The American South, since its existence has always been a hotbed regarding the topic of race relations. In particular, sexual relations between the races have served as the stuff of legend, rumor, and riot. Probably one of the most recognized examples is that of the relationship between Past President Thomas Jefferson and his slave, Sally Hemmings. In modern times, there has even been speculation that Strom Thurmond has fathered a black daughter (See ‘Strom’s Secret’ by Ken Cumins). A key word here is speculation. As many of us are forced (and some not so forced) to deal with the social construct of race, it’s particularly interesting how we as individuals subscribe to and apply the concept within our personal lives, and to how we see the world at large. To the question, ‘can’t we all just get along?’--well, of course we could. The more appropriate question is, “Will We?”

Interracial Intimacies: Sex, Marriage, Identity, and Adoption by Randall Kennedy

The book was sparked by Kennedy’s research on the legal study of the “Orphan in Dixie,” the mulatto child given away by her white mother to her white aunt, only to be passed off again to a married black couple. The couple was then left with a fight to legally adopt the ‘white’ child they had come to love as their own. The State of Louisiana recognized the child as ‘white,’ since it was indicated as such on her birth certificate, and state law prohibited adoption against color lines. Kennedy demonstrates in his book, Louisiana’s ‘punctilious’ behavior regarding racial categorization.

The story is less about politics, and more about how we struggle to incorporate the modern concept of race into our lives, and in particular into social and familial settings. When asked why he wrote a book pertaining to interracial sex, he stated that it was an area that was understudied. Noting, that while it is common to see studies of the effects of race within the realms of education, the workplace, housing, and the like; we less often study race relations within the institutions of friendship, dating, marriage, and family.

For emphasis, while at a forum introducing his book at the Margaret Mitchell Institute, he recalled an event of dialoging with a student over the concept of race. The student vehemently stated that racial categorization was not only illegal, but morally wrong. Kennedy asked the student if he thought that people who specify race within personal ads were committing an immoral act. To which he got no answer. One can assume the student was referring to racial categorization with respect to education, the workplace, housing, and the like.

[some kind of ‘break’ indicating the following is not related to the above book review]

…Later
In The Fall of 2000, the Harris County school system in Georgia experienced its own turmoil and tensions when one of their schools banned students from wearing the Confederate Flag emblem. As a subsequent counter measure, students were banned from wearing the urban FUBU label as well…www.newstribune.com/stories/100300/wor_1003000002.asp