Interracial Marriage Ideology

“Viola’s parents married in 1908, creating what was perceived to be a mixed-race family within a culture that rarely welcomed interracial marriage. It was the formalized recognition of such inions that created such unease within a society by an apparently mixed-race family often came home to roost on the children born to James and Gwendolin Davis. Viola self-identified both as ‘mixed-race’ and as ‘coloured’, the later being a term of preference during the 1930s and 1940s” (234).

This primitive ideology still continues to persist. Many racial discrimination and prejudicial acts are made on people of mixed-race individuals. The mental framework that exists, white people must reproduce with other white people and coloured people must reproduce with other black people is still largely a societal practice that continues today. Whether that be due to continued racists judgments, preferred skin colour, or lack of credentials, the judgment and discrimination is still there. This ideology had put struggle on Viola, when she was younger as she was tormented for having a white mother and black father. This confused Viola as she had to choose what race she belonged to. Mixed-race is a term that constitutes two different races in which have reproduced together. The ideology that people still turn their noses up at couples who are of two distinctive races is very problematic to our society. Ideologies need to change in order for this primitive ideology to be excused.  

Backhouse, Constance. 1999. Colour-Coded, A Legal History of Racism in Canada, 1900-1950. Toronto: University of Toronto Press.