| THE "OTHER" LOVE In a dream I hold you close in an embrace When I look at you I see Love's face Unbiased of the differences in our cultures All I want is to be your lover My worst fear is to wake up alone And face the reality that is shown Through social stigmas of what is to be But we share a love they cannot see Fate has brought us together that one night Now our love has soared to a new height Overcoming the prejudices of our forefathers We found a love like no other Despite our divergent backgrounds Our love makes this world goes round Enduring hardships together til we grow old We unite as separate individuals with one soul. |
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| " According to U.S. Census reports, interracial marriages more than doubled between 1980 and 1995. Black/White marriages increased an estimated 96% overall, with Black women marriages to White men increasing 171%. Blacks with other races increased a whopping 124% during the same period." (http://www.askheartbeat.com/html/body_survey7.html) |
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| Interracial married couples |--------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | Black/White | | Year Total | |---------------------------------------| | married | | | Black husband White husband | White/ | Black/ couples | Total | Total | White wife Black wife | Other race* | Other race* ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Current Population Survey (CPS) 1998 55,305 1,348 330 210 120 975 43 1997 54,666 1,264 311 201 110 896 57 1996 54,664 1,260 337 220 117 884 39 1995 54,937 1,392 328 206 122 988 76 1994 54,251 1,283 296 196 100 909 78 1993 54,199 1,195 242 182 60 920 33 1992 53,512 1,161 246 163 83 883 32 1991 53,227 994 231 156 75 720 43 1990 53,256 964 211 150 61 720 33 1989 52,924 953 219 155 64 703 31 (http://www.census.gov/population/socdemo/ms-la/tabms-3.txt) |
| As the population in America becomes more diversified, it is harder to ignore interracial relationships both platonically and romantically. With an increase in the interactions between different cultures, there is more acceptance towards romantic love between different races and cultures. What I have learned about race and relationship is that although the face value of race has decreased among the interactions of different racial groups, it is still high at stake in romantic relationships only because there are so many complications in dealing with different cultural structures. These cultural structures can either make or break the dynamics of an interracial relationship. Nevertheless, as statistics show the increase in the number of interracial marriages, a lot of people are choosing to work through their differences for a chance at finding romantic love. |
| STATISTICS |
| INTERRACIAL LOVE IN FILMS |
| One way in increasing cultural awareness is through the representations of different racial and ethnic groups in films. In spite of the fact that films perpetuate various racial stereotypes like the subservient Asian wives in "The Joy Luck Club" and the black gangster in "Save the Last Dance", films also idealize the romantic love of interracial couples. Films such as "Romeo Must Die" and "Save the Last Dance" portray racial tension through gang rivalry and family ties only to end with love conquers all. Nevertheless, these happy ending do not necessarily reflect real life relationships, but they do give hope to the cultural conflicts between two people of different races. As the media tries to accurately illustrate the struggle of cultural differences and social stigmas of interracial relationships, it raises society's consciousness in accepting such unique relationships. |
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| ETHNOCENTRIC |
| GAZE |