Forty-two years ago, the landmark Supreme Court decision of Loving vs. Virginia outlawed the anti-miscegenation statute in the state of Virginia and, subsquently, across the nation. The story started with a couple in love: Mildred Jeter, black, and Richard Loving, white, who decided to marry in D.C., where the racist laws preventing their union did not hold up. After being harassed by law enforcement officials about their “illegal” marriage, the two filed lawsuit after lawsuit until it finally reached the doorstep of the United States Supreme Court.
There, the 9 justices voted unanimously in their favor, abolishing the old laws preventing interracial couples from marrying. This monumental decision made it possible for millions of interracial couples to marry and build loving homes for some of the most outstanding individuals in our nation’s history, including our president, Barack Obama!
In honor of this monumental victory and this positive step in the direction of a multicultural global society, lovingday.org has created a a holiday which, incidentally, is today. Are you celebrating?
How has multiculturalism touched your life? Are you bi-racial or multi-racial? Tell us about your experience here!
WATCH Obama’s “A More Perfect Union” Speech here:
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