My name is... — Chicago Piping Plovers

My name is Hazel

I was named Hazel in honor of Hazel M. Johnson, an environmental activist who lived in Altgeld Gardens, a Chicago Housing Authority development built for black military veterans on the Far South Side. Due to surrounding landfills and industrial facilities, it suffered the highest concentration of hazardous waste sites in the United States in the 1970s and beyond. Ms. Johnson spoke up against the environmental injustices and racism faced by her community and mobilized members to speak up, creating People for Community Recovery. She has been called the Mother of the environmental justice movement. She worked with a then young organizer named Barack Obama to remove asbestos from Altgeld Gardens, a fight they won in 1989. The work of Hazel Johnson and the People for Community Recovery influenced President Clinton to sign an Executive Order requiring the Environmental Protection Agency to incorporate environmental justice principles into their work to ensure that no groups of people may disproportionately suffer the consequences of pollution.

Photo credit and copyright T. Itani. Photo may not be modified, used or reproduced without permission.

My name is Esperanza

Esperanza, which means "hope" in Spanish, is a reminder, that in a year and time so filled with pain, uncertainty and sorrow, there is still hope. “Siempre hay esperanza,” there’s always hope. For the past two years, the Montrose Piping Plover family has shown us that with perseverance we can move forward. Hope is something that we see throughout every culture and it is diverse. No matter their race, sexuality or beliefs everyone has hope for something. Esperanza reflects the Hispanic culture of Chicago, meaning “hope”, “expectation”, during this moment in time in Chicago. Something that is needed during the pandemic, and the LBGTQ and Black Lives Matter movement happening now. Hope for the future of the Plovers.

My name is Nish

Nish was submitted to honor the Potowatomi heritage of our region. Nish was selected to highlight the direct relationship and contributions of The Council of the Three Fires (Potawatomi, Ojibwa, and Odawa) to what is now modern-day Chicago. Nish is a colloquial expression for Nishnabe’k (Potawatomi) and Anishinaabe (Ojibwa and Odawa).

*** Wishing Chicago’s newest Piping Plover a long and healthy life ***