Although the term “Jim Crow” came from an upbeat show tune (“Jump Jim Crow”), there was nothing upbeat about the laws. Jim Crow laws deprived African Americans of privileges enjoyed by Caucasians. The laws varied from where African Americans could sit on a bus and to what drinking fountains they could use. These Jim Crow laws also controlled who African Americans could or could not marry. Interracial marriage was prohibited during the Jim Crow era (in the mid 1800s). As of today, some people are still prejudice to different races marrying each other, but the percentage of Americans approving of interracial marriage has increased since the Jim Crow era. Jim Crow laws on interracial marriage are no longer legal today, but there are people who still do not accept intermarriage.
All states had different Jim Crow intermarriage laws. In the late 1800’s, Georgia had this law: “It shall be unlawful for a white person to marry anyone except a white person. Any marriage in violation of this section shall be void.” (Race, Racism, and the Law). The goal of this law was to keep the races separate. African American males were not allowed to look at Caucasian females and they were often falsely accused of rape. Whites felt as if they were protecting women by forbidding interracial marriage.
Most states prohibited interracial marriage. However, some states permitted white people and black people to marry. In 1865, Missouri had this law: “All marriages between…white persons and negroes or white persons and Mongolians…are prohibited and declared absolutely void…No person having one-eighth part or more of negro blood shall be permitted to marry any white person, nor shall any white person be permitted to marry any negro or person having one-eighth part or more of negro blood” (African American History, Jim Crow Laws).
While certain states permitted interracial marriage, these unions were not valid out of these states, and were considered a crime. Mildred Jeter (an African American woman) and Richard Loving (a Caucasian man) were married in the District of Columbia in June of 1958. When the Lovings married, interracial marriage was legal in Washington, DC. The Lovings went back to their residence in Virginia after they married. The Circuit Court of Caroline County charged the Lovings for violating Virginia’s ban on interracial marriage. The judge stated, “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.” The judge sentenced the Lovings to one year in jail, but the sentence was discharged after the Lovings agreed not to live in Virginia for 25 years. (Exploring Constitutional Conflicts)
After hearing the Lovings case, on June 12th of1967, the Supreme Court ruled that laws against interracial marriage were unconstitutional in the United States. Although the law forbidding intermarriage was illegal, some people viewed interracial marriage or associations with contempt. People may question a black and white person’s love for each other because they have different skin colors. In the 1980s, my parents had a difficult time gaining acceptance no matter how much they expressed their love for each other.
Not many people could accept the fact that my parents were in love. My mother is Caucasian and my father was African American. Their friends and family were not supportive of their relationship. My grandparents made up their mind before they met my dad. They did not like him because he was African American. My grandpa would always tell my mom that she was more intelligent than my dad, when he did not know much about him. There was a lack of conversation between my grandparents and my dad because he was uncomfortable by their feelings towards him.
Thoughts, ideas, and mindsets are passed on through generations. Parents may pass down their beliefs to their children. That is one way racism is spread without Jim Crow laws being in effect. People may still “live” in the Jim Crow era and continue the way of thinking everyone had during that era. For example, my grandmother’s friend told her that my brother and I would not make friends growing up because of our race.
Children born of interracial parents increased from 460,300 in 1970 to 1.9 million in 1994 (Interracial Marriages and the Effects on Children).While I am a child of interracial parents, I have not had any problems making friends growing up. I have been around people who have made remarks about children of interracial couples/marriages. As a child, I would sometimes be asked “Why are you darker than your mom?” I never took offense to those questions because children are just curious. Today, my skin is no longer compared to my mother’s.
Although there have been no remarks about my skin color, I have come across some people who have made comments on interracial couples. An acquaintance of mine once said, “I don’t know how anyone could date a black person” without them knowing about my parents. Interracial dating and/or marriage will never be universally accepted.
People of different races are permitted to marry today, unlike the Lovings who were punished. While there are no laws to put a stop to the interracial marriages that occur today, there are still people who can not look past intermarriage. Laws don’t always determine a person’s mindset. People should be colorblind and pay more attention character. While people are still racist, there are people who are more accepting of interracial marriage today. Sixty-one percent of White Americans are more likely to approve of such marriages today, compared to four percent in 1958. (Interracial Marriage and the Effects on Children). Though Jim Crow laws occurred about 135 years ago, there is still not a 100% acceptance rate on interracial marriage.
