Lovings vs. Virginia
Citation: https://www.history.com/topics/loving-v-virginia
Loving Vs. Virginia,
History.com
Loving Vs. Virginia was a
Supreme Court case that challenged the “interracial” laws in Virginia. The
plaintiffs in the case were Richard and Mildred Loving. Richard is a white man
and Mildred is an African-American woman with Native American ancestry. In June
1958, they exchanged their vows in D.C. where interracial marriage was legal
then they moved to their home state Virginia. On July 11th, 1958,
just five weeks after their wedding, the Lovings were arrested by the local
sheriff. Richard and Mildred were facing a felony. The Lovings were forced to
leave Virginia, so Mildred wrote to Robert Kennedy, and Kennedy referred them
to the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU). The Judge eventually legalized
their marriage and returned to Central Point, Virginia. Sadly, Richard was
killed in a car accident in 1975, but his wife survived. She eventually died in
2008. The couple had three children.