So much change within my lifetime.
Blacks' approval of black-white marriage (96%) is now nearly universal, while whites' approval is 12 percentage points lower, at 84%.
Approval of black-white marriage is higher among younger Americans, and lowest among those 65 and older. Americans living in the South are slightly below average in their approval, while approval is above average among those in the West. Similar patterns were evident in 2011.
Census data indicate that black-white marriages in reality remain fairly rare -- although they have increased from 167,000 in 1980 to 558,000 in 2010, they still represent less than 1% of all married couples. The major shift in attitudes about such unions, however, is a telling indicator of the general shift in views of racial matters on many fronts in the U.S. over the last five decades.More data and analysis at the Gallup website.
During the pre-Obergefell same-sex marriage debates I talked to many people who said, "It should be up to the voters to decide, not the courts."
ReplyDeleteThe fact that interracial marriages would, theoretically, have remained illegal for more than twenty-seven years after the Loving v. Virginia case was something I often cited.
I can remember my mother telling me and my sister that white people and black people made 'zebra babies' together, and that was NOT a good thing... even though we both thought zebra people would be cool and wondered why we never saw any at the shopping mall.
ReplyDeleteThis makes me sad, a full 13 people out of 100 still admit to not liking different "races" marrying...
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