I would go with Yaz Way or Reggie Smith Street or not change it. When did they change it to Yawkey Way ? (I should remember but I don't) Seems like more free publicity ~ "See how great we are". I would be more impressed it they reduced beer prices or ticket prices to families.
I agree with this. The timing of the announcement of Henry's angst is consistent with that.
Tom Yawkey is an easy mark. He probably was a racist. I am not particularly learned about him personally, but it's a hard conclusion to avoid, and I hate that the Sox were the last team to integrate and passed on the likes of Jackie Robinson and Willie Mays, for every reason.
But this thing doesn't feel like it's motivated by genuine concern on the part of Henry, and there's the issue of all the dollars that have been donated by the Yawkey Foundation in and around Boston on a color blind basis over the years.
I don't really see a link to lower beer prices. Or ticket prices. Kind of a non-sequitur, though it would be nice. To me, the better approach would be to do more in the way of raising consciousness about tolerance and diversity. Not through grand gestures like changing the name of a street, but through education and just driving home the message that the Red Sox are about inclusion over time. I don't pretend to have a ready made formula, and I know that the Yawkey name is painful for some or even many. But again, doing that seems like an easy, PC thing, and not one truly calculated to make a long term difference.