Residents Appeal To City Council For Brady District Name Change

There's a controversy over the namesake of the Brady Arts District - who besides being one of Tulsa's founders - was also a member of the Ku Klux Klan.

Some want the name erased, as to not honor a man with a past like that.

A handful of people who want the Brady Arts District to drop "Brady" from the name went before the city council tonight to voice their complaints.

The Brady name is all over the Brady Arts District, as a reflection of the street name dating back to the earliest days of Tulsa. But the namesake, Tate Brady, was a member of the Klan, and that realization has some eager to change Brady to almost anything else.

1/23/2013 Related Story: 6 On The Move: The History Of The Brady District, Tulsa's First Neighborhood

"I won't be down here supporting this district, spending one red copper penny, until they do right and rename the district. Because of what he stood for," said James Johnson.

Opponents of the Brady name got the ear of the city council, which heard their complaints Thursday night. The council doesn't have the power to change anything but the street name, because all other references didn't come from government.

"So the Brady name had always been around. But, for the most part, everyone thought it was called Brady, because Brady Street runs down the middle of it. We never went any further than to see who was Brady Street named after," said Rob Fleischman of the Brady Merchants Association.

Fleischman says the business owners are listening and talking about the issue, but haven't decided yet what to do, or if they'll do anything about the name.

At the city council meeting, 10 people spoke up for change.

"This is a part of our past that needs to be buried. Whether you just strike the name Brady Arts District to Arts District, or something else, action needs to be taken. I think this is the time that we need to move forward," said Mike Workman.

The city council is interested in hearing a little bit more. They say they will put this on an agenda in the future. The Brady Merchants Association, meanwhile, says they're also continuing to discuss their options. They hope to have something resolved within about 60 days.