Last Updated on June 27, 2026
What street in NW Portland should be renamed for John Callahan?
There is no wrong answer to the Fun Fact #43 question, provided you listed an existing street in Northwest Portland. We propose that the block-long stretch of Westover Road between NW 23rd Place and NW 23rd Avenue be renamed “Callahan Street.” This change would help preserve the alphabetical naming convention along NW 23rd Avenue. While Couch Street serves as the “C” street of the Alphabet District—having been renamed for Captain Couch in 1891—it does not actually intersect NW 23rd Avenue.
Following a car accident at age 21 that left him a quadriplegic, Callahan often likened himself to Humpty Dumpty—someone who had experienced a great fall and whose body could never be fully put back together. Yet, he refused to be treated with fragile, polite pity. Callahan wanted society to stop walking on eggshells around disability and instead start cracking eggs. To him, true equality meant treating disabled people as complex, regular human beings who were robust enough to be part of the joke, flaws and all.
Known for his shocking red hair, cartoon satirist John Callahan was the only contributor to WillametteWeek whose work was never edited. However, that does not mean his cartoons—which first appeared in the PSU Vanguard—were without controversy. His work consistently challenged political correctness and forced viewers to re-evaluate their perceptions of the disabled community.
