Boston's Yawkey Way outside Fenway Park will be renamed due to its racist legacy

Scott Gleeson | USA TODAY

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Boston Red Sox owners got their wish to rename Yawkey Way, as Boston's Public Improvement Commission on Thursday accepted the request to change the name of the two-block street in front of Fenway Park back to its old name, Jersey Street.

Red Sox principal owner John Henry spearheaded a request for the name change because of its affiliation with former owner Tom Yawkey, who was linked to racism allegations as he fielded all-white teams long after black players had joined other clubs. Hall of Famer Jackie Robinson, who broke baseball's color barrier, once called Yawkey a bigot — according to The Boston Globe.

The name change does not come without controversy.

Yawkey, who owned the team from 1933 until his death in 1976 (the street was named after him in '77), was also a philanthropist. The Yawkey Foundations provided millions of dollars to inner-city programs.

Yawkey Foundations issued a statement that read: "This is a sad day for all of us. Tom Yawkey deserved to have his name live on at Fenway Park.

"We have always acknowledged that it is regrettable that the Red Sox were the last Major League baseball team to integrate (racially)," part of the statement read. "But we also believe that consideration of the whole story of the team's efforts to integrate and the full picture of Tom Yawkey's life more than justified keeping the (street) name."

Della Britton Baeza, the CEO of the Jackie Robinson Foundation, sent a letter to the Boston Public Improvement Commission praising the work of the Yawkey Foundations. She noted that Jean Yawkey sponsored the Boston tour of a traveling exhibit of Jackie Robinson and the Jackie Robinson Foundation three decades ago.

A member of the commission said the panel had little debate over the petition to change the name because it had been unanimously approved by the street's owners (the Red Sox owners), and such petitions have rarely been declined.

Messages left with the Red Sox on Thursday afternoon were not immediately returned.

Meanwhile, Boston College says it has no plans to change the name of the Yawkey Athletics Center, which houses the football team's offices, weight room, sports medicine, and locker room. #