Race, Sex, and the Freedom to Marry: Loving v. Virginia

by Peter Wallenstein

Overview

In 1958 Mildred Jeter and Richard Loving, two young lovers from Caroline County, Virginia, got married. Soon they were hauled out of their bedroom in the middle of the night and taken to jail. Their crime? Loving was white, Jeter was not, and in Virginia—as in twenty-three other states then—interracial marriage was illegal. Their experience reflected that of countless couples across America since colonial times. And in challenging the laws against their marriage, the Lovings closed the book on that very long chapter in the nation's history. Race, Sex, and the Freedom to Marry tells the story of this couple and the case that forever changed the law of race and marriage in America.

The story of the Lovings and the case they took to the Supreme Court involved a community, an extended family, and in particular five main characters—the couple, two young attorneys, and a crusty local judge who twice presided over their case—as well as such key dimensions of political and cultural life as race, gender, religion, law, identity, and family. In Race, Sex, and the Freedom to Marry, Peter Wallenstein brings these characters and their legal travails to life, and situates them within the wider context—even at the center—of American history. Along the way, he untangles the arbitrary distinctions that long sorted out Americans by racial identity—distinctions that changed over time, varied across space, and could extend the reach of criminal law into the most remote community. In light of the related legal arguments and historical development, moreover, Wallenstein compares interracial and same-sex marriage.

A fair amount is known about the saga of the Lovings and the historic court decision that permitted them to be married and remain free. And some of what is known, Wallenstein tells us, is actually true. A detailed, in-depth account of the case, as compelling for its legal and historical insights as for its human drama, this book at long last clarifies the events and the personalities that reconfigured race, marriage, and law in America.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780700620487
Publisher:	University Press of Kansas
Publication date:	12/07/2014
Series:	Landmark Law Cases and American Society
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	300
File size:	1 MB

About the Author

Peter Wallenstein is professor of history at Virginia Tech. He is the author of many books including Cradle of America: A History of Virginia, also from Kansas.

Table of Contents

Editors' Preface
Prologue: Annie's Petition
Introduction
1. Family and Community in Caroline County, Virginia
2. Couples, Courts, and Constitutions
3. Identity and Community in the Midst of Multiple Faiths and Races
4. An American Love Story: Richard Loving and Mildred Jeter
5. Back in Court, 1963-1966
6. Loving v. Virginia and the US Supreme Court
7. After Loving: the Lovings, Their Lawyers, and Caroline County
8. After Loving: Race and Family in America
9. The Freedom to Marry: From Interracial to Same-Sex
Conclusion
Epilogue: Mrs. Loving's Home Going Ceremony, 2008
Chronology
Relevant Cases
Bibliographical Essay
Index

Editorial Reviews

"Wallenstein’s book comes at a key time, as it illuminates not only the specific story of Richard and Mildred Loving but also the legal context and the arc that connected the right of interracial marriage to the right of same-sex marriage."—Journal of American History

"The criminalization of interracial sex and marriage began and ended in the Chesapeake Bay region. In his Race, Sex, and the Freedom to Marry, Peter Wallenstein traces regulation and prohibition of interracial sex and marriage from the colonial era in Virginia and Maryland to the landmark legal sea-changes in the 1960s and beyond. . . . [I]t brings the political and social contexts of the Loving decision especially alive. . . . This reviewer would strongly recommend this work to be required reading for any upper-level undergraduate or graduate course in Virginia or legal history."—Virginia Magazine

"The Loving case not only revolutionized the constitutional relationship between race and marriage but also set in motion and shaped the issue of law and marriage in the first quarter of the 21st century. The work is a clearly written example of the law and society approach that is the hallmark of [the Landmark Law Cases and American Society] series."—Choice


"Classic Wallenstein. This superb work by a proven scholar tracks the intertwining histories of race, gender, law, and religion; it masterfully revisions America’s past and present through the window of the Loving story, a saga of race and marriage."—Arica L. Coleman, author of That the Blood Stay Pure: African Americans, Native Americans and the Predicament of Race and Identity in Virginia

"Peter Wallenstein has crafted a soaring new account of the crucial Loving v. Virginia case. He places the story deep into a centuries old historical context, untangles the complicated tri-racial issues of the case, and provides the best analysis of the decision ever written. This is a skillful and compelling read."—Jonathan Bryant, Professor of History, Georgia Southern University

"Placing the Loving drama in historical context, Wallenstein masterfully guides the reader through the Lovings’ state and federal court battle, examining the attorneys, judges, special interest groups and legal arguments tied to the case. Always sensitive to the historical context, he provides the important backdrop that informs the reader on the larger social and legal changes that affect the Loving saga. Wallenstein assesses the impact of the case on interracial couples in the immediate aftermath of the Supreme Court’s 1967 ruling in favor of the couple. Further, he examines how same-sex couples use the Loving precedent to afford them the right to marry as well. A readable, detailed, and valuable addition to the Loving history."—Charles Robinson, Vice Chancellor, University of Arkansas

From the Publisher - EBOOK COMMENTARY

"Wallenstein’s book comes at a key time, as it illuminates not only the specific story of Richard and Mildred Loving but also the legal context and the arc that connected the right of interracial marriage to the right of same-sex marriage."—Journal of American History

"The criminalization of interracial sex and marriage began and ended in the Chesapeake Bay region. In his Race, Sex, and the Freedom to Marry, Peter Wallenstein traces regulation and prohibition of interracial sex and marriage from the colonial era in Virginia and Maryland to the landmark legal sea-changes in the 1960s and beyond. . . . [I]t brings the political and social contexts of the Loving decision especially alive. . . . This reviewer would strongly recommend this work to be required reading for any upper-level undergraduate or graduate course in Virginia or legal history."—Virginia Magazine

"The Loving case not only revolutionized the constitutional relationship between race and marriage but also set in motion and shaped the issue of law and marriage in the first quarter of the 21st century. The work is a clearly written example of the law and society approach that is the hallmark of [the Landmark Law Cases and American Society] series."—Choice

"Classic Wallenstein. This superb work by a proven scholar tracks the intertwining histories of race, gender, law, and religion; it masterfully revisions America’s past and present through the window of the Loving story, a saga of race and marriage."—Arica L. Coleman, author of That the Blood Stay Pure: African Americans, Native Americans and the Predicament of Race and Identity in Virginia

"Peter Wallenstein has crafted a soaring new account of the crucial Loving  v. Virginia  case. He places the story deep into a centuries old historical context, untangles the complicated tri-racial issues of the case, and provides the best analysis of the decision ever written. This is a skillful and compelling read."—Jonathan Bryant, Professor of History, Georgia Southern University

“Placing the Loving drama in historical context, Wallenstein masterfully guides the reader through the Lovings’ state and federal court battle, examining the attorneys, judges, special interest groups and legal arguments tied to the case. Always sensitive to the historical context, he provides the important backdrop that informs the reader on the larger social and legal changes that affect the Loving saga. Wallenstein assesses the impact of the case on interracial couples in the immediate aftermath of the Supreme Court’s 1967 ruling in favor of the couple. Further, he examines how same-sex couples use the Loving precedent to afford them the right to marry as well. A readable, detailed, and valuable addition to the Loving history.”—Charles Robinson, Vice Chancellor, University of Arkansas

From the Publisher