LEWES, DE -- In the midst of construction, road closures, and significant change to Plantation Road in Lewes, some neighbors are hoping the road's name will also undergo a big change by removing the word 'plantation'.
Tanya Harris of Millville is just one Sussex County resident who argues that the name 'plantation' carries a painful and offensive connotation.
"It is surprising to me to use a word that for me is so synonymous with slavery and brutality," says Harris. "I've been taken aback by how frequently the word is evoked here, and I am surprised that people imagine that it can be separated from slavery and cruelty."
Harris references the Plantation Lakes Golf & Country Club in Millsboro, The Plantation and Plantation East in Lewes, Plantation Park in Frankford, and several other streets and neighborhoods with 'plantation' in their names as examples.
"There are certain names, and places, and people and things that really evoke horribly cruelty for a lot of people in the world," Harris says. "The time has come for us to acknowledge that and make those changes. I really commend the Southern Delaware Alliance for Racial Justice. I believe that they are exploring a campaign to consider having the road changed. I do think an effort to encourage the State of Delaware to change the name of the road is an impactful first step."
However, not everyone agrees with Harris.
"Just leave it alone," says Tim Sherman who lives off of Plantation Road. "It's been that way a long, long time. I personally don't think it has bad connotations to it, but that's my opinion. I could be wrong because those connotations don't apply to me. Just changing the name of a road because people are asking you to. I don't think that will do what they're hoping it will do."
Sherman also considers the impact changing the name could have on local residents.
"There's a lot of people that have been living on that road for a long time and then all of sudden they're going to need to contact everybody with their new address," says Sherman. "I think that's a burden on those people."
According to the Delaware Department of Transportation (DelDOT), there have been no formal requests submitted to the department.
EDITOR'S NOTE: The Southern Delaware Alliance for Racial Justice tells WBOC the organization does not support either side of the debate and has not explored a campaign to change the name of Plantation Road.
