* Does a symbolic act such as naming streets after King compensate for the continuing inequities between Americans of color and white Americans in health care, education and employment?

No. However, I don't believe such actions detract from more meaningful efforts at reform. Therefore, I can't think of any reason to oppose the naming of public spaces after King or other people of merit.

Not everyone shares my opinion of Williams' objective correlative. Cap'n Ken, a blogger from Louisiana, has written a blog entry deriding the ''MLK Boulevard,'' documentary. In fact, he holds the filmmaker in such disdain that he refuses to refer to him by name and accuses him of having faked footage in the movie without any support for the accusation.

And then there's the Eugene debate that begins and ends the film. Black leaders in Eugene had chosen the city's Centennial Parkway as the road to become MLK Boulevard. Many in Eugene did not approve, as Centennial Parkway was so named to celebrate the state's centennial some years back.

The film maker shows the City Council meeting where the proposal was originally voted down. He shows a number of citizens speaking in favor of the proposal; and he shows council members giving their speeches. When the two council members who supported the change spoke, he cut away to reaction shots from the other council members. They winced; they frowned; they generally looked very unhappy.

Now, the tape of this City Council meeting was taken from the local public-access cable channel. Such low-budget, government-run productions typically do not cut away from a council person as they are speaking to show others' reactions. I think the filmmaker - ala Michael Moore - assembled little bits and pieces of reactions (probably to unrelated things) and edited them together to create a certain impression of what happened. That's all too typical in these "documentaries".

I believe Cap'n Ken's biases have led him to misinterpet Williams' intentions. The filmmaker's interest in the council meeting would be to see how sausage gets made, i.e., legislation debated and passed. Reaction among council members is definitely relevant to that legitimate interest. I also believe it rash to accuse Williams of having doctored film to make council members look bad unless there is evidence to support such a claim.

In a rhetorical question, Cap'n Ken says:

Is the renaming of a street in honor of King a fitting tribute, or is it a meaningless gesture that does nothing to promote King's vision and is just the default tribute required for all cities to pass NAACP muster?

Even absent his sneer at the NAACP, I believe his position — that such tributes are empty — misses the reasons having a street named after King matters.

Marcos Williams' curiousity about the MLK Boulevard phenomenon has given us all food for thought — his goal in producing the movie.

Note: Read about civil rights issues at Silver Rights.