Tacoma park renamed after first African American woman to serve as Washington state senator
Tacoma has been renaming schools and parks since 2018 in an effort to celebrate local diversity
TACOMA, Wash. - Metro Parks Tacoma has renamed a local park after the first African American woman to serve as a Washington state senator, Rosa Franklin. I said, are you sure? My reaction was I was surprised because that wasn t something I had expected, said Franklin, laughing with joy and surprise after hearing the news about the park.
The park was previously named after Benjamin Franklin because of its proximity to Franklin Elementary School. Metro Parks says it s been renaming its parks since 2018 to better reflect local trailblazers like Rosa.