Rhode Island approved aballot measure to change the state's name to just "Rhode Island" from "Rhode Island and Providence Plantations."- It's a success after numerous legislative and ballot measure attempts to change the name since the 1970s.
- The tide shifted earlier this year, amid Black Lives Matter protests following the police killing of George Floyd.
- Defenders of the old name have argued that the word "plantation" when the name was given didn't have a close association with slavery, but historians point out that the state was a key player in the transatlantic slave trade.
The state everyone already thought was called "Rhode Island" is now making it official.
Voters approved a ballot measure Tuesday night that will change the name of their state to "Rhode Island" in the state constitution, rather than "Rhode Island and Providence Plantations."
The region has had the name "Rhode Island and Providence Plantations" since colonial times, receiving the moniker from King Charles I of England in 1663. It kept that name when it ratified the Articles of Confederation and became a US state in 1778.
The ballot measure was approved 52.8% to 47.2%, with 100% of precincts reporting, according to the Rhode Island Board of Elections. The name change is scheduled to take place as soon as the board certifies all of the state's votes.
The "Providence Plantations" part of the name has been seen as a vestige of slavery in the past few decades. Opponents of the name change have pointed out that the word "plantation" wasn't associated with slavery in 1663 in the same way it is today, the Providence Journal reported. But historians also point out that Rhode Island played a key role in the transatlantic slave trade, and residents should be conscious of the state's racist history, according to the Associated Press.
Nearly 78% of voters rejected the same ballot measure in 2010, according to The Hill. Similar attempts to change the state name have taken place in the state legislature since the 1970s, the Providence Journal reported.
The tide shifted earlier this year, amid Black Lives Matter protests following the police killing of George Floyd.
This summer, Gov. Gina Raimondo said she would remove the reference to "plantations" in state documents. Many local institutions, including Brown University, followed suit in changing their official names.
Jessica Medeiros, a business owner in the state, told the Providence Journal that she didn't realize the word "plantation" hurt people until it became a conversation point earlier this year.
"I was glad to vote to have it removed," she said. "I want everyone in this country and this state to feel welcomed and treated as an equal."