the notion.’
The council has been criticised heavily, with some likening it to a ‘vanity project’, especially in a cost of living crisis.
Founder of Save our Statues (a heritage campaigner group) Robert Poll said, ‘This move is representative of the current impulse to hunt out racism and offence where there is none as a performative display of virtuousness.’
A vanity project
If there was ever a demonstration of white guilt in action, this is it.
This was a move not based upon genuine concerns about racism, but based on pure vanity and fear from anti-racist groups.
Save our Statues reported that not only did no black people voted for the name change, but 78% of residents of Black Boy Lane voted against the move. In fact, there were more white people that voted for the name change than black people.
If the name change concerned black people, one would be forgiven for believing that the ‘black’ opinion would carry more weight in discussions. However, this does not seem to be the case.
So, what other reasons could there be for this name change?
It does make one wonder as to what ‘fighting racism’ really means in today’s society. Is it about genuine and legitimate concerns about racial inequality, or is it about virtue signalling and satisfying the egos of certain people?
Is it about addressing the past, or is it ideologically motivated?
The statistics show that black residents were against the name change. If black residents aren’t offended by the name change, then who is? Why do they get to speak and be offended on behalf of black people?
The irony of this is that those who do act in a manner where they feel entitled to speak on behalf of black people are acting in a more racist manner than they’d care to admit.
They are, in effect, cheapening the black voice. They are implying that their white guilt, and all the misplaced emotions that come with it, supersede actual black voices and perspectives.
To many, this isn’t about fighting racism. This is about certain groups feeling better about themselves.
White guilt is expensive
The Office for National Statistics reported that inflation is at an all-time high, as of December 2022.
The UK is in a cost-of-living crisis, with many having to choose between food and central heating. To put it plainly, there’s not enough money to go around.
In that case, where did the council find £186,000? Could that money have been put to better use? Are there Haringey residents with lower incomes who could have benefited from that money?
Specifically, in the name of being ‘anti-racist’, were there any black residents that could have benefitted?
The council have unfortunately shot themselves in the foot. In their desperation to appease campaign and pressure groups, they have created a PR disaster.
To spend £186,000 on a name change is irresponsible. In this economic climate, every penny counts. It’s foolish and nonsensical to spend hundreds of thousands of pounds on what is little more than a vanity project.
This money could have easily been put towards food banks, which many families rely on.
That money could’ve been put to better use actually helping black people who are less well off, in the name of actually addressing racial inequality. The government reports that black households were the most likely to have a weekly income of less than £600, compared to other ethnic groups.
The fact that this money was used for other purposes is a slap in the face to them. In no way does this name change help black people, in this climate.
In fact, it could be argued that this episode of reckless spending constitutes fraud. If Haringey Council wishes to ‘address inequality and celebrate the rich diversity of [the] borough, then it has failed at both.
What now?
The backlash to the name change is still ongoing.
Haringey Council has said that, for the next year, the road will continue to be known as Black Boy Lane until such time as registration of the new name has been completed, to allow for infrastructure to adapt.
The road sign has already been vandalised, with vandals spray painting over ‘La Rose Lane’ to leave ‘formerly Black Boy Lane’.
