CLARKSVILLE, TN (CLARKSVILLE NOW) – City leaders are considering changing the name of “Mammy Lane,” amid complaints that the name is rooted in slavery, sparking some debate among residents who live there.
The street is part of Plantation Estates, a north Clarksville subdivision where the streets are named for characters and locales from the film “Gone With the Wind.” Mammy Lane is named for a slave character played by Hattie McDaniel, a role for which she won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress in 1940, becoming the first Black woman to win an Oscar.
The resolution, sponsored by Ward 1 council member Richard Garrett, says the name Mammy “began in slavery, or at least in the mind’s of slavery’s defenders.”
“Names such as Mammy serve as painful reminders of black women being suppressed and marginalized and have no place as a street name,” the resolution says.
The resolution seeks to change the street’s name to Slattery Lane. Emmy Slattery is a white “Gone With The Wind” character played by Isabel Jewell.
Garrett, who is Black, said he put forth the name change at the request of a Mammy Lane resident who opposes the name. The name change was scheduled to be voted on March 4, but council members delayed the decision to give more time to get input from residents.
Residents weigh in
Ward 5 council member Jason Knight, who is Black, has spoken against the change in meetings. He started a petition last week opposing the resolution. As of Thursday, that petition had collected 22 signatures, not all of which belong to residents of Mammy Lane.
Knight, who represents Plantation Estates as part of his ward, said his opposition comes in response to requests by residents who want the name to stay as it is. Knight said he plans to visit Mammy Lane again next week to collect more signatures.
Clarksville Now spoke with this week with five residents of Mammy Lane, three of whom opposed the change. Two others supported changing the name but declined to be interviewed.
Danielle Hatch, a white resident on Mammy Lane, cited the logistic difficulty of changing one’s address.
“I’m not for it, just because it’s going to be a hassle to change bills and back statements and all that stuff,” Hatch said.
Other residents cited the cost to the city of making a name change, though Garrett said this would only involve changing two street signs, a “negligible” cost.
Another resident derided the proposal as being part of “cancel culture.”
“They need to go figure out something besides all this cancel culture. This here is Plantation Estates,” said George Myers, a white resident.
Council members are expected to discuss the name change at their executive session on Thursday, March 25, and vote a week later on April 1.