Love and Race

“Love and Race” was written by Nicholas D. Kristoff for the December 6, 2002 edition of New York Times. Kristoff’s main purpose for writing this essay was to give a recount of the recent history of inter-racial relationships in America. He gives an example of how far we have come; starting in 1958 in North Carolina, a 9 year old black boy was kissed on the cheek by a white girl. The mother found out about it and called the cops. This 9 year old boy was arrested and charged with rape. He was thrown in prison, sentenced for 14 years, but thankfully was released due to an outcry. Kristoff continues to explain that in a 1963 poll, 59% of Americans believed black and white marriage should be illegal. Segregationists of the mid-to-late 20th century thought that giving black people more rights would eventually lead to inter-racial marriage. To their dismay, they were correct! Kristoff conducted some research down in Mississippi, the state he named to be the capital of racism, and found that at Ole Miss University, even though there were some inter-racial relationships, people felt that it was strange and a touchy subject. Kristoff also found that even today, these inter-racial partners were unwilling to talk about their relationship.
It is obvious that we, as a nation, have come a long way from our segregated, racist past. For example, black males can be found with white girls on TV, and vice-versa. It is an unfortunate part of our history, when our minorities were scrutinized and looked down upon. However, it is still not perfect. No matter where you are, Mississippi, Chicago, New York, L.A., you will still find people who discriminate against other races, shame on them. I also feel that, with affirmative action, we are still recognizing that there is a difference between blacks and whites. Schools and employers should recognize the more qualified individual, whether he or SHE, is white, black, Asian, Hispanic, etc. As far as inter-racial relationships, more power to them. My aunt married a black man and they seem to be perfectly happy and in love, not to mention he is one of the cooler guys I’ve met. I think, especially with older people, there is still a quiet mutter of black and white marriage being weird, or even wrong. But personally, those people need to get over it, it is the way it is and should be if they so choose. Being white, I can never fully understand what it would be like being a minority here in America, but I still hear every once in a while how a black friend or someone else has been discriminated against; that is disgraceful. I suppose I could rant forever about how we are moving forward, but even still, we are not quite where we need to be in terms of equality.