On Wednesday, October 16^th, Philadelphia’s City Council announced that legislation will soon be introduced to finally rename Taney Street to LeCount Street, bringing to a close a years-long struggle to contend with America’s history of racial discrimination and to honor the legacy of civil rights leadership in the city. The street’s soon-to-be-former namesake, Roger B. Taney, was an infamous figure of American history; as Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, he delivered the Dred Scott v. Sanford opinion, which officially ruled that African Americans were not considered U.S. citizens, and that any prohibition by Congress of slavery in U.S. territories was unconstitutional. Taney’s family, based in Calvert County, Maryland, also owned enslaved people personally.

The street’s upcoming name is in reference to Caroline Rebecca LeCount, sometimes referred to as “Philadelphia’s Rosa Parks,” a legendary 19^th century activist who led the battle to desegregate the city’s streetcars, despite facing violent resistance. LeCount was also the first Black woman in Philadelphia to pass the teaching exam, the second Black principal in the city, and a collaborator of fellow civil rights activists such as W. E. B. Du Bois, William Still, and her fiancée Octavius Catto. LeCount retired from teaching in 1911 and passed away in 1923, and is buried in Eden Cemetery in Collingdale, the oldest Black-owned cemetery in the country.

As reported last year in Fitler Focus, local activists have fought for decades to remove Taney’s name from the street. But the first organized effort to do so was introduced in 2022 by the Rename Taney Coalition, a grassroots organization which used strategies such as petitioning, media outreach, and gathering support from City Councilors to raise awareness for their campaign. According to the website of the Rename Taney Coalition, 94% of North Taney St. residents surveyed were in favor of renaming the street, and numerous community organizations, including the Fitler Square Neighborhood Association (FSNA), Center City Residents Association (CCRA), and South of South Neighborhood Association (SOSNA), wrote letters in support of the renaming effort. The Coalition also raised funds to commission a headstone for LeCount, who was previously buried without one, to honor the centennial anniversary of her passing.

Unlike many other street renaming projects in Philadelphia, this renaming is not purely ceremonial; as put by Council President Kenyatta Johnson, “This will actually change your address.” When streets are renamed ceremonially, the original street signs are not removed, but an additional red sign is hung under them, displaying the street’s unofficial name. Examples of this include Avenue of the Arts, the ceremonial name for a section of Broad Street near City Hall, or the recently added Geraldine Graves Way, which will mark the 900 block of 17^th Street in honor of a crossing guard who served the block for over a decade.

Members of City Council, along with prominent members of the Rename Taney Coalition, posed for a photo at the October 16^th session along with the new street sign for the soon-to-be LeCount Street, a physical representation of the hard work done by the Coalition over the past few years. Samaya Brown, a longtime activist for the Rename Taney movement, said that she was moved to tears by the experience, and emphasized the importance of recognizing LeCount’s work for the city: “She really cared about the Philadelphia community, and she deserves to have her name on the street.”

Part of the challenge behind achieving this official renaming was the necessity to coordinate the change with agencies of the city, state, and federal governments. As Brown said, “We had to check with the United States Postal Service, we had to check with PennDOT, we had to work with the Streets Department.” The change will affect all 32 blocks of Taney Street, which has sections in South Philadelphia, Fitler Square, Fairmount, and North Philadelphia. The switch should be relatively simple for residents of Taney: property deeds will not be impacted, as they use parcel numbers rather than street names. Mapping services and delivery services, including USPS, will automatically update the street name in their internal systems. Residents will not need to update their drivers’ licenses until they expire.

Brown, speaking at the October 16^th council meeting, reemphasized the importance of changing the street’s name: “It really does matter because racism is structural and systematic. You have to attack it from all points, both big and small. So we call this a small but mighty win.” The legislation to rename Taney Street is expected to pass by the end of 2024, at which point the Streets Department will begin to replace the old street signs with new ones proudly bearing the name of LeCount Street.