Loving v. Virginia, 388 U.S. 1 (1967)
Facts:
Richard Loving was a white man who married Mildred Jeter, a black woman in the District of Columbia in June 1958. The now married couple decided to move back to their home in Virginia. However, upon return they were charged with violating the Racial Integrity Act as it remained illegal to marry outside of one's race in the state.
The Lovings were to be sentenced to one year in prison, however, the trial judge made an exception and stated that if they were to not return to Virginia for 25 years they would not face jail time. The Lovings decided to move back to the District of Columbia but longed to return to their home and family in Virginia. The judge stated the following; “Almighty God created the races white, black, yellow, malay and red, and he placed them on separate continents. And, but for the interference with his arrangement, there would be no cause for such marriage. The fact that he separated the races shows that he did not intend for the races to mix.”
Issue:
The issue being discussed was if Virginia’s marriage laws, which prohibited interracial marriages, was a violation of the Equal Clause and Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution.
Decision:
The Supreme Court unanimously ruled that Virginia's marriage laws were a violation of the Equal Protection Clause and the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment.
Reasoning/Rational:
The court's reasoning was that the Lovings were being deprived of their fundamental rights to marriage as a result of their race which in turn was a violation of their conditional rights.
Significance:
This case was a landmark ruling in which the United States clearly indicated to its population that they no longer would be standing with the racist laws which they once had. Loving v. Virginia therefore celebrates the practise of equality, love, and hope for a better future.
References
Justia. (n.d.). Loving v. Virginia, 388 U.S. 1 (1967). Justia Law. https://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/388/1/#:~:text=Virginia%2C%20388%20U.S.%201%20(1967)&text=A%20unanimous%20Court%20struck%20down,Clauses%20of%20the%20Fourteenth%20Amendment.
Комментарии