On Friday, the 6300 block of South Cottage Grove Avenue in Woodlawn was officially renamed Al Raby Way, honoring one of Chicago’s most influential civil‑rights leaders. The dedication ceremony, attended by city officials, community members and members of the Al Raby Foundation, highlighted Raby’s decades‑long work to desegregate Chicago Public Schools, secure fair housing and help elect Harold Washington as the city’s first Black mayor.
Family and Community Reflections
Katanya Raby, the activist’s granddaughter and CEO of the Al Raby Foundation, explained that the location was chosen because it sits near the spot where her grandfather spent his youth, waiting for the ‘L’ at 63rd Street and Rhodes Avenue. “He spent a considerable amount of time under the ‘L’ on 63rd, so it was really important that we try to dedicate a street in proximity to the places that he started and got his footing,” she told Block Club Chicago.
She added that witnessing injustice as a young person shaped Raby’s lifelong commitment to justice. “This is the beginnings of who he became—seeing inequities and learning from the old heads in his life. He then took those lessons and became a man who was gonna do something about it,” Katanya said.
Raby’s Early Life and Activism
Born in Chicago in 1933, Albert “Al” Raby left middle school but later earned his high‑school diploma through night classes and became a middle‑school teacher at Hess Upper Grade Center in North Lawndale. He rose to prominence during the 1963 Chicago Public Schools boycott, when more than 200,000 students skipped class to protest Superintendent Benjamin Willis’s segregationist policies. The protest, known as “Freedom Day,” cost the district $470,000 in a single day.
Raby was elected convener of the Coordinating Council of Community Organizations (CCCO) in 1964, a coalition that partnered with Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s Southern Christian Leadership Conference for the Chicago Freedom Movement. King later told Ebony Magazine that the movement was launched “mainly because of Al Raby.” Both men served as co‑chairs of the campaign, which secured fair‑housing promises from Mayor Richard J. Daley and other institutions.
Public Service and Legacy
After working with the Peace Corps in Ghana, Raby returned to Chicago to join Harold Washington’s historic 1983 mayoral campaign. Following Washington’s victory, Raby was appointed to lead the city’s Commission on Human Relations, the agency responsible for enforcing anti‑discrimination laws. He passed away from a heart attack in 1988 at age 55.
Despite his many achievements, Raby was known for shunning the spotlight. “He was very much comfortable being in the background, making sure the work was getting done,” Katanya noted. The street dedication, along with the earlier naming of Al Raby High School for Community and Environment in East Garfield Park, ensures his contributions are not forgotten.
Mayor’s Statement and Future Commemorations
Mayor Brandon Johnson, who proclaimed February 19, 2027—Raby’s 94th birthday—as Al Raby Day in Chicago, said, “Al Raby’s life reminds us that the fight for justice can begin close to home, in our schools and in our neighborhoods.” The Al Raby Foundation plans to host “Raby Chats,” inviting seniors to share personal stories of marches and civil‑rights actions, and will continue to organize programs in honor of the upcoming Al Raby Day.
Community members are encouraged to contact the foundation via its website to share memories or arrange visits to senior homes and local events, keeping Raby’s spirit of service alive in Woodlawn and beyond.
Original reporting: Block Club Chicago — read the source article.
