Say His Name, Sacramento: Nathaniel S. Colley Sr.

We Already Have the Right Name: A Sacramento Reflection
Larry Lee said it plainly: “Nathaniel S. Colley Sr. doesn’t merely align with Sacramento’s values. He helped write them.”
In his recent op-ed in The Sacramento Observer, he challenges our city to move beyond “safe” choices as we consider naming our downtown plaza—and to finally do right by one of our own.
He’s right.
Because this moment is about more than a name.
It’s about truth.
I am Sacramento.
Not just because I live here—but because I come from here.
My roots are grounded in a Black church in Oak Park—one my grandparents, great aunts, and great uncles helped build with their own hands and unwavering faith. A church where my father served as a trustee, where my mother led the youth with love and discipline, and where today, I have the honor of serving as a Deaconess.
So when I speak on this moment, I do so from a place of legacy.
Because as our city debates what to name our downtown plaza, we are really being asked a deeper question: Who do we choose to remember?
Nathaniel S. Colley Sr. is not just a name to consider—he is the answer.
Colley was a legal architect of justice in this city. He fought to dismantle segregation—not in theory, but in practice—right here in Sacramento. The freedoms and opportunities many experience today were shaped, in part, by his courage and conviction.
And yet, like so many Black trailblazers in Sacramento, his name is not etched into our public spaces in the way it should be.
That is not by accident.
That is by pattern.
We have named buildings, parks, and institutions after individuals whose contributions do not come close to the weight of what Colley carried—and in some cases, whose legacies have not aged well under the light of truth. And still, we hesitate when it comes to honoring African American individuals.
Let’s be clear: choosing a “safe” name is not the same as choosing the right name.
This is why I deeply respect the vision of the Fortune School of Education—an institution that has made the intentional decision to name schools after Black figures in our comminity. That is not just symbolic. It is instructional. It teaches our children that greatness has proximity—that legacy looks like them.
Because when we name a space, we are making a declaration about who matters in this city.
And Sacramento, we already know the answer.
Honoring Nathaniel S. Colley Sr. is not a bold move—it is a long-overdue one.
As someone whose life has been shaped by this community—by faith, by family, by a lineage of service—I believe moments like this reveal who we truly are.
So now what?
Read the op-ed. Sit with it. Share it.
Then do something.
Talk to your networks. Engage with the city. Speak up in the spaces where decisions are being made. Because names do not change unless people demand it.
Sacramento, this is our opportunity to move beyond conversation and into action.
Let’s stop searching for the right name.
We already have it.
Let’s give Nat Colley the plaza.