According to a 2011 Gallup poll, 97 percent of Americans of all races, ages 18 to 37 accept interracial dating, while only 61 percent of Americans age 70 and over accept it. Despite the apparent amiability among younger adults, there seems to be a difference between accepting interracial dating and actually taking part in it.
“I think many like the idea, yet would never do it themselves,” freshman Jacklyn Maza said.
Crossing the generational divide, the disapproval grows. As some students explained, many parents and especially grandparents seem opposed to the concept.
Seaver freshman Adeline McKinley agreed that the reason many people choose not to date interracially is because it “is a concern of their parents.”
“How others view a couple definitely plays a role in the relationship,” Maza stated. Parents play a big role in a relationship even when the couple is of the same race
While perhaps a bit dramatized for the silver screen, the movie “My Big Fat Greek Wedding” is an example of parents being intolerant to intercultural dating. The strong differences in culture and background can make the atmosphere of a relationship even more strained.
“One big factor is culture,” freshman Rosa Zhang said. “For me, being raised in a rather traditional Chinese family, my parents want me to marry an Asian, but I don’t.”
Other students enjoy more relaxed family expectations when it comes to dating. Emir Kumova, a freshman international student, stated that his parents would accept him dating a girl from another race, and he wouldn’t worry about their acceptance. To him, the color, look and background of a girl are not factors in whether or not they would date. For Kumova, it’s about “the personality and the person’s actions toward you.”
When going deeper into the issue of interracial dating, another issue emerges. One can observe that there are significantly fewer black women dating white men than there are black men dating white women.
Some relate this imbalance to the lingering historic significance of black female slaves who were often physically and sexually abused by their white masters. Irys Watson, a California native, told Black College Wire that the reason she wouldn’t date a white man was that he “might try to be a ‘master’ over her.”
Many black women, especially on this campus, do not hold this prevailing negative sentiment. “It doesn’t matter about race or color,” freshman Jamille Lockhart said. “It’s about personality.”
Conversations held about this subject amongst black women reveal that many would not mind, and some would actually like, the experience of dating a man outside of their race.
“I feel as though there is a stigma to dating interracially toward black men but the same isn’t felt if black women were to do it,” senior Jamie Murkey said.
One of the issues with interracial dating is that some black women find a problem with black men dating white women, but the same isn’t felt by black men. This could be related to the fact that more black men date interracially than do their female counterparts.
“TV and movies, like ‘Diary of a Mad Black Woman,’ help continue the stereotype in society that black women are loud and angry,” asserted freshman Brittany Tate. “Sometimes it makes it harder for us to attract men outside of our race because this is all they’ve seen, when in actuality every woman is different. I was raised in a family where we don’t discriminate against skin color. As long as the man loves the Lord, loves me and we’re happy, ethnicity doesn’t matter.”
But the main issue surrounding interracial dating may not even be the different skin colors. Worries of cultural differences seem to pervade this issue even more than skin color does, although the issue of skin color is usually the more publicized issue in the debate of interracial dating.
“Reasons why people would be opposed to interracial dating could be because of the difficulty of adjusting to the cultural differences of each other,” freshman Raymon Griggs said.
This issue of culture seems to be more of an issue than the color of skin. “Especially in America where we have become so intermixed,” stated Doug Tyson, a Pepperdine graduate student.
“Even if the relationship didn’t work out, I would have learned something, at least from a cultural standpoint,” Maza stated.
Many hold the belief that the cultural learning experience that comes from an interracial relationship is unmatchable. Everyone should open up their cultural horizons, if they are to be a successful part of society. Interracial dating is a great way to expand these horizons.
“I think interracial dating exposes you to other people’s cultures and makes you aware of other races’ customs and traditions,” freshman Danny Chang said. “Though there are challenges such as public perception, as sad as that is, the benefits outweigh the costs.”
While some social stigmas may persist, it seems that Pepperdine students are beginning to open up to love of every color.