Raimondo, GA to remove ‘Providence Plantations’ from state documents

Updated at 3:53 p.m. on June 22, 2020.

PROVIDENCE – Gov. Gina M. Raimondo will sign an executive order that will remove the phrase “Providence Plantations” from gubernatorial orders and citations, executive agency websites, official correspondence and state employee paystubs, the governor’s office announced on Monday.

The order is part of a new initiative, “RIse Together,” which is aimed at creating a more equitable and resilient state, the governor said. The initiative was formed following meetings with community and youth leaders in the state.

The General Assembly will also remove the phrase from its official documents and plans to pass legislation that will allow voters to decide in November whether to change the state’s official name to “The State of Rhode Island,” legislative leaders announced on Monday.

“We both support placing on the ballot this November the decision whether to remove the [words] ‘and Providence Plantations’ from the state’s name,” said Senate President Dominick J. Ruggerio and House Speaker Nicholas A. Mattiello in a joint statement. “In the meantime, we know this is an important issue to a lot of people, so the General Assembly will be removing the reference to ‘Plantations’ from Assembly documents.”

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In a separate announcement, General Treasurer Seth Magaziner said he will remove the words “and Providence Plantations” from the state’s checks. He will also remove those words from his department’s letterhead, citations and other office correspondence.

An actual change to the state’s official name would require a constitutional amendment.

Raimondo’s initiative will include mandatory bias training for R.I. Department of Administration employees, the creation of a community outreach team to work with the R.I. State Police and an effort to implement all state police officers with body cameras.

The governor’s office also said it would be undergoing a comprehensive study of all state contracting processes to insure minority-owned businesses have equal opportunities to land state contracts.

The plans announced Monday is the administration’s “first step” in an initiative to combat racial inequality in the state. The governor is scheduled to talk about the initiative at 3 p.m. on Monday at Billy Taylor Park in Providence.

“Our work to dismantle systemic racism in Rhode Island did not start today and it will not end today, but we can rise together and make meaningful progress toward racial equity now,” said Raimondo in a statement. “Rhode Island was founded on the principles of acceptance and tolerance, and our state’s name – and actions – should reflect those values. The steps I am announcing today are just the beginning, and I am fully committed to continuing to work alongside the community in stamping out individual and institutional racism in our state.”

Providence took a similar step on June 19, removing “Providence Plantations” from city documents.

This story has been updated to include the plans of the General Assembly.