Today, June 12, is Loving Day. This commemorates the day that interracial marriage was declared legal in all 50 states by a Supreme Court decision in 1967.
I’m not a huge fan of Valentine’s Day. As my husband so eloquently put it, “I don’t want to do kind things for you because someone told me I have to.” Not to mention the date may be the date St. Valentine died, we aren’t for certain due to poor records. Its mostly just based on legend. But this is not based on a legend. Loving Day has excellent record of its occurrence. And as a person in an interracial marriage, it holds much more significance to me than a possible man in ancient Rome.
Its also a strong reminder that my marriage would’ve been illegal 50 years ago. To a younger me, that is a long time, but in the span of time, the span of even American history, that is incredibly recent. We like to think issues like this were dealt with in times past, that they are ancient history, but they aren’t.
So, Loving Day is our Valentine’s Day.
An article was written in USA Today that gives a good history of the event that made Loving Day, and why it is called what it is. I encourage you to read it, as it recaps that day and our current day much better than I can.
Dose of Sunshine 