As a lifelong Bristolian, I’ve always found it interesting how many Bristol residents barely leave the town or the state, and look at the world through a very narrow lens, especially when it comes to politics. I found this particularly true last week when I participated in a road race held in Narragansett and South Kingstown, two towns that I spent a large amount of time in during my working days.

Back then, both of those towns had roughly the same political and social demographics as Bristol — solidly conservative “traditional family values” towns — and after running through 13 very residential miles in that area of the state, it’s obvious the political landscape of those towns and our state has changed dramatically over the years, as there were dozens of lawn signs and flags supporting Joe Biden, along with a host of liberal progressive town and statewide candidates, and not a single sign or flag supporting Trump.

While I’m completely cognizant of the fact that the results of next week’s elections will not be decided solely in the towns of Bristol, Narragansett, and South Kingstown, what I’ve witnessed in those towns, and in my recent travels throughout the state and the country, is that political change is coming to our town, our state, and our country, and and it’s coming very quickly.

All across the state of Rhode Island and across the country, millions of voters are interested in a new set of “traditional family values,” which include eradicating racial injustice, acceptance of the LGBTQ community, humane treatment of undocumented individuals, and supporting Roe vs. Wade, just to name a few.

While there is a certain percentage of the electorate that can’t seem to let go of their archaic so called “traditional family values,” what those voters need to realize is that this is 2020 — not 1920 — and those 1920 “traditional family values” belong in a history book, not in modern day society.

Mike Proto
Bristol