Interracial Relations and MarriagesOutlineThesis statement,: The United States has witnessed a considerable social andcultural desegregation of Black and Caucasian Americans. However, despite yearsof desegregation, racial and cultural differences still exist. I show thesedifferences still exist in the institution of marriage. 1. Americans have beenand are continually moving slowly away from segregation. A.
Since the 1960’sBlacks have been allowed to move into mainly Caucasian neighborhoods. B. Integration on campuses is now more apparent then ever before. 1.
Studentscat together. 2. Students study together, C. Black and Caucasianissues have converged. 11,notwithstanding these examples of desegregation,there are still signs, most clearly is apparent in the institution of marriagebetween Black and Caucasians.
Ill. One of the major barrier. -, of interracial marriages lies in the familyof the couples. A.
Louis, a Caucasian women, and Chuck, a Black man, weremarried in 1960. 1 . They have no prejudice about each other. emailprotected have mixed group of friends. 3,They had problems with family.
a)Louis mother had asked her whyshe could not marry her own kind. b)This conflict finally caused the tiesbetween mother and daughter to break. B. Mama, a Caucasian Jewish, married a Black. I.
None of her family members attended her wedding except her mother. 2. Her father told her that he could not believe that she married a Black. Nevertheless, she survived her family disapproval. IV.
An unlikely source of problems for interracial married couples comesfrom religion. A. The majority of interracial married couples involved inChristian churches before marriage discontinue church membership and attendanceafter marriage. B.
Couples search for churches that are like home. C. They are met with resistance from religious people who have been reported tohave said that if their children married a Black person, they would kill them. D. Every couple has their own crisis, but for some, the church officialswho are against divorce will turn around and recommend a separation. .
. . becausethe couple are a Black and a Caucasian. V. These churches need to face agrowing phenomenon.
1. In the Old Testament, God strongly opposesintermarriage. a)Ezra and Nehemiah challenge the people to repent overintermarriage. They describe it as Israel’s most sinful offense. 2.
A closerlook at the passage reveals something else. a)Opposition to intermarriagearises when people of God marry those who worship a God other then Yahweh-B. The church must repent not only from bad theology but also for failing toprotest racist laws in the past. VI.
The law is equally to blame for thesegregation, by causing tensions. A. Edgar and Jean and had twice stopped bythe police because they were walking hand in hand, but more so, because theywere Black and Caucasian. B.
Law that supports the “one drop” theory. vii. The problems of interracial married couples also extends to their children. A. The Bronzes had sent their daughter to a pajama party at a Black families place.
When they picked their daughter up the host family was surprised to see that herfather was Caucasian. B. Older children of interracial married parentsalso face problems. 1. They have to decided which parents’ culture to adopt.
2. They have to decided if they are Black or Caucasian. With all these problems, what brings these Black and Caucasian people together?A. Opportunity that an educated partner provides.
B. How the partnerperceives the beauty of the other. C. The ability to communicate. D.
The main reason, love. ix. It can be seen quite clearly that there are still attitudes that supportsegregation. A. It could possibly be true that the only way to makechanges involving segregation, is through marriage. Interracial Relations: MarriagesThe United States has witnessed a considerable amount of social and culturaldesegregation of Blacks and Caucasians.
However, despite years of desegregation,social and cultural differences still exists. These differences still exist inthe institution of marriage. Americans have been and are continually movingslowly away from segregation. In the past forty years a multitude of changeshave transformed schools, jobs, voting booths, neighborhoods, hotels,restaurants and even the wedding altar, facilitating tolerance for racialdiversity ( Norman 108 ).
Since the 1960’s, when housing discrimination wasoutlawed, many Blacks moved into mainly Caucasian neighborhoods. The steadilygrowing areas in the west and south-west are least segregated, because theseareas never had the entrenched Black and Caucasian sections of town ( “Up Forseparatist’ 30 ). Even more visible signs of desegregation can be seen in theareas of education. A study done by the University of Michigan shows thatintegration on campuses occur on a regular basis. The racial line are crossedroutinely; about 50% of Blacks and 15% of Caucasians reportedly study together. Eating patterns also share the same similarities.
At a social level there hasbeen a steady convergence of opinion on a variety of racial issues. Since 1972,surveys have asked whether the respondent would favor a law making inter-racialmarriages illegal. In 11980 the results showed that 3 0, I% of Caucasians and18. 3% of Blacks favor such a law.
By 1994, the collected data showed 14. 7% and3. 2% respectively. Similar trends have also been observed in busing and evenintegrated social clubs ( “Up For Separatist’ 3 0 ). A simple analysis showsthat on the surface desegregation is moving in the right direction.
Notwithstanding these examples of desegregation, a deeper analysis shows thatthere are still signs of racial discriminations; most apparently seen in theinstitution of marriage between Blacks and Caucasians. The United States bureauof the Census reported that in 1987 over 827,000 interracial married couplesexisted in America, of which fewer than 200,000 of them were between Blacks andCaucasians ( Herring 29 ). These numbers ( census ) do not reflect the spread ofdesegregation very well. If there is such a large spread of desegregationbetween Blacks and Caucasians from the past to the present, then the numbersshould reflect a much larger count of interracial marriages between these races. This however, is untrue; therefore there are less apparent barriers Black andCaucasian couples face.
One of the major barriers that face these couples doesnot come from themselves but rather from family disapproval. Lois, a Caucasianwomen, and her husband Chuck Bronz, a Black man, were married in 1960. Theyhave no prejudice about each other and they share the comfortable rhythm of anylong married couple. They had no problems with friends because they had a goodmix of them from different races; friends who looked at the person not the color. However, they had problems with other people, namely Lois’s mother.
Her motherhad sat her down and asked her why she could not marry her own kind. Lois, ofcourse, stood firm and married Chuck, which unfortunately resulted in the tiesbetween her mother and herself breaking Kantrowitz 40 Rebun, a Black Jewish man,married Mama, a Caucasian Lutheran women. None of Mama’s relatives attended thewedding, except for her mother. Mama’s father was finious that he was expectedto accept a Black, and a Jew, into the family ( Aunapu, Monroe, Sachs and Taylor65 ).
It is not the disfavor of strangers that hurts these couples the most, butrather the disfavor of family. Territa, a Black women, had broken up with Todd,her Caucasian husband, several times before getting married because of theinitial reaction of Todd’s family ( Randolph 154 ). These people neverthelesssurvived their family disapproval. Fred and Anita Prinzing, both Caucasians,know the troubles of interracial marriage. Both their son and daughter marriedBlacks.
Fred and Anita responded that they thought that they were notprejudiced, and were proud of it; but when it came to their children, they couldnot explain their prejudice towards their children marrying Blacks. The bestexplanation they could give is that their prejudice is the left over residue oftheir parents ( Gilbereath 32 ). Another major barrier that Black and Caucasiancouples encounter comes from an unlikely source, religion. In EarnestPorterfield’s classic survey of interracial marriages, one fact stands out. Themajority of couples actively involved in Christian churches before marriage,discontinue church membership and attendance after marriage. A growing numberof couples in America are crossing racial and cultural lines to many.
Everycouple has their own crisis but, for some, church officials who are againstdivorce will turn around and recommend a separation simply because the coupleare Black and Caucasian. In several books of the Old Testament, intermarriageis strongly opposed by God and his prophets. Ezra and Nehemiah, two of Israel’sGod-ordained leaders, challenged the people to repent over intermarriage andencouraged divorce en masse. They describe intermarriage with those who do notrevere God as one of Israel’s most offense crimes. A closer look at the OldTestament, however, reveals misinterpretation. Opposition to intermarriagearises when people of God many those who worship a God other than Yahweh.
Thesecouples are searching for churches that feel like home. If national trends areany indication, the American churches need to be prepared to face a growingphenomenon. Until that happens interracial married couples will meet withresistance from religious people who have been reported as saying that if theirown children married Blacks, they would kill them ( Perkins 30 ). The churchmust repent not only for bad theology but also for failing to protest racistlaws in the past ( Myra 18 ). The law is equally to blame for causingunnecessary tension. A study of thirty nine “fiddle class Black–Caucasiancouples in New York found that most of these couples had experienced beingpulled over by police who suspected either the Black women to be a prostitute orthe Black man to be a rapist ( Perldns 30 ).
Edger, a Caucasian Jewish man , andJean, a Black Baptist women, on more than one occasion have been stopped andarrested by police because they were walking arm in arm ( Aunapu, Monroe, Sachsand Taylor 65 ). Races have mixed, Going back to the Colonial days. Over time,other races have blended with Caucasians without question. Black mixing,however, has been accountable for the “one drop” theory which has defined a wayto permanently separate Blacks. The “one drop” theory was reinforced in thelandmark Plessy vs. Ferguson Supreme Court ruling in 1986.
The Plaintiff,Homer Plessy, argued that segregation was wrong and he should not bediscriminated against because, after all, he was only one-eighth Black. Thejustices, however, ruled that he must ride in the “separate but equal” coachesreserved for “coloreds. ” Almost I 00 years later, in 1986, the Supreme Court,upheld a decision forcing a Louisiana woman who was only one-thirty second Black,to be legally declared as Black. ( Norinen 108 ). Troubles do not stop here forinterracial married couples.
The problems that are faced by interracial parentsare mirrored in their children. On one occasion the Bronzes had sent theirdaughter, Shelly, who looks Black, to a pajama party. The Bronzes had never metthe family, who are Black, that put up the pajama party and decided that one ofthem should go to say hello. So Chuck, Shelly’s dad, knocked on the door andwas met with disbelief The family was surprised that Shelly’s father was a Black( Kantrowitz 40 ). Older children of interracial marriage parents also faceproblems. They have to make a choice as to which parent’s culture to adopt.
Halle Beny stated that it is important that multicultural individuals make achoice about race early in the life because even if they identify themselves asinterracial they will still be discriminated against as a person of color inthis country ( Norman 108 ). Knowing all these barriers and problems, whatbrings Black and Caucasian people together? According to a study done byMatthijis emailprotected, a factor that is consistently associated with intermarriage issocial class or status. Black outmarriage becomes gradually more common whenmoving up the occupational scale and more common among higher educated Blacks. Among Caucasians the pattern is reversed.
It is believed that Caucasians aremore likely to many a Black spouse when it allows them to many a partner of highsocioeconomic prestige ( 119 ). The appreciation of a partner’s beauty and thecommon; the ability to communicate, and the main reason for marriage, love iswhat bring them together (Randolph 154 It can be seen conclusively, that parents,religion and the attitudes of people, in general, are the main causes to thefriction in interracial relationships and marriages. It is difficult, if notimpossible, to change the attitude of parents, the older generation, toinfluence the churches to accepting the patterns of new thought and identity. The older generation will not change because their ideas and thoughts have beeningrained in them.
The current generation, who are also guilty of causingfriction, and the next generation must be educated to understand and acceptthese patterns of new thought, interracial marriages. Until these attitudes,that support segregation, are suppressed and eventually the only way to makechanges involving segregationChildren of interracial married couples learn tolerance within the family, whichallows these children to ad their experiences to others, in one way or another. Works CitedAunapu, Greg. , et al. , eds.
” Intermarried . . . With Children. ” Time.
Fall1993:64-68. Gilbereath, Edward. ” How Our Children Surprise Us. ” ChristianityT emailprotected .
7 Mar. 1994:32-34. Herring. Roger D.
” Development Biracial Ethnic Identity: A ReviewOf The Increasing Dilemma. ” Journal Of Muliticul tral C)unseline & Development,23. 1 (Jan. 1995): 29-39. Kalniijin, Matthijis. ” Trends in Black/WhiteIntermarriage.
” Social Forces. Sep. 1993:119-147. emailprotected, Barbara. “Colorblind Love. ” Newsweek.
7 Mar 1988:40-42. Nfira, Harold. ” Love In Black And White. ” Christianitv Tod4y. 7Mar.
1994:18-20. Norman, Lynn. ” Am I Black, White Or In Between. ” Ebony. Aug.
1995:108-110. Perkins, Mtaii. ” Guess Who Is Confing To Church. ” ChristianityT emailprotected . 7 Mar. 1994:30-32.
Randolph, Laura B. ” Black Women/White Man: What’s Going On? “EboLny. Mar. 1989:154-158. ” Up for Separatism. ” Economist.
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