Furious Londoners have painted the name of their road sign black after Haringey council renamed Black Boy Lane due to ‘racist connotations.’
Posting a photo of the controversial road sign to Twitter, the leader of Haringey council Peray Ahmet denounced it as ‘mindless vandalism’.
She said: ‘Really sad and disappointed to have been sent this today. This follows a fantastic launch yesterday where we celebrated the life and legacy of John La Rose. What could this ever achieve beyond mindless vandalism.’
It’s claimed the authority spent a whopping £180,000 changing the name of Tottenham’s Black Boy Lane to La Rose Lane, following outrage from Black Lives Matter campaigners.
The road sign has been vandalised less than a day after the area was controversially renamed
Residents have erected their own Black Boy Lane signs in shops and front windows
But heritage campaigners and peeved residents – some of whom who’ve erected their own Black Boy lane signs- are unhappy with the move.
After the new road signs were erected yesterday, pictures emerged on social media showing numerous houses with the old road sign displayed in their windows.
Art lecturer Rishi Jogoo, 68, lives along the street and was upset by the change.
He has joined his neighbours and put up a Black Boy Lane road sign in his window.
He said: ‘There is nothing racist about the name, I don’t understand why people say that.
‘The council never came round to talk to us about it. We did receive a letter but when we argued about it they didn’t listen to us.
‘The problem is when you change the road name we all have to change our documents like our passports which is very inconvenient.
‘The council have said they will offer us £300 because of the change but I don’t think that will be enough to sort everything.
‘We will keep out signs up but I’m not optimistic that they will listen but we can always hope.’
Mr Jogoo’s neighbour Ian also put a sign up.
He explained: ‘We are hanging the old sign up because we don’t want it to change. It is a complete waste of time and money.
‘I will keep my address as it is until there is an official issue. I want to use it as long as I can.’
Ian worries how the new name will affect his neighbours.
‘It’s not like changing the name of a building, there are so many complications for people going through immigration processes or who are in the middle of sorting out legal issues.
‘The council pushed the decision through despite the residents not wanting it.
‘When they first took the survey about changing the name 75 per cent of the people on the road voted against it.
‘It was only when they extended the vote to the borough as a whole they got a majority in favour.’
The change is also affecting local businesses. Home Furniture Limited sits at the top of the newly named La Rose Lane.
An employee at the shop, Tahir Raza, 37, is worried about the business. He said: ‘The old name is better for business purposes. We now have to change the address which can be complicated.
‘Also, the name was more memorable so people would remember where the shop was.
‘So this, along with the new LTNs in the area is going to really hurt us.
He added: ‘It is so sad how much they spent on it as there are so many things to do in the area. Why don’t the council reduce the rent and help us instead of putting all the money into something like this?’
The new name pays tribute to the black publisher John La Rose, a Haringey local who was a political activist and launched New Beacon Books in 1966.
Prior to the change at least 70 residents were previously reported to have derided the plan as ‘tokenistic’ and an ill thought out ‘vanity project’ which could lose the history of the area.
It is thought that Black Boy Lane was named after a pub in the late 17th century
Rishi Jogoo, 68, believes there was nothing racist in the old Black Boy Lane name and resents the change
After plans were announced resident Anne Taylor, told MailOnline: ‘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.’
Heritage campaigners, Save Our Statues have also condemned the move alleging that the name change has cost Haringey Council £180,000 of public money.
Founder Robert Poll told the BBC that the change was a ‘futile gesture’.
Haringey Council said that it planned to change the name following calls from residents
He 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.’
It is thought that Black Boy Lane was named after a pub in the late 17th century.
The decision to change the street name to ‘La Rose Lane’ was made by the council in February last year.
‘Haringey Council is committed to taking action to both address inequality and celebrate the rich diversity of our borough. We recognise that there are different views on how best to do this,’ it was stated online.
The council also added that it made the decision ‘following calls from Haringey residents, in recognition of the negative impact the racist connotations attached to the name have had on residents.’
Cllr Peray Ahmet, Leader of Haringey Council, said: ‘I’m delighted that we’re able to pay tribute to John La Rose with a new street name. John made such a huge contribution to Black life both here in Haringey and across the UK and played an important role in gaining recognition for Black authors and artists, as well as championing inclusive education.
‘I understand that this is a decision which has generated passionate responses. Several rounds of consultation were held, and I know that the Corporate Committee took the full range of views into consideration when deciding to change the name of the road. It is time now to move forward with this.
‘I also want to be clear that this is just one small part of the work that we must do to ensure Haringey is a place where everyone feels welcome and included. I look forward to working with residents and communities on this important mission in the months and years to come.’
MailOnline has approached Haringey Council for further comment on resident’s reaction to the renaming and the alleged cost involved.