No. My dad is Catholic. But yes there are couples like that out there.
they seemed to be more likely for that in my day...back when this was far more controversial
Right, among Reform Jews, it's no big deal to date people of color. They've been oppressed so it makes it "okay" to date Blacks.
do you consider yourself of which culture or both?
I do not identify myself with "one race" but I grew up in white culture in a white collar neighborhood.
is it class or environment?
From my experience, it is mostly due to class.
Growing up in Maryland, I knew that Alan Keyes' kids lived in a "rich area" and went to a private school. They acted "white" (the better word to use is well-mannered and educated children) and did not seem to identify with black culture.
But then again, that school was virtually all white and thus they did not have to worry about peer pressure from acting "too white".
i know a kid like you here...a handsome boy with dreads who acts very white and I know others who act not so white...slang and speech patterns etc.
Yes, I know people like that. I think it depends mostly on which class their family are in. If their parents were doctors/lawyers, it is unlikely that they would seek to emulate hip hop culture.
I was curious about the Jewish aspect.
I have personally known maybe 6 white man/black wife couples in my life and 4 were where the man was Jewish. I think part of that is the secular Jewish tradition of not being traditional...plus most are urban and this is more common in an urban setting.....very few country Jews...not since the antebellum South anyhow back when many Sephardic Jews actually were in agriculture believe it or not.....a bit of Tikkun Olam too plays into it
We occasionally go to dinner parties here with a sorta mixed couple where he is very cafe au lait and raised well off and very educated and a good earner. She is more Ya Ya Sisters earthy and light skinned too....quite attractive in a Thandie Newton way. He is the regional director for a very large computer manufacturer which shall remain nameless and makes at least probably 500k per year...they have no kids
anyhow....she recently left him for a very crude ghetto type guy much younger who may very well be into illegal things...the man was crushed...he loved her dearly...and it’s easy to see why
She told my wife the husband wasn’t black enough.....can you imagine that? My wife was sort of taken aback....they were so much like us culturally that we never really thought that way about them and kinda liked that precisley to be candid. He was big GOP locally....maybe that did it. Funny thing is that when the wife went from Beyonce hair to groomed dreadlocks my wife said she thought she was having an affair...never underestimate a women’s 6th sense
Anyhow....it showed me once again that the lure for folks sometimes to be who they “think” they identify with can be strong....the way even conservatives latino leaders rally for amnesty proves that
I don’t think we as a culture recognize that.
Thanks for taking the time to reply....you sound very grounded and I’m happy for you.
that book....which is a sorta lib Oprah book is called the Color of Water (it’s on my wife’s book club list...she groans..lol) This child is a product of the same situation as you and was often torn and confused a bit where to fit in and would ask the mom what color is God...and she would say God is the color of water...I think that’s nice and a pretty saavy thing to say to an inquisitive kid
I lived in many parts of the world where I was a white dot in a black or brown sea and so I know a lot at least about the casual aspects of this.....there is a lot about women of any race or ethnicity that is a constant...lol....no doubt about that. God hardwired them like that
I don’t mean to be personal but was your dad Jewish? they seemed to be more likely for that in my day...
No. My dad is Catholic.
I think it depends on the region where you live. In my area, there are a lot of people of Italian, Irish, Jewish, and African ancestry. Most of the "mixed" marriages are either black/Irish or black/Italian. My husband and I are the latter. Italians and many of the Irish are Catholic.
The Jewish families we know want their children to only marry into other Jewish families. I realize there are some African-Americans who are Jewish, but I don't know one Jewish person married to a black person.
Yes, there are Catholics who are racist. I know some. But, in fact, the Catholic doctrine itself teaches that racism is a sin. Catholic children are taught about Saint Martin de Porres who was the son of a black mother and a Spanish father. His father abandoned him as an infant because he "looked black."
Also, years ago, it was the Catholic Church that filed in favor of the couples in Loving v. Virginia and Perez v. Lippold, which was the first case. Perez was about two Catholics who wanted to marry. Laws against such marriage seemed to be rooted in Protestantism at the time.