Humboldt Park residents and Puerto Rican community leaders unveiled honorary street signs honoring Rafael Cruz and Julio Osorio, two Puerto Rican men shot and killed by a Chicago police officer in June 1977 during violence that became known as the “Humboldt Pa
On a Thursday afternoon when the first day of Humboldt Park’s annual Puerto Rican Festival was already underway, the community gathered for something that looked simple from a distance: new street signs, bolted into place along a stretch of California Avenue.
Up close, the moment carried weight. A portion of California Avenue at Evergreen Avenue, alongside Humboldt Park, was named to honor Rafael Cruz and Julio Osorio, two Puerto Rican men whose deaths in June 1977 became a catalyst for decades of activism.
Cruz and Osorio were shot and killed by a Chicago policeman during violence that broke out in Humboldt Park after the Puerto Rican Day Parade. Police blamed gangs for the unrest. In the community, anger has long centered on allegations that officers stormed the park and beat picnickers. The tragedy—on a day that began as celebration—came to be known as the “Humboldt Park Riots.”.
The unveiling coincided with the first of four days of the annual festival, one of the city’s largest celebrations of Puerto Rican culture. Ald. Jessie Fuentes (26th) spoke about the purpose of the ceremony beyond the signage itself.
“Today is not just about unveiling street signs,” Fuentes said. “Today is about making sure that our history is not erased.”
For Roberto Cruz, the ceremony was personal in a way that didn’t need translation. He is the brother of Rafael Cruz, and he described how the dedication recognizes a tragedy that did not stay in the past.
“The community came and helped my mother, and lifted her up, and helped me carry my mom back home,” Cruz said. “It was a day that forever changed my life. My blood literally runs through this park. I thrived in this park. I suffered in this park.”
Cruz’s words landed as the festival crowd looked on, but the recognition wasn’t only about remembering. It was also about making sure the story stays accessible, especially as the neighborhood changes.
Javier Vargas, a filmmaker who has spent the past decade documenting the true story behind the riots and helped push for the street naming, said the signs are meant to prevent the events from slipping out of public memory.
“People will see it, and they can research and find out why the riots happened,” Vargas said. “It’s a token of something that happened that will stay there and not be forgotten.”
Vargas said the unrest was a constant presence through his childhood, shaping how people talked about the neighborhood and the changes that followed. But he worries that newer residents don’t know that history as well as those who lived through it.
“When I was growing up, people always talked about these riots and how a lot of changes happened because of them,” Vargas said. “Now the community is more gentrified, and people have forgotten what happened here in Humboldt Park.”
The ceremony also connected the riots directly to a tradition that endures. Jose Lopez, a longtime community leader, linked the dedication to the origins of one of the community’s recognizable gatherings.
“A year after this incident, this violent assassination, we began our parade,” Lopez said. “It was against this incident that we began the Puerto Rican People’s Day Parade.”
That parade now draws attendees from across the city who come to celebrate Puerto Rican identity, resilience and culture.
As families gathered around the signs, leaders emphasized that the effort is about visibility across generations—keeping the names of Rafael Cruz and Julio Osorio, and the broader Puerto Rican community’s experience, part of Humboldt Park’s story rather than something buried by time.
In 1981, the city of Chicago settled with the families of the two men. CPD Lt. Thomas Walton originally stated he shot Osorio because he thought Osorio had a gun. Later investigation found Osorio was unarmed, and a black hairbrush was found near him. Cruz, meanwhile, was struck by one of the bullets fired toward Osorio.
A documentary telling the story of the riots is set to premiere Friday during the 45th annual Puerto Rican Festival in Humboldt Park—an echo of Thursday’s message, where honoring the past also feels like a demand for the future.
Humboldt Park Puerto Rican community Rafael Cruz Julio Osorio Puerto Rican Festival street signs 1977 riots Chicago police