VOICE: INTERRACIAL COUPLING

Apr 15, 2011 TONI S TRENDING WITH EZ 0

---

“Race is becoming less of a deal in dating,” says Kriss Turner, a television writer and producer from Los Angeles who wrote the screenplay for the movie Something New . The ensemble cast features Sanaa Lathan, Simon Baker, Alfre Woodard and Blair Underwood in a tale of a single black woman who finds her dreams of marrying an “ideal black man” shattered by her attraction to a white guy.

The generation that followed generation X, is more tolerant and less concerned about color in matters of selecting a mate.
Unlike their parents and grandparents, today’s teens and twentysomethings grew up with “diversity,” “multicultural” and “inclusion” as buzzwords. Many were required to take college courses in cultural diversity. Now the media fuel this colorblindness as movies, TV and advertising portray interracial friendship and romance. (Related story: Outside the race box)

Some attitudinal changes are based in demographics. About 33% of those under 18 are racial or ethnic minorities, and about 20% of elementary- and high school-age students are immigrants or children of immigrants, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

USA TODAY 2/2006

Interracial marriages at an all-time high, study says

Asian. White. Black. Hispanic. Do race and ethnicity matter when it comes to marriage?

Apparently, race is mattering less these days, say researchers at the Pew Research Center, who report that nearly one out of seven new marriages in the U.S. is interracial or interethnic. The report released Friday, which interviewed couples married for less than a year, found racial lines are blurring as more people choose to marry outside their race.

“From what we can tell, this is the highest [percentage of interracial marriage] it has ever been,” said Jeffrey Passel, a senior demographer for the Pew Research Center.

He said interracial marriages have soared since the 1980s. About 6.8 percent of newly married couples reported marrying outside their race or ethnicity in 1980. That figure jumped to about 14.6 percent in the Pew report released this week, which surveyed newlyweds in 2008.

CNN: INTERRACIAL MARRIAGES AT AN ALL TIME HIGH

Though this issue is becoming alot less stigmatized, the justifications of marrying outside of ones race merely on the basis of self or intraracial hatred is a matter that is rarely mentioned. THE REASONS…

If individuals truly love another on the basis of character, intellect, heart and spirit then blessings to you. However, there are those who have convinced themselves that their children will have it better if they were lighter or of mixed heritage and with “good hair”. There are those who truly believe that their existance would be better if a “certain” type of individual was present on their arm at certain functions. It is this type of psychological implosion that is of dire concern to sociologists & resolute community stakeholders.

A type of internal racism has been present for years and has steered historical decisions regarding “what you bring home”. African American mentalities like “lighter than a paper bag” and “light is right, if they are black step back” were founded upon this embedded learned conditioning.

In order to attain and maintain a certain hue in many black families black children were often TAUGHT to ebb away from their own. As previously stated this psychological sabotage is the point of contention not whether it is abjectly wrong to marry one of another race.

Have WE evolved away from those notions or is this topic evidence that the conditioning has taken hold? What would the world be if everyone were everything? Would there be any culture at all?

Misperceptions driven by personal gain has caused some of our people to abandon ship and that is entirely a threat to the future of an intact community.

CHOICES/SOLUTION:
1. Be extremely honest about your motives when engaging in ANY relationship.

2. Be open to loving ANY individual with whom you spiritually, intellectually, and physically connect.

3. Learn to love yourself and all that comes with who YOU really are before attempting to bring ANYONE into your world. Whether black, white, gray, yellow or orange -humanity will survive based on the geniune choices we make today.

The panelists for the show…

LISTEN TO THE SHOW>>> INTERRACIAL DATING/MARRIAGE; Is it that big of a deal anymore?

---