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HADDAM — A controversial proposal to rename a street in the Haddam Neck section of town that many perceive “belittles” Native Americans would likely be taken up by a special town committee.
Injun Hollow Road is across the Connecticut River from Haddam Meadows on Route 154/Saybrook Road.
The debate, which has engaged a good deal of residents on social media, has enjoyed passionate opinions on both sides. Those in support of the proposal say Injun Hollow is “disrespectful” and “offensive” to indigenous people.
They include one of the last remaining members of the Wangunk Tribe in Connecticut.
Detractors are calling the idea a “woke” effort and "part of a movement in the United States to "tear us apart and divide us," according to minutes of the Sept. 11 Board of Selectmen meeting.
These Native American people lived in present-day Middletown, Haddam, Portland, and East Hampton, according to the Connecticut Historical Society. "Before English settlement, there were at least half a dozen villages around the area on both sides of the river," the website said. "The Wangunk are also sometimes referred to as 'the River People' because of their positioning within the fertile Connecticut River Valley."
Resident Deborah Olsen presented a short proposal to the Board of Selectmen on Monday, asking that Injun Hollow be reverted to the original Cove Meadow Road.
She explained that her request was at the suggestion of her mother, who is in her 80s and lives on the street. Olsen grew up there, and her family has owned the property for nine generations, she said, according to the video. "We've lived there since the beginning," she told selectmen.
"We believe that Injun is a less-than-desirous word ..." Olsen said, adding that, despite her advocacy for the change, her intent is to represent both sides.
One resident against the idea told her he purposely moved to Haddam Neck to live on Injun Hollow Road because he is partially Native American and enjoys the name. The individual does not want it to change, she reported.
Olsen could not be reached for comment despite multiple attempts.
Property record cards show some 42 properties are on the road.
Many said on Facebook and during the public session that the alteration would cause “undue frustration” and result in people likely having to update countless documents.
Injun Hollow resident Neal Perron, who opposes the proposal, said earlier this week that a change of address would be costly for those living on the road, who would have to redo their wills, reapply for pistol permits within a short period, update their passports, IRAs, 401(k)s, business cards, vehicle registrations, deeds and more.
Michael Powers said the town has a chance to “redress” something that certain individuals find offensive, the minutes say.
Dillon Kessler supports the name change. Kessler said that moving the road to avoid racially charged language is a step toward making Haddam an inclusive and welcoming town.
Haddam Historical Society Executive Director Elizabeth Malloy, who has lived in Haddam Neck for over 60 years, she said, wrote a letter to selectmen containing a history of roads in that area over the last 300 years.
Malloy spoke with genealogist and historian Gary O'Neill, "Red Oak," of East Hampton, one of the last remaining descendants of the Wangunk Tribe, and asked if he found the name offensive.
He did, she said. "Injun may not have been considered belittling or disrespectful in 1959, but it is today," the executive director said.
Ed Munster, former state senator, wrote in a letter expressing his objection that changing the name is "part of a movement in this country to tear us apart and divide us.
"Tearing down statues and changing the names of schools, roads and places is what happens in other countries when they want to erase the past," Munster wrote. "Yes, we have our warts and our issues in this country, but I believe we have the best form of government ever devised by man."
Former 911 dispatcher Kevin McManus, who said he has no opinion on the matter, wrote to the board that changes to GIS mapping systems can take up to four years. That includes smartphones and for fire, EMS, police, alarm companies and other service providers.
A letter from Neal and Katy Sakash said that they consider the name Injun Hollow "sad and embarrassing." They suggested that the town name the street after Native American tribes that lived in that area of the river before colonization.
"Given our (often) abysmal treatment of Native Americans during the colonization of our country," Gina Block wrote to selectmen, "retiring this name strikes me as a simple gesture that speaks volumes."
Changing the “racist” road name, her letter reads, “would be an easy start to fixing our image problem. …”
McGarry told attendees that any such proposal would go to a street naming committee, whose members would consider many factors, such as costs associated with the change and the history of the area. There is no urgency to the matter, the first selectman added, so a vote was not taken.
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