Phoenix City Council approves changes for controversial street names

PHOENIX – The Phoenix City Council on Wednesday unanimously voted on new name changes for two streets, replacing ones that were considered offensive.

Squaw Peak Drive will be renamed Piestewa Peak Drive and Robert E. Lee Street will be changed to Desert Cactus Street, according to a tweet from Phoenix Mayor Kate Gallego.

“Over the course of four months and more than half a dozen public hearings and community meetings, the city of Phoenix has had the chance to have dialogue and receive input from our tribal and indigenous leaders, residents of the proposed impacted streets and the community at large,” Gallego said.

The initiative was spearheaded by Councilwoman Thelda Williams and Gallego.

The council originally voted in September to rename the streets but did not immediately decide on the names.

Robert E. Lee Street is named after the Confederate general who led the uprising against the United States in the Civil War. “Squaw” is a slur historically used to describe Native American women.

The street names in the area aren’t the only thing that has expunged the name from its appearance.

In October, the Phoenix Pointe location near the mountain also removed “Squaw Peak” from its name and rebranded as Hilton Phoenix Resort at the Peak.

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