HOLLYWOOD, Fla. _ City commissioners put an end to a long-running debate Wednesday, voting 6-0 to rechristen three Hollywood streets named for Confederate commanders.
Those names belong in history books, not on streets, they say.
Instead, the streets named for John Bell Hood, Robert E. Lee and Nathan Bedford Forrest will be known as Hope, Liberty and Freedom streets.
"I want to thank you commissioners for doing the right thing," activist Benjamin Israel told commissioners Wednesday. "This is for future generations. Twenty years from now, I won't be here."
Commissioner Peter Hernandez, who thinks residents on all three streets should have been given a say in the decision, did not vote.
The battle over the street names prompted three protests _ two backing the name change and one against _ six arrests, one lawsuit and lots of headlines.
All three streets extend through the entire city, but only two _ Forrest and Hood _ run through the predominantly black Liberia neighborhood.
Linda Anderson, president of the Liberia Civic Association, praised commissioners on Wednesday for listening to the people.
She grew up on Hood Street and her parents still live there, Anderson told commissioners.
"Thank you for moving this forward," she said. "It's been over 15 years trying to make this change. I hope this is the last time I come before you to ask for this change."
