Array ( [0] => {{Short description|Plaintiffs in the U.S. Supreme Court case Loving v. Virginia}} [1] => {{redirect|Richard Loving|the American artist and educator|Richard Loving (artist)}} [2] => {{Use mdy dates|date=June 2020}} [3] => {{Infobox person [4] => | name = Mildred and Richard Loving [5] => | other_names = [6] => | image = Mildred Jeter and Richard Loving.jpg [7] => | caption = Mildred and Richard Loving in 1967 [8] => | birth_date = {{Br list [9] => | '''Mildred''' [10] => | Mildred Delores Jeter [11] => | {{Birth date|1939|07|22}} [12] => | [[Central Point, Virginia]], U.S. [13] => | '''Richard''' [14] => | Richard Perry Loving [15] => | {{Birth date|1933|10|29}} [16] => | [[Central Point, Virginia]], U.S. [17] => }} [18] => | death_date = {{Br list [19] => | '''Mildred''' [20] => | {{Death date and age|2008|05|02|1939|07|22}} [21] => | [[Milford, Virginia]], U.S. [22] => | '''Richard''' [23] => | {{Death date and age|1975|06|29|1933|10|29}} [24] => | [[Caroline County, Virginia]], U.S. [25] => }} [26] => | occupation = {{Br list [27] => | '''Mildred''' [28] => | [[Housewife]] [29] => | '''Richard''' [30] => | [[Construction worker]] [31] => }} [32] => | children = 3 [33] => | known_for = Plaintiffs in ''[[Loving v. Virginia]]'' (1967) [34] => }} [35] => [36] => '''Mildred Delores Loving''' (née '''Jeter'''; July 22, 1939 – May 2, 2008) and '''Richard Perry Loving''' (October 29, 1933 – June 29, 1975) were an American married couple who were the [[plaintiff]]s in the landmark [[Supreme Court of the United States|U.S. Supreme Court]] case ''[[Loving v. Virginia]]'' (1967). Their marriage has been the subject of three movies, including the 2016 drama ''[[Loving (2016 film)|Loving]]'', and several songs. The Lovings were [[Criminal law|criminally]] charged with [[interracial marriage]] under a [[Virginia]] [[Racial Integrity Act of 1924|statute]] banning such marriages, and were forced to leave the state to avoid being jailed. They moved to Washington, D.C., but wanted to return to their home town. With the help of the [[American Civil Liberties Union]] (ACLU), they filed [[Lawsuit|suit]] to overturn the law. In 1967, the Supreme Court ruled in their favor, striking down the Virginia statute and all [[State law (United States)|state]] [[Anti-miscegenation laws in the United States|anti-miscegenation laws]] as [[Constitutionality|unconstitutional]], for violating due process and equal protection of the law under the [[Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution|Fourteenth Amendment]].''[[Loving v. Virginia]]'' {{ussc|source=j|388|1|1967}} On June 29, 1975, a drunk driver struck the Lovings' car in [[Caroline County, Virginia]]. Richard was killed in the crash, at the age of 41. Mildred lost her right eye. [37] => [38] => With the exception of a 2007 statement on [[LGBT rights in the United States|LGBT rights]], Mildred lived "a quiet, private life declining interviews and staying clear of the spotlight" after ''Loving'' and the passing of her husband.{{Cite web |last=Lopez |first=Tyler |date=2014-02-14 |title=The Simple Justice of Marriage Equality in Virginia |url=https://slate.com/human-interest/2014/02/gay-marriage-in-virginia-is-simple-justice.html |access-date=2022-09-16 |website=Slate Magazine |language=en |quote=The legacy of Loving v. Virginia weighs heavily on the pages of Judge Wright Allen's opinion, which opens with a quote from Mildred Loving—who was a vocal supporter of same-sex marriage—before discussing the case at hand.}}{{Cite web |last=Holland |first=Brynn |title=Mildred and Richard: The Love Story that Changed America |url=https://www.history.com/news/mildred-and-richard-the-love-story-that-changed-america |date=October 28, 2018|access-date=2022-09-16 |website=HISTORY |language=en |quote=Mildred lived a quiet, private life declining interviews and staying clear of the spotlight. She did, however, make a rare exception in June of 2007. On the 40th anniversary of the Loving v. Virginia ruling... [the] devoutly religious Mildred issued a statement that read, in part, "I believe all Americans, no matter their race, no matter their sex, no matter their sexual orientation, should have that same freedom to marry. Government has no business imposing some people's religious beliefs over others. Especially if it denies people's civil rights." There is little doubt about Mildred and Richard's legacy.}}{{Cite news |last=Dominus |first=Susan |date=2008-12-24 |title=The Color of Love |language=en-US |work=[[The New York Times]] |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2008/12/28/magazine/28loving-t.html |access-date=2022-09-16 |issn=0362-4331}} On the 40th anniversary of the decision, she stated: "I am still not a political person, but I am proud that Richard's and my name is on a court case that can help reinforce the love, the commitment, the fairness, and the family that so many people, black or white, young or old, gay or straight, seek in life. I support the freedom to marry for all. That's what ''Loving'', and loving, are all about." Beginning in 2013, the case was cited as precedent in U.S. federal court decisions holding restrictions on [[Same-sex marriage in the United States|same-sex marriage]] unconstitutional, including in the U.S. Supreme Court decision ''[[Obergefell v. Hodges]]'' (2015).{{ussc|name=Obergefell v. Hodges|volume=576|year=2015|docket=14-556}} [39] => [40] => == Early life and marriage == [41] => Mildred Jeter was the daughter of Musial (Byrd) Jeter and Theoliver Jeter.{{cite web |url = http://www.memorialobituaries.com/memorials/memorials_print.cgi?memid=191270 |title = Mildred Loving obituary |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20161027192630/http://www.memorialobituaries.com/memorials/memorials_print.cgi?memid=191270 |archive-date = October 27, 2016 |access-date = October 26, 2016 }} She was born and raised in the small community of [[Central Point, Virginia|Central Point]] in [[Caroline County, Virginia|Caroline County]], Virginia. Mildred identified culturally as [[Indigenous peoples of the Americas|Native American]], specifically [[Rappahannock people|Rappahannock]],{{cite magazine |first=Arica L. |last=Coleman|title= What You Didn't Know About ''Loving v. Virginia'' |magazine = Time |date=June 10, 2016|url = http://time.com/4362508/loving-v-virginia-personas/ |url-status = live |access-date = February 22, 2017 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20170215022952/http://time.com/4362508/loving-v-virginia-personas/ |archive-date = February 15, 2017 }} a historic and now a [[List of federally recognized tribes in the contiguous United States|federally recognized tribe]] in Virginia. (She was reported to have [[Cherokee]], [[Portuguese people|Portuguese]], and [[African Americans|African American]] ancestry.){{cite web |last = Lawing |first = Charles B. |title = ''Loving v. Virginia'' and the Hegemony of 'Race' |url = http://www.charlielawing.com/modhist_lovingv.virginia.pdf |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20070704053526/http://www.charlielawing.com/modhist_lovingv.virginia.pdf |archive-date = July 4, 2007 |access-date = December 10, 2017 }}{{cite news |last = Walker |first = Dionne |date = June 10, 2007 |title = Pioneer of interracial marriage looks back |newspaper = [[USA Today]] |agency = [[Associated Press]] |url = http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/nation/2007-06-10-loving_N.htm |access-date = April 27, 2015 }} She is often described as having Native American and African American ancestry.{{Cite news |last = Staples |first = Brent |date = May 14, 2008 |department = Opinion |title = Loving v. Virginia and the Secret History of Race |language = en-US |work = The New York Times |url = https://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/14/opinion/14wed4.html |access-date = April 8, 2018 |issn = 0362-4331 }}{{cite web |last1=D |first1=Elle |title=Mildred Loving's Grandson Reveals She Didn't Identify, and Hated Being Portrayed, as Black American |url=https://bglh-marketplace.com/2016/11/mildred-lovings-grandson-reveals-she-didnt-identify-and-hated-being-portrayed-as-black-american/ |publisher=bglh-marketplace |access-date=13 June 2021 |archive-date=June 13, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210613171543/https://bglh-marketplace.com/2016/11/mildred-lovings-grandson-reveals-she-didnt-identify-and-hated-being-portrayed-as-black-american/ |url-status=dead }} [42] => [43] => Richard Loving was the son of Lola (Allen) Loving and Twillie Loving. He was also born and raised in Central Point, where he became a construction worker after school.{{Cite book |last = Lavender |first = Abraham |date = 2014 |chapter = Loving, Richard (1933–1975), and Mildred Loving (1939–2008) |title = Culture Wars in America: An Encyclopedia of Issues, Viewpoints, and Voices |editor1-first = Roger |editor1-last = Chapman |editor2-first = James |editor2-last = Ciment |edition = 2nd }} He was European American, classified as white. His father's maternal grandfather, T. P. Farmer, fought for the Confederacy in the Civil War.{{cite magazine |title = The White and Black Worlds of 'Loving v. Virginia' |language = en |magazine = Time |url = http://time.com/4552130/loving-movie-racial-passing-history/ |first=Arica L.|last=Coleman|date=November 4, 2016|access-date = April 8, 2018 }} [44] => [45] => [[Caroline County, Virginia|Caroline County]] adhered to the state's strict 20th-century [[Jim Crow laws|Jim Crow segregation laws]], but Central Point had been a visible mixed-race community since the 19th century. Virginia's [[one-drop rule]], codified in law in 1924 as the Racial Integrity Act, required all residents to be classified as "white" or "colored", refusing to use people's longstanding identification as Indian among several tribes in the state. [46] => [47] => Richard's father worked for one of the wealthiest black men in the county for 25 years. Richard's closest companions were black (or colored, as was the term then), including those he drag-raced with and Mildred's older brothers. "There's just a few people that live in this community," Richard said. "A few white and a few colored. And as I grew up, and as they grew up, we all helped one another. It was all, as I say, mixed together to start with and just kept goin' that way."{{cite web |title = The Loving Couple |url = https://www.theattic.space/home-page-blogs/2019/11/7/the-loving-couple |access-date = January 7, 2020 |website = The Attic |date = November 16, 2019 }} [48] => [49] => The two first met when Mildred was 11 and Richard was 17.{{cite book |author1=Robert A. Pratt |editor1-last=Weisberg |editor1-first=D. Kelly |editor2-last=Appleton |editor2-first=Susan Frelich |title=Modern Family Law: Cases and Materials |date=2015 |publisher=Wolters Kluwer |location=New York |page=135 |edition=6 |language=en |chapter=Crossin the Color Line: A Historical Assessment and Personal Narrative of Loving v. Virginia}} He was a family friend of her brothers. Years later, when she was in high school, they began dating. When Mildred was 18 she became pregnant and Richard moved into the Jeter household.{{citation needed|date=April 2018}} They decided to marry in June 1958 and traveled to Washington, D.C., to do so. [50] => [51] => At the time, interracial marriage was banned in Virginia by the [[Racial Integrity Act of 1924]]. Mildred later stated that when they married, she did not realize their marriage was illegal in Virginia but she later believed her husband had known it.{{cite news |url = http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/24468808 |title = Matriarch of racially mixed marriage dies |publisher = MSNBC |date = May 5, 2008 }} [52] => [53] => After their marriage, the Lovings returned home to Central Point. They were [[arrest]]ed at night by the county [[Sheriffs in the United States|sheriff]] who had received an anonymous tip,{{Cite news |last = Martin |first = Douglas |date = May 6, 2008 |url= http://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/06/us/06loving.html |title = Mildred Loving, Who Battled Ban on Mixed-Race Marriage, Dies at 68 |work = The New York Times }} and charged with "cohabiting as man and wife, against the peace and dignity of the Commonwealth." They [[Guilty plea|pled guilty]] and were convicted by the Caroline County Circuit Court on January 6, 1959. They were sentenced to one year in prison, suspended for 25 years on the condition that they leave the state. They moved to Washington, D.C., but missed their country town. [54] => [55] => They were frustrated by their inability to travel together to visit their families in Virginia, and by social isolation and financial difficulties in Washington, D.C. In 1964, after their youngest son was hit by a car in the busy streets, they decided they needed to move back to their home town, and they filed suit to vacate the judgment against them so they would be allowed to return home. [56] => [57] => == Supreme Court case == [58] => {{Main article|Loving v. Virginia}} [59] => [60] => In 1964,{{cite news |url = http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/remember/jan-june08/loving_05-06.html |title = Mildred Loving, Key Figure in Civil Rights Era, Dies |work = [[PBS NewsHour]] |date = May 6, 2008 }} Mildred Loving wrote in protest to [[United States Attorney General|Attorney General]] [[Robert F. Kennedy]]. Kennedy referred her to the American Civil Liberties Union. [61] => [62] => The ACLU filed a motion on the Lovings' behalf to [[Vacated judgment|vacate]] the judgment and set aside the [[Sentence (law)|sentence]], on the grounds that the statutes violated the [[Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution|Fourteenth Amendment]]. This began a series of lawsuits and the case ultimately reached the United States Supreme Court. On October 28, 1964, when their motion still had not been decided, the Lovings began a [[class action]] suit in [[United States district court]]. On January 22, 1965, the district court allowed the Lovings to present their constitutional claims to the Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals. Virginia Supreme Court Justice [[Harry L. Carrico]] (later Chief Justice) wrote the court's opinion upholding the constitutionality of the anti-miscegenation statutes and affirmed the criminal convictions. [63] => [64] => The Lovings and ACLU appealed the decision to the [[Supreme Court of the United States|U.S. Supreme Court]]. The Lovings did not attend the oral arguments in Washington, but their lawyer, [[Bernard S. Cohen]], conveyed a message from Richard Loving to the court: "[T]ell the Court I love my wife, and it is just unfair that I can't live with her in Virginia."{{cite news |first = Kate |last = Sheppard |url = http://www.motherjones.com/media/2012/02/the-loving-story-documentary-hbo |title = 'The Loving Story': How an Interracial Couple Changed a Nation |work = [[Mother Jones (magazine)|Mother Jones]] |date = February 13, 2012}} Also quoted in {{cite encyclopedia |url = http://www.encyclopediavirginia.org/Loving_v_Virginia_1967 |title = Loving v. Virginia (1967) |encyclopedia = [[Encyclopedia Virginia]] }} [65] => [66] => The case, ''[[Loving v. Virginia]]'', was decided unanimously in the Lovings' favor on June 12, 1967. The Court overturned their convictions, dismissing Virginia's argument that the law was not discriminatory because it applied equally to and provided identical penalties for both white and black persons. The Supreme Court ruled that the anti-miscegenation statute violated both the [[Due Process Clause|due process]] and [[Equal Protection Clause|equal protection clauses]] of the Fourteenth Amendment. The Lovings returned to Virginia after the Supreme Court decision. [67] => [68] => == Later life == [69] => The Lovings had two children together: Donald Lendberg Loving (October 8, 1958 – August 2000) and Peggy Loving (born {{circa|1960}}). Mildred's oldest, Sidney Clay Jeter (January 27, 1957 – May 2010), was born in [[Caroline County, Virginia|Caroline County]] prior to her relationship with Richard. He lived with the Lovings. Each of the children married and had their own families. At the time of her death, Mildred had eight grandchildren and eleven great-grandchildren.{{cite web|url=https://thecinemaholic.com/where-are-richard-and-mildred-lovings-children-now/|title=Where Are Richard and Mildred Loving's Children Now?|last=Malhotra| first=Noor |work=The Cinemaholic |date=17 November 2020| access-date=2 February 2022}} [70] => [71] => After the Supreme Court ruled on the case in 1967, the couple moved with their children back to Central Point, Virginia, where Richard built them a house. This was their home for the rest of their lives. [72] => [73] => Mildred said she considered her marriage and the court decision to be "God's work". She supported everyone's right to marry whomever they wished.{{cite news |first = Dionne |last = Walker |title = 40 years of interracial marriage: Mildred Loving reflects on breaking the color barrier |url = http://www.southcoasttoday.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=%2F20070611%2FNEWS%2F706110327 |agency = [[Associated Press]] |newspaper = [[The Standard-Times (New Bedford)|The Standard-Times]] |date = June 9, 2007 |access-date = August 30, 2009 |archive-date = April 21, 2008 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20080421222822/http://www.southcoasttoday.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=%2F20070611%2FNEWS%2F706110327 |url-status = dead }} In 1965, while the case was pending, she told the ''[[Washington Evening Star]]'', "We loved each other and got married. We are not marrying the state. The law should allow a person to marry anyone he wants." [74] => [75] => On June 12, 2007, Mildred issued a statement on the 40th anniversary of the ''Loving v. Virginia'' Supreme Court decision.{{cite web |url = http://www.freedomtomarry.org/pdfs/mildred_loving-statement.pdf |title = Freedom To Marry |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20080514012723/http://www.freedomtomarry.org/pdfs/mildred_loving-statement.pdf |access-date = May 6, 2008 |archive-date = May 14, 2008 }} [76] => [77] => She concluded: [78] => {{blockquote|My generation was bitterly divided over something that should have been so clear and right. The majority believed that what the judge said, that it was God's plan to keep people apart, and that government should discriminate against people in love. But I have lived long enough now to see big changes. The older generation's fears and prejudices have given way, and today's young people realize that if someone loves someone they have a right to marry. [79] => [80] => Surrounded as I am now by wonderful children and grandchildren, not a day goes by that I don't think of Richard and our love, our right to marry, and how much it meant to me to have that freedom to marry the person precious to me, even if others thought he was the "wrong kind of person" for me to marry. I believe all Americans, no matter their race, no matter their sex, no matter their sexual orientation, should have that same freedom to marry. Government has no business imposing some people's religious beliefs over others. Especially if it denies people's civil rights. [81] => [82] => I am still not a political person, but I am proud that Richard's and my name is on a court case that can help reinforce the love, the commitment, the fairness, and the family that so many people, black or white, young or old, gay or straight seek in life. I support the freedom to marry for all. That's what ''Loving'', and loving, are all about.}} [83] => [84] => ==Deaths== [85] => On June 29, 1975, a drunk driver struck the Lovings' car in [[Caroline County, Virginia]].{{cite news |url = http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F10D13FD3B58157493C3A9178CD85F418785F9 |work = The New York Times |title = Richard P. Loving; In Land Mark Suit; Figure in High Court Ruling on Miscegenation Dies |date = July 1, 1975 }} Richard was killed in the crash, at age 41. Mildred lost her right eye. [86] => [[File:Graves of Mildred and Richard Loving.jpg|thumb|Graves of Mildred and Richard Loving]] [87] => Mildred died of [[pneumonia]] on May 2, 2008, in [[Milford, Virginia]], at age 68. Her daughter, Peggy Loving Fortune, said, "I want [people] to remember her as being strong and brave, yet humble—and believ[ing] in love." [88] => [89] => The final sentence in Mildred Loving's obituary in the ''New York Times'' notes her statement to commemorate the 40th anniversary of ''Loving v. Virginia'':{{cite news |first = Douglas |last = Martin |title = Mildred Loving, Who Battled Ban on Mixed-Race Marriage, Dies at 68 |url = http://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/06/us/06loving.html |work = [[The New York Times]] |date = May 6, 2008 |quote = Mildred Loving, a black woman whose anger over being banished from Virginia for marrying a white man led to a landmark Supreme Court ruling overturning state miscegenation laws, died on May 2 at her home in Central Point, Va. She was 68. |access-date = May 7, 2008 }} "A modest homemaker, Loving never thought she had done anything extraordinary. 'It wasn't my doing,' Loving told the Associated Press in a rare interview [in 2007]. 'It was God's work.'"{{cite news |first = Patricia |last = Sullivan |title = Quiet Va. Wife Ended Interracial Marriage Ban |url = http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/05/05/AR2008050502439.html |work = [[Washingtonpost.com]] |date = May 6, 2008 |access-date = May 10, 2008 }} [90] => [91] => ==Legacy== [92] => * ''[[Mr. and Mrs. Loving]]'', a 1996 film starring [[Lela Rochon]], [[Timothy Hutton]] and [[Ruby Dee]], written and directed by Richard Friedenberg. It aired on the [[Showtime (TV network)|Showtime]] network. According to Loving, "Not much of it was very true. The only part of it right was I had three children."{{cite news |first = Dionne |last = Walker |newspaper = USA Today |url = http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2007-06-10-loving_N.htm |title = Pioneer of interracial marriage looks back |date = June 10, 2007 |access-date = May 8, 2008 }} [93] => * {{cite book |title = Virginia Hasn't Always Been for Lovers |year = 2004 |author = Phyl Newbeck |publisher = Southern Illinois University Press |isbn = 0-8093-2528-4 }} [94] => * June 12 has become known as [[Loving Day]] in the United States, an unofficial holiday celebrating interracial marriages. [95] => * ''The Loving Story'' (2011), an [[HBO]]-produced documentary which was screened at many film festivals, including [[Silverdocs Documentary Festival]], [[Tribeca Film Festival]], and [[Full Frame Documentary Film Festival]]. The film includes rare interviews, photographs and film shot during the time. [96] => * [[Loving (2016 film)|''Loving'']], a 2016 film by Jeff Nichols inspired by ''The Loving Story'', starring [[Joel Edgerton]] as Richard Loving and [[Ruth Negga]] as Mildred Loving. [97] => * "The Loving Kind" is a song written by country/folk singer-songwriter [[Nanci Griffith]]. It was included in Griffith's 2009 album "[[The Loving Kind (Nanci Griffith album)|The Loving Kind"]] [98] => [99] => ==References== [100] => {{Reflist}} [101] => [102] => ==External links== [103] => * [http://writ.news.findlaw.com/grossman/20070530.html Joanna Grossman, "The Fortieth Anniversary of Loving v. Virginia: The Personal and Cultural Legacy of the Case that Ended Legal Prohibitions on Interracial Marriage", Findlaw commentary] [104] => * [http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9E0CE5DA133BF931A25755C0A964958260&pagewanted=all under Virginia's anti-miscegenation law. David Margolick, "A Mixed Marriage's 25th Anniversary of Legality"], ''New York Times'', June 12, 1992 [105] => * [http://www.freedomtomarry.org/pdfs/mildred_loving-statement.pdf June 12, 2007 "Loving Day statement by Mildred Loving"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091023215832/http://www.freedomtomarry.org/pdfs/mildred_loving-statement.pdf |date=October 23, 2009 }} [106] => * [http://www.abcnews.go.com/US/story?id=3277875&page=1n ABC News: "A Groundbreaking Interracial Marriage; ''Loving v. Virginia'' at 40."], ABC News interview with Mildred Jeter Loving; video clip of original 1967 broadcast, accessed June 14, 2007 [107] => *{{cite web |url = http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0117098 |work = IMDb |title = ''Mr. & Mrs. Loving'' }} [108] => * [http://www.lovingday.org/ Lovingday.org] [109] => * [http://thebainjournal.com/archives/a-stance-for-love "A Stance for Love"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120225092410/http://thebainjournal.com/archives/a-stance-for-love |date=February 25, 2012 }}, ''The Bain Journal'' [110] => [111] => {{Authority control}} [112] => [113] => {{DEFAULTSORT:Loving, Mildred and Richard}} [114] => [[Category:Mildred and Richard Loving|*]] [115] => [[Category:1933 births]] [116] => [[Category:1939 births]] [117] => [[Category:1975 deaths]] [118] => [[Category:2008 deaths]] [119] => [[Category:Activists for African-American civil rights]] [120] => [[Category:American amputees]] [121] => [[Category:Women civil rights activists]] [122] => [[Category:Deaths from pneumonia in Virginia]] [123] => [[Category:Married couples]] [124] => [[Category:People from Caroline County, Virginia]] [125] => [[Category:People from Washington, D.C.]] [126] => [[Category:Road incident deaths in Virginia]] [127] => [[Category:American activists with disabilities]] [128] => [[Category:Marriage in Virginia]] [129] => [[de:Mildred Loving]] [130] => [[it:Mildred Loving]] [131] => [[hu:Mildred Loving]] [] => )
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Mildred and Richard Loving

Mildred and Richard Loving were an interracial couple whose landmark Supreme Court case, Loving v. Virginia, played a crucial role in striking down laws banning interracial marriage in the United States.

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Virginia, played a crucial role in striking down laws banning interracial marriage in the United States. Born in rural Virginia in the 1930s, Mildred and Richard fell in love and decided to get married despite the state's prohibition on interracial unions. After marrying in 1958, the Lovings were arrested and charged with violating Virginia's Racial Integrity Act, which prohibited interracial marriage. Forced to spend a year in exile in Washington, D. C. , they initiated a legal battle to overturn the law and regain the right to live as a married couple in their home state. Their case eventually reached the Supreme Court in 1967, leading to a unanimous ruling that declared anti-miscegenation laws unconstitutional, thereby legalizing interracial marriage across the country. The Loving v. Virginia decision not only shattered legal barriers but also became a symbol of hope and triumph for many couples facing similar discriminatory laws. Despite the groundbreaking nature of their case, the Lovings lived relatively quiet lives away from the public eye, emphasizing their desire for a simple, private existence. Tragically, Richard Loving passed away in a car accident in 1975, but Mildred continued to advocate for civil rights until her death in 2008. Today, the Lovings' legacy lives on in the fight for equality and the recognition of all loving relationships. Their story has been portrayed in various forms of media, including a documentary film and a major motion picture, both titled "Loving. " The Loving surname has become synonymous with the struggle for interracial marriage rights and remains an enduring symbol of love and equality.

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