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.

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9780700619993

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Reviews

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

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

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

Author Information

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

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