Making Interracial Marriage Legal: Loving Vs. Virginia

 

According to Britannica.com, Loving v. Virginia, legal case, decided on June 12, 1967, in which the U.S. Supreme Court unanimously (9–0) struck down state antimiscegenation statutes in Virginia as unconstitutional under the equal protection and due process clauses of the Fourteenth Amendment.

A middle grades, historical fiction, novel-in-verse, Loving Vs. Virginia by Patricia Hruby Powell and illustrated by Shadra Strickland,  tells the story of a civil rights topic that has everlasting effects on the U.S.  

In the 1950s a majority of the country had laws against people of different races marrying.  Through this story the reader learns of Mildred (Millie), a young Black woman who lives in Virginia with her large family out in the country.  They farm, run a business and love playing music and dancing with their friends.  Richard, a young white man, is one of those friends who grew up with Millie.  As they get older they fall in love and have two babies.  They go to Washington D.C. to get married but are arrested after they return to Virginia.

Told in alternating viewpoints, the story unfolds as Rich and Millie Loving become outspoken about their right to marry and live in Virginia with their family.  Their tale is interspersed with primary sources that take place alongside their landmark Supreme Court case.  Moving, tender, and honest, every teen should read this book to understand more about the history of race relations and civil rights in this country. 

Watch a video interview of the creators of this book HERE.