On September 29, the 900 block of West Cayuga Street in Hunting Park was renamed Wayne “Coach Wiz” Allen Way.

Wayne Allen was a Hunting Park resident and community leader. He co-founded and coached the North Philly Aztecs football program for 23 years. This program provides mentorship and educational opportunities to steer youth away from a life of drugs and violence. Thousands of children ages 5 to 16 have passed through the program since its founding in 1993.

City Council approved the street name change in June of 2018 in order “...to recognize, honor, and celebrate the life and legacy of Wayne Allen for his dedication to the Hunting Park Community.“

According to City Council’s resolution:

The Aztecs Organization was founded in 1993 by Coach Wiz and Steve Irving (fellow coach of the Logan Cowboys).

The program began with Steve as President and Coach Wiz as Vice President. 

The Aztecs keep neighborhood youth off the streets and on the playing fields.

The youth football and cheerleading program have been a blessing for thousands of city youth.

Coach Wiz served as Vice President, head coach of the 180lbs football team, and, after 2009, as President of the organization’s board.

Coach Wiz passed away in 2017.

Above: Coach Wiz, courtesy North Philly Aztecs.

The Council resolution concludes: “During his 23 years of service with the Aztecs Organization Coach Wiz personally served not only as a coach, but also as a father figure, leader, and mentor to many of the youth who have participated in the program. He sacrificed his own personal ambitions to ensure that the youth of our City were active and always had something positive to do”

The idea of progress gives urgency to chronology, discards the past (“the dead weight of previous generations”, to recall Marx), and encourages each generation to see itself as the terminus of history, hence the high-point of culture. This forms the narcissism that promotes generational warfare.