George Carlin
July 16, 2002
Photo: Scott Harrison / Getty Images
George Carlin may be dead, but even in death his relationship with the Catholic Church is one of conflict. George Carlin went to school and attended church in an area of New York where another comedian, Kevin Bartini, would like to create a sort of memorial to him. Bartini's idea is to name a street after George Carlin -- specifically, the street where Carlin grew up.
It's a fitting place to name a street after George Carlin, but it's an idea that has encountered passionate opposition from Catholics who live in the area.
Bartini's Change.org petition to the District 9 Community Board was simple: "George Carlin, brilliant and prolific comedian, lived and went to school on this street. He loved this street and crafted many of his most famous routines around it. We, the legions of fans, admirers and fans of George Carlin believe that a street should be named in honor of the greatest comedian of all time, in his hometown, the greatest comedy city of all time!" It has already garnered more than 5,600 signatures and the support of many on the block.
Shaune Bornholdt, who lives in the building in which Carlin grew up, says that she's "Highly in favor of the renaming. [Carlin] was great, we love him. He was a very funny guy." However, others are displeased.
Corpus Christi Church, the Roman Catholic institution on the block that Carlin attended as a boy, does not feel that Carlin is an appropriate choice. At a District 9 Community Board Meeting on Oct. 6th, Bartini and his four or five supporters were outnumbered by close to 20 church members.
"The Corpus Christi community is opposed to the renaming because we feel that George Carlin and his comedy do not accurately reflect the values we uphold," Connor Hailey, vice-chairman of the church's Parish Council, and a freshman in Columbia College, says. Indeed, Carlin had included his rejection of the church's values in routines, describing his time at school there as "nourishing him in a direction where I could trust myself and my own instincts. ... They gave me the tools to reject my faith. ... It's a wonderful fairy tale they have going here, but it's not for me."
Source: The Eye
I can understand local Catholics not having warm feelings for George Carlin. I can also understand concern about renaming a street after someone whose work is controversial. However, is it really necessary for people to give their religious approval before a street is renamed? Do we really want to give people religious veto power over naming streets in order to keep the names of atheists or critics of religion away from someplace?
Granted, there are probably other places where it would be easier to name a street after George Carlin. But Carlin got a lot of his inspiration from where he grew up and that sort of inspiration should be passed along to the next generation. People who live there now should be reminded about the sorts of people who lived there before as well as what they went on to do with their lives. The fact that what they did involved atheism, criticism of religion, and not-safe-for-work humor shouldn't be a bar to that.
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