Interracial Relationships free essay sample

Intermarriage is one of the most provocative words in the English language. Clotye Murdock Larsson, Marriage Across the Color Line Not every interracial couple is free from racism, even in todays modern world. Racism, although it being a very derogatory and controversial term, is very much alive in modern day society. Even though racial tensions had progressively subsided during the years, some people still have trouble accepting the concept of todays multiracial society. These strong racial identities and lingering prejudices, particularly toward African Americans, limit this most intimate form of integration. Racial tension predominated in the 1960s, and it influenced the view people had on interracial relationships. That mentality: however, has had little change since then. Back in the day, the talk of interracial relationships or anything of the sort vas looked down upon. Actually, if someone were to be involved in an interracial relationship in those times, that person would have definitely been shunned, mistreated, or possibly abused. We will write a custom essay sample on Interracial Relationships or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Racial tension and discrimination were a part of the daily lives for couples that didnt have that kind of mentality. Interracial couples in the 1960s certainly struggled with gaining acceptance, especially from the members of the white community. The white community was not only one of the largest races in the U. S. at the time but it was also the most dominating class with the most authority in the 1960s. Though situations have changed, racism is still systemic and webbed across all sectors of the society. Whites still dominate almost every major organization such as economic, legal, political and educational (Feagin. Par. 1 pg. 25). Whites had the power to choose what was right nd what was wrong, making interracial relationships, in their eyes, a wrong. Whites in the 1960s dominated major organizations as some whites do today and as a result, the whites of the 60s were able to manipulate and control virtually all of the media. If any news of a colored person or mixed couple was revealed, whites could negotiate to not let such news be released to the public. They would mostly conceal negative news such as abuse, murder, and rape of colored people. Actually, many enslaved women have accounts-sometimes numerous- of sexual exploitation y white men (Feagin. ast Par. Pg. 46). Despite the hostile situation that colored people and people in interracial relationships had to go through, the numbers of biracial relationships kept on growing through the years. The popular media continuously reported the blurring boundaries between racial and ethnic groups ( Lewis. Par. l pg. l ). There began an increase in the number of int erracial marriages. Information from the U. S. Census Bureau was used to analyze changes in the number and frequency of interracial marriages in American society over a 22-year time frame ( Lewis. Par. l pg. l ). As part of the census the Bureau reported that in the 1990s there were interracial marriages, compared to 651,000 in 1980 (Interracial Marriage. Par. 3). This rise in number is clearly an indication that the relations between the races have improved over the past century, but undoubtedly, theres still a long way to go. Just because there was an increase in interracial marriage does not mean that there is an automatic decrease in racism. For there to be a decrease in racism there n s to be a will to change and an acceptance of reality. The beginning of mostly all opinions and ideas develop in the home environment. Family members share thoughts and ideas throughout the course of an entire lifetime. This could ultimately result in people approving of incorrect assumptions, which they choose to believe is true, one of those assumptions being that integrating different races in not right. Studies have shown that, in general, Caucasians- which are people from the white race- tend to disapprove of the interracial marriages , while blacks tend to approve of them (Interracial Marriage Par. 6). There are many examples of how kind of situation is viewed in real life. One example of this can be seen in the motion picture of Corrina, Corrina. In this movie Corrinas sister, Mannys mother, and a nosy neighbor all express their disapproval of Manny and Corrinas interracial romance (Corrina, Corrina Par. 1). A situation such as this one explains how culturally divided our world still is. Of course, there is a positive side to entering a biracial relationship. It is said that intermarriage can be viewed as a barometer of the extent to which racial oundaries are atrophying (Golebiowska. Par. l). This means that intermarriage has a way of blurring the lines between the races thus creating a more cohesive and integrated ambiance for everyone. Families, in general, whether they are Chinese, African American, Hispanic, etc. , tend to lean towards what is familiar or close to them. As it mentions in the book Coping with Interracial Dating, parents may find different people to be Just that- different. Some people only accept what is familiar- their own race, background, religion and opinions (Nash. Par. 5 pg. 6).