Notes From D.R. | Random Thoughts on the Passing Scene

The Washington Post and the Boston Herald ran interesting stories this weekend about this Friday’s release of Something New, a romantic comedy about a black woman (Sanaa Lathan) who shocks her social circle when she falls in love with a white man (Simon Baker). Both articles lamented the fact that, nearly forty years after Loving v. Virginia, interracial relationships are still considered controversial in some circles.

It’s not a surprise that such relationships are still considered taboo in certain quarters; though legal segregation is dead and gone, there is still an unfortunately high amount of psychological segregation in the United States, especially when it comes to issues of romance and dating. The implicit pressure to "stick with one’s own kind" still looms large in many minds.

It is lamentable that four decades after the death of legal segregation, American society still has to struggle with the problems posed by psychological segregation–the belief that racial "loyalty" or "solidarity" trumps all other considerations. Attacks on people who choose to date outside of their race, as well as attacks on those who contradict the cultural and political preferences of other members of their ethnic group, are manifestations of such psychological segregation.

Criticizing a black woman for dating a white man reveals not only insecurity, but also an odd desire to maintain racial lines of demarcation in a post-Civil Rights era. Those who desire "racial unity" are blind to the fact that such "unity" inevitably leads to racial chauvinism, which inevitably leads to racial conflict. The Post article notes that at one point, a black character accuses Lathan of "sleeping with the enemy." The designation of the white man as the "enemy" tells you all you need to know about this mentality.

There are many people who consider dating outside of their race, but ultimately elect not to for fear that their families may disapprove. While there are times in which such disapproval is based on legitimate "cultural" differences, there are also times in which such disapproval is based on little more than, well, black and white. In these cases, the perversity of psychological segregation is fully exposed, as inevitably the objection boils down to a fear that such dating will result in marriage, thus "diluting" the perceived racial "stock" of the family in question. If the question of culture is moot–i.e., if the person happens to be of a different race but does not embrace a self-destructive lifestyle–then the objection to a potential marriage is based solely on a fear that the introduction of "new blood" to the family will somehow send the family downhill. This is, of course, the mentality that the US Supreme Court rejected in Loving.

It’s unfortunate that in 2006, there are people who still believe that the "integrity" of each race must be preserved by frowning upon interracial dating and prospective marriage even when cultural differences are moot. This psychological segregation is a malady that prevents the full realization of Martin Luther King’s dream. It appears, then, that this movie will end up giving a few people nightmares.

UPDATE: Simon Baker and Sanaa Lathan on the movie.