Marriages in the Mix

By Joshua Brown

It was 41 years ago, with a couple named the Lovings, that America experienced a drastic change in the way marriage and life had been perceived for centuries. Interracial marriages and their impact on not only our nation but also the world are continuously gaining acceptance amongst all.

When people think of the term interracial, it is automatically assumed that the couple consists of an African American and a white person. This is not always the case. Interracial can also consist of every other culture, ethic group, etc.

In the 1970’s, there were approximately 310,000 mixed marriages, which was only .7 perfect of all marriages. In 1980, there were 651,000 (3.1 percent) and in 1992, there were 1,161,000 (2.2 percent) marriages of mixed races according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Interracial marriages have touched every single social class in America. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, civil rights leader Julian Bond, Defense Secretary William Coheen and actor Robert DeNiro are all married to a person of another race. Celebrities like President-Elect Barack Obama, New York Yankee Derek Jeter and Pro golfer Tiger Woods are all children of interracial marriages.

It has not been easy for the interracial couples to live a normal married life. Statistically, the National Center for Health Statistics reported that interracial couples break up 41 percent of the time with in 10 years, compared to same race couples who are only 31 percent likely to break up. Kim Cox, who married an African American man, said, “Your life is going to be harder because of the road you’ve chosen-it’s going to be harder for your kids.”

Older people are less likely to accept mixed relationships, due to their upbringing and the way things were when they were growing up. Some people still believe that the Bible states it’s a sin to marry another race. Most of our parents went to elementary school or middle school when segregation was still in place. Opinion polls have shown that younger people are more supportive when it comes to interracial dating.

Over the past 50 years, the acceptance of interracial marriages has grown steadily. In 2001, the New York Times did a study that came up with the following: In 1972, 29 percent approved of interracial marriages and 60 percent disapproved, in 1991, 48 percent approved and 42 percent disapproved, and in 2001, 65 percent approved and 26 percent still disapproved. Through these numbers it was also shown that African Americans are more accepting than whites of interracial marriages.

South Africa, Australia, Canada and the U.S. have all, at some point, banned mixed race marriages. However, time has been on couples’ sides as people from around the world have become more accepting to this phenomenon that was unfamiliar to them growing up. Hopefully now people can realize that it is not about race, but rather it is about happiness.