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It's official - the State of Rhode Island has changed its name.
Question 1 passes and the Ocean State will drop 'Providence Plantations” from its official state name. PROVIDENCE — Amid a national reckoning on race, Rhode Islanders on Tuesday opted to remove the words “Providence Plantations” from the official state name.
https://www.providencejournal.com/story/news/politics/2020/11/04/question-1-rhode-island-name-change-providence-plantation/6054445002/
Supporters of the name change had hoped that this year’s national focus on racial injustice and the controversial killings of several Black people by police around the country would persuade voters that the phrase they saw as offensive for its present-day connection with slavery should be eliminated.
Opponents of the measure, however, said the word “plantation” had no association with slavery when Roger Williams settled Providence in 1636. Then, the word referred only to a tract of land, or a farm. They argued “Providence Plantations” was history and worth preserving.
Supporters of the name change had hoped that this year’s national focus on racial injustice and the controversial killings of several Black people by police around the country would persuade voters that the phrase they saw as offensive for its present-day connection with slavery should be eliminated.
Opponents of the measure, however, said the word “plantation” had no association with slavery when Roger Williams settled Providence in 1636. Then, the word referred only to a tract of land, or a farm. They argued “Providence Plantations” was history and worth preserving.