‘Challenged the system’: Fresno’s newest park to be named after local activist

FRESNO, Calif. ( KSEE/KGPE ) – A former Fresno City Councilmember and activist for racial equality in the Central Valley will have a city park named after him.

Fresno’s newest regional park has been named after a prominent civil rights leader Lesly Kimber. Lesly Kimber’s family says the park is just another way his life of service will be remembered in Fresno.

“He challenged the system on all fronts when it came to injustices being done in our community and for fairness,” said publisher for the California Advocate Newspaper Mark Kimber.

Mark is Lesly Kimber’s son and runs the California Advocate: the Central Valley’s first black newspaper. The newspaper was founded in 1967 by his mother and father.

“She was editor, he was publisher,” Kimber said.

When his parents first started the California Advocate, Mark says dad remained determined to make the paper a success.

“White publishers wouldn’t print the advocate because of our headlines * so he bought his own press,” Kimber explained.

His father’s fight for racial equality reached beyond the newspaper, including as a mentor at two organizations he helped create.

“Anybody that needed a voice or needed help, no matter the race, Dad was there on their side,” Kimber said.

Kimber’s work led him to run for a seat on Fresno City Council.

“He was only the second African American councilmember in the city’s history, represented West Fresno, and had a reputation and a long history of bringing communities together,” said Fresno City Councilmember Miguel Arias.

Councilmember Arias oversees the same district Kimber did and says his leadership left a lasting mark. He adds Lesly Kimber was an integral part of uniting disadvantaged communities and gave them a voice.

“When Mr. Kimber was serving, I was a farmworker, picking crops in West Fresno. He understood that amongst him were farmworkers who didn’t have a right to a restroom, a break, or a lunch train in 100-degree weather picking crops,” said Arias. “And he took it upon himself to not only extend his advocacy to those farmworkers who were not eligible voters – but to join with Cesar Chavez and advocate for everyone. That legacy is what we were recognizing, not just him as a councilmember, but him as a leader across multiple diverse groups.”

Mark Kimber says the new park honors the work his father did in the city council.

“He would be more than happy and gracious to know that he’s part of the new developments going on which is what he strived for in our community,” Kimber said.

Councilmember Arias hopes the new park will serve as a reminder of not just who Kimber was, but everything he did for others.

“To this day, it’s my honor as a former farmworker, when he was a councilmember, to honor a man who advocated for my family and everyone’s family,” said Arias.

Les Kimber Park will be on South M.L.K. Jr. Boulevard and East Church Avenue. It is expected to be open to the public by early 2025.

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