Modern-day interracial love is affected by a history of slavery and discrimination.
On Tuesday, Feb. 13, the Black/ African-American Cultural Center hosted an event about interracial love for Valentine’s Day and Black History Month. There were many questions around the way that people thought about interracial love and how African-American history affects the way that African-American men and women are seen in interracial relationships today in the United States. The discussion was mainly focused on how people feel about the way that society views interracial relationships and why.
“It varies by communities, but I think each community views interracial relationships differently. What I can say about that is our country is more towards understanding of interracial relationships today,” junior health and exercise major Ahonsi Ohimai said. “We are a more understanding state than I would say 20-30 years ago, they are looked at differently and they are more understanding throughout the communities.”
For some, people in interracial relationships can be targeted by their own race because they want to date out of it. For African-American women, dating a white man can be a loss of power because of the history of slavery and oppression. They also discussed how this affects mixed-race children.
Interracial love has been political with people being restricted from being able to be in interracial relationships because of their race … There’s no interracial relationships without the race part of it.” -Amanda West, junior sociology major
The topic of discussion kept on going back to the reason why people view races differently in interracial relationships, and how interracial relationships can be seen as positive to people who believe they are negative.
“Interracial relationships are cool, as long as you’re both in it together,” said Kwuajzrel Yearby, who attended the event. “For people who are against your race and against your relationship, you have to talk about these situations … and actually figure it out and come at it realistically in knowing that people aren’t going to understand where you’re coming from,” Yearby said. “So it’s your job to educate them and understand that it’s all about love.”
The discussion continued with the race aspect of interracial love and why society views race as such a large thing in relationships. Participants discussed how minds have changed throughout the last hundred years and how that affects where we are today. Even though minds have changed, prominent people like Kim Kardashian want black features without being black.
In 2015, 17 percent of U.S. newlyweds were married to a person of a different race or ethnicity.
“Race has been constructed throughout the world, through colonization, through imperialism,” junior sociology major Amanda West said. “Interracial love has been political with people being restricted from being able to be in interracial relationships because of their race, states. There’s no interracial relationships without the race part of it”
Collegian reporter Isabelle Rayburn can be reached at entertainment@collegian.com or on Twitter @Seiss_Diosaa.
