* Editor’s Note: This post is part of a symposium commemorating the 50th anniversary of the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling in Loving v. Virginia. Other contributions come from Matthew Pinsker and Serena Mayeri.
It almost happened: an amendment to the U.S. Constitution banning interracial marriage. Sounds crazy, right? Not to Congressman Seaborn Roddenbery of Georgia. He introduced a bill to propose such an amendment in January of 1913, a time when 30 states outlawed interracial marriage. His words to Congress are shocking by modern standards:
Intermarriage between whites and blacks is repulsive and averse to every sentiment of pure American spirit. It is abhorrent and repugnant. It is subversive to social peace.
Ultimately (and fortunately), this bill was defeated, but it was only one moment in a struggle for marriage equality that spans centuries and has affected millions of people across the globe. At the center of that narrative is a couple from Caroline County, Virginia named Richard and Mildred Loving.
Richard was white. Mildred was black and Native American. They were not wealthy or politically minded. They were in love. However, interracial relationships were quite illegal in that state (and 23 others) in 1958.
To avoid the interracial marriage ban in Virginia, they traveled to Washington, DC to be legally married. They didn't realize that returning to Virginia as a married couple was illegal. Their wedding certificate, which they proudly displayed, could serve as evidence against them in a court of law.
The police came into the Lovings' home one night and found them asleep in bed. They were arrested for the crime of being married and were brought to jail. This was not the whim of a single police officer. It was the law:
If any white person intermarry with a colored person, or any colored person intermarry with a white person, he shall be guilty of a felony and shall be punished by confinement in the penitentiary for not less than one year nor more than five years.
A judge gave them a choice: serve one year in prison (the minimum sentence), or leave Virginia for 25 years. Given these options, the Lovings left for Washington, DC. Though they were married there, they had difficulty living there. City life was unfamiliar. Their son was injured in a car accident. Family was far away. But in the background, the civil rights movement was gaining momentum.
Mildred Loving made a bold move. She wrote a letter to Attorney General Robert Kennedy to ask for help. He passed the request to the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), who assigned two young lawyers to the case: Bernard Cohen and Philip J. Hirschkop. Together, these lawyers guided the Lovings through the latter part of a nine-year ordeal of uncertainty and appeals. Caroline County Circuit Court Judge Leon M. Bazile responded to one such appeal with these words:
Almighty God created the races white, black, yellow, malay and red, and he placed them on separate continents. And but for the interference with his [arrangement] there would be no cause for such marriages. The fact that he separated the races shows that he did not intend for the races to mix.
By denying their appeal, Judge Bazile actually helped the Lovings to bring their case through higher courts. Ultimately, their case came before the U.S. Supreme Court in 1967.
The state of Virginia had to justify bans on interracial marriage. From a historical perspective, this was actually the easier side of the argument. There were hundreds of years of laws and courtroom precedents to support their position.
On the other side, the Lovings' lawyers argued that Richard, Mildred, and their children had the right to equal protection under the law guaranteed by the 14th Amendment. These rights, they argued, were being denied on the basis of race:
You have before you today what we consider the most odious of the segregation laws and the slavery laws, and our view of this law, we hope to clearly show, is that this is a slavery law.
They also quoted Richard Loving himself, who said "...tell the Court I love my wife and it is just unfair that I can't live with her in Virginia."
On June 12th, 1967, the Supreme Court ruled in favor of the Lovings with a unanimous decision. Chief Justice Earl Warren wrote:
The Fourteenth Amendment requires that the freedom of choice to marry not be restricted by invidious racial discriminations. Under our Constitution, the freedom to marry, or not marry, a person of another race resides with the individual, and cannot be infringed by the State.
Over the years, 35 states outlawed marriage between those considered to be white and those considered non-white: black, Asian, Hispanic, Native American, and more. That number dropped to 16 states by 1967. After the Loving decision, states could no longer enforce laws against interracial marriage. But the story does not end there.
Not every state was enthusiastic about the Loving decision. A clause against interracial marriage stayed in South Carolina State Constitution until 1998. In Alabama, a similar clause remained in the state constitution until 2000.
The prejudice towards interracial couples continues. A Gallup poll shows that 87% in the U.S. approve of black-white interracial marriage (according to their most recent numbers in 2013). While this is a significant improvement from 4% approval in 1958 (the year the Lovings were married), we still have important work to do as a society. That’s where you come in.
Every year, thousands of people around the world celebrate the anniversary of Loving v. Virginia as “Loving Day” on or around June 12th. It’s an opportunity to educate others, and to build diverse community. Loving Day is a shared tradition for anyone who values equality, though it’s especially popular among interracial couples and their children.
Loving Day has inspired more than celebrations. Couples choose to get married on Loving Day. There’s an official Loving Day song you can sing with your own personal style. You can read an excellent fictional novel titled Loving Day. You can buy a Loving Day wedding band with the docket number of the Supreme Court case engraved on it. The list grows every year. And since 2017 is the 50th anniversary of the case, it may grow more than usual.
At the heart of Loving Day, everyone is encouraged to host a Loving Day Celebration of any size for friends and family, and perhaps the general public. The celebrations take many forms: picnics, barbecues, film screenings (the Oscar-nominated film Loving is an excellent choice) concerts, dinners, potlucks, religious services, and beyond.
This historical narrative is not yet complete which is why it is important to celebrate the Lovings and their legacy with friends, family and strangers alike. The path of equality becomes that much brighter by remembering this remarkable couple and their legacy in American culture.
Ken Tanabe is the founder of Loving Day. (Photo credit: Willie Davis)
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