Interracial Relationships

Traditionally, people have believed that when a person marries outside of their race, they do so as a way to escape from their race, culture, or traditional beliefs. In contrast, popular culture theorizes that interracial marriages are motivated not by a desire to leave behind one’s heritage, but by love between two people who happen to be of different races. In this paper, I seek to analyze and compare these two perspectives, proposing a theory that combines the two by accounting for a person’s upbringing and beliefs when deciding what their motivation may be. I first analyze the traditional belief of interracial marriage in comparison to the popular culture belief and present my theory combining the two. I then analyze the effect of dominant versus nondominant culture on motivations, and use examples from popular culture to look at the effect a person’s culture and upbringing can have their motivations for marriage. Lastly, I explain how my perspective will affect the way I live my life.

African Americans are the most judged group of individuals in the U.S. and around the world. Many American and non-American citizens see African American males as threating and thugs, while others view African American females as angry and ghetto. These stereotypes have led to Blacks being least likely to date outside of their race compared to other races. In this study we will discussing the reasons why White Americans would either object or not object to a member of their family bringing home an African American for dinner, we will also look at how education, gender, and region affect these decisions. In this study we will go into detail about why these attributes can cause different responses with White American. This research is important because there has been little to no research done on how whites really feel about family members dating outside their race and to test why White Americans would either except or object this notion. While White and Black Americans have come a long way in our hatred for each other we still have so far to go. Americans (White, Black, Hispanic, and other) are all entitled to our own opinions but these opinions should not be based off of racism.

Interracial families are more prevalent today than they have even been and the number of interracial families are growing each year as people are becoming more accepting of people of other races and rejecting the past. However, interracial families still report dealing with issues such as discrimination. Not everyone has yet to accept and welcome the idea of an interracial family in their own family and neighborhoods. Parents and children who are a part of interracial families must deal with multiple biases, how people act towards them, and developing a healthy identity in a world that is not always ready to accept them as they are.

In Mat Johnson’s novel, Loving Day, interracial relationships are showcased throughout the text. The main character, Warren’s, journey through the story to re-identify who he is as a person mirrors the way America has thought about interracial relationships and marriages over time; as the book progresses, so do the thoughts of the main character regarding race and his personal relationships, as if the reader is walking through time from the days when interracial marriages were illegal, to modern day where interracial marriages are becoming more common and accepted. Warren encounters other people whose views reflect the “traditional” outlook on race and relationships as well as people with “progressive” views regarding race and relationships. He has to navigate through his own personal beliefs, the way he was raised, his personal experience, the way others react to him, and the way

Macroaggressions, intentional or unintentional, must be explored on the basis of implicit biases as a preventive method. Moreover, I agree with Esqueda and Harrison, African-American women experiences of IPV is unique because of no other reason than the color of their skin and what they fundamentally represent in America: African descent attempting to survive in a European- dominated system. The authors validate that African-women purported criminality, cultural characteristics, sexual profligacy, and intellectual inadequacy are the frequent objects of public derision and which fertilizes a profound platform for macroaggressions. The authors’ examination of African-American experiences of IVP in comparison to White women reminded me of a video I saw on Facebook. A young African-American woman produced a video, which she justified why black men cheat. She proposed that black men cheat or prefer white women because, “us black women are aggressive, rude, unyielding, complainers and refuses to let men lead.” African-American women, not all, I do not intend to generalize, have come to believe these notions, presented in the research, and convinced themselves that they are the cause of IPV and infidelity and backbone to the longevity of

One’s colour, religion and families origin should not interfere with the happiness between the couple. A publication by the University of Toronto Scarborough furthers this notion of love and relationships; yet explains there are many barriers and challenges which many interracial couples strive to overcome.

Love has a lot to do with race it has a way of bringing out both good and bad in some people and unfortunately in some cases the issues of love and race are taken too far. In today’s society it is not as much of an issue to see interracial couples together as it used to be in the past, but that does not mean that it is not still an issue for some people. Throughout the semester we have studied different ways that not only in the cases of love but also family, friendship, and community are affected by racial issues both past and present, which only goes to show that racism still exists in our world today despite all of the progressions that we have made towards fixing the issue.

According to Alexander (2010), “The majority of black women are unmarried today, including 70 percent of professional black women” (p. 179). Many black women often asks where all the

Using the 2008 Cooperative Congressional Election Study (CCES), Whites’ attitudes towards dating, cohabiting with, marrying, and having children with African Americans and Asian Americans was studied. It was found that 29% of White respondents reject all kinds of relationships with African Americans and Asian Americans, while 31% endorse them. Second, Whites are less willing to marry and start a family within an interracial relationship than to date interracially. These attitudes and behaviors are related to political conservatism, age, gender, education, and region. Third, White women are likely to approve of interracial relationships for other people but not for themselves. White men however, express more willingness to engage in such relationships

Interracial relationships are seen everywhere in America today. Even though they are common, the viewpoints in them are not. According to Social Psychology Quarterly, “perceived discrimination is often a defining feature of the interracial relationship among members of racial minority group, while perceived discrimination is less likely to be considered relevant among members of racial majority group” (Tropp). This states that the minority tends to see more discrimination toward them, thus this is going to be a major factor that will determine if they are in an interracial relationship. Therefore, the interracial relationships today are decided by both people in the relationship, and there are no punishments for being in one of these relationships. Society nowadays is accepting of interracial relationships. According to the book Elizabeth and Hazel Two Women of Little Rock, “By the spring of 1998 the sight of a white woman and a black woman together wasn’t all that odd” (Margolick 208). This quote fully demonstrates that people of different races are accepted to do activities

Lewis and Ford begin by pointing out the Civil Rights movement that began in the 1960’s which acted as a jumpstart to the more diverse institution that we now know today. The article conveys that although there is a significant difference between interracial marriage and interracial dating – there has been a tremendous increase in both in the past several decades. A study and chart done by the U.S Census Bureau in 2004 shows, that there was a 26% increase of White/Other marriages from the 1980’s to the 1990’s; where in the 1990’s to the 2000’s there was a significant 72% increase. The chart also shows a drop in interracial marriages where Black/White marriages from the 1980’s to the 1990’s was 38% to a smaller 31% from the 1990’s to the 2000’s. The chart seems to show a significant trend in dating habits over the last few years, which is something that I was not expecting to see.

Though, racial/ and ethical singles have become more common in certain ethical groups than ever before, most of these single are of black decent; this is because most of these women cannot find a suitable mate within the own race. “This shortage reflects many structural factors, one of those factors is Deteriorating employment conditions, especially in urban areas, often discourage young African American men from getting married” (Jones, ASID, IIDA, IDEC, Phyllis Sloan Allen, pg. 2243). Another reason is black men are more prone to an earlier death due to the dangerous job they endure, additionally, the seem to have a higher rating were health issues like heart disease plays a factor; as well as lack of receiving adequate medical care. Additionally,

In 1967, the decision made by the Loving v. Virginia court case established that interracial relationships would be legal, and all laws against it would be invalidated (Loving v. Virginia). Afterwards, many biracial children were born, which created a new problem for those with different cultural backgrounds. People of different cultures face many troubling issues separate from the problems most White Americans have to face. The most offensive and abusive issue is racism. Racism is a major life-changing issue in society that hurts a majority of the ethnic cultures. A study reports, “Overall, 58% of Americans say racism is a “big problem in our society” (Neal). This shocking realization puts in the perspective the many issues that ethnic people endure. Although, biracial adolescents have to face racism in a different form. These adolescents aren’t accepted in society due to their

The law forbidding interracial marriage was terminated in 1967, and in the midst of rapid racial change, one fact is unmistakable: A growing number of Americans are showing that we all can get along by forming relationships and families that cross all color lines. In the past couple decades, the number of interracial marriages has increased dramatically. Interracial dating and marrying is described as the dating or marrying of two people of different races, and it is becoming much more common to do so. Thirty years ago, only one in every 100 children born in the United States was of mixed race. Today, the number is one in 19. In some states, such as California and Washington, the number is closer to one in 10 (Melting Pot).

It has been suggested that interethnic and interracial couples may be more vulnerable in comparison to monoethnic and monoracial couples; as these relationships may generate unique dynamics and issues (Leslie & Young, 2015). Past research, predominantly through qualitative approaches, has focused on conflicts that