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The History Of Interracial Marriage

Decent Essays

Social norms have long been dictated by racism. Prior to the Loving v. Virginia Supreme Court Case in 1967, it was socially acceptable for certain states to dictate which race of people one could marry from. For example, in many southern states, it was illegal for a white man to marry a black woman. It was not until the Loving v. Virginia case reached the Supreme Court in 1966 that the constitutionality of these laws was considered. The Loving v. Virginia case erupted when Richard and Mildred Loving were arrested when they returned to their house in Caroline County, Virginia after traveling to Washington D.C. to get married (Newbeck and Wolfe). Prior to the Supreme Court ruling that laws preventing interracial marriage were unconstitutional, interracial marriages were extremely rare. However, after this ruling was made, the popularity of interracial marriages began to slowly climb. Sadly, despite the increase in popularity, social acceptance of these marriages had not increased until the last twenty years (Rosentiel).
According to PEW Research, a notorious research company based in Washington D.C., interracial couples are becoming more widely accepted than they were in 1967. Today, “Nearly four-in-ten adults say…people marrying someone of a different race is good for society.” (Bailik). Although this statistic may seem low, it is important to remember that the remaining people are not necessarily against interracial marriage. In fact, “Americans today are also less likely to

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