Street named after Khaleda Zia in the United States

‘Carpenter Street’ in the city of Hamtromic, Michigan, USA, will now be known as ‘Khaleda Zia Street’. The city’s city council has approved the decision to name it in honor of the recently deceased BNP chairperson, the BNP Media Cell said.

The media cell’s Facebook page reported this news, saying that a street in the US state of Michigan has been named after Begum Khaleda Zia, the three-time former Prime Minister of Bangladesh and BNP chairperson. The important ‘Carpenter Street’ located in the heart of Hamtromic city will now be known by her name. The expatriate Bangladeshis are seeing this decision by the city authorities as a unique recognition of Bangladesh’s history, leadership and democracy.

The proposal to name the section between Joseph Campao and Conault Streets in Hamtromic City after Begum Khaleda Zia was recently approved by the city council. Currently, four councilors of Bangladeshi origin are serving in this council, whose active efforts made this naming possible. According to the expatriates, this is not just a new identity for a road, but an international document of Bangladesh's political struggle in the world court.

The BNP media cell said that this is not the first time that a road has been named after a Bangladeshi leader on US soil. Earlier, a road was named after martyred President Ziaur Rahman in Chicago. This time, with the addition of the road in the name of Khaleda Zia in Michigan, an inseparable political chapter of Bangladesh in the US has taken a permanent form. The expatriates believe that this initiative will make the new generation of expatriate Bangladeshis more aware of the country's history and the contribution of the national leader. Bangladeshis living abroad have expressed great excitement over this achievement.

According to them, this is also a great proof of the growing political capacity of the Bangladeshi community abroad. The hamlet is known for its diverse townships and naming a road after a former Bangladeshi prime minister will further strengthen the social and cultural bond between the two countries.

Khaleda Zia died on December 30 while undergoing treatment at Evercare Hospital. The next day, she was laid to rest in state at Sher-e-Bangla Nagar next to the grave of late President Ziaur Rahman.