With movies like “Something New” and “Jungle Fever” it may appear that “crossing over” is the new trend.
A-list celebrities such as Halle Berry, Taye Diggs and Kobe Bryant, just to name a few, are dating men and women outside of the black race, but Dillard University students express their views on interracial dating.
Alecia Heffner, a sophomore from St. Louis, Mo., said that the first thing that comes to mind when she sees an interracial couple is “Wow.” She said she does not have a problem with interracial dating if the relationship is based on love. However, she does have a problem seeing black men with white women. ”I believe black men date outside of their race for the wrong reasons. I’m tired of the quote black women aren’t as submissive as white women,” Heffner said.
Chalin Kelly, a sophomore from Hartford, Conn., said he considers interracial dating strictly as black and white couples. “Blacks and any other minorities are cool,” Kelly said, “I become angry when I see blacks with whites because I believe black and white couples insult the black race.”
Jacqueta Gibson, a sophomore from New Orleans, said seeing interracial couples do not bother her, but under absolutely no circumstances will she ever date interracially. “When I see interracial couples, I believe the people involved in the relationship are brave because their relationship will always be full of controversy,” Gibson said.
Contrary to Kelly, Gibson said, “I believe interracial dating is dating anyone outside of your particular ethnicity.” She said she believes blacks dating Hispanics is just as interracial as blacks dating whites. “Mexicans feel the same way about blacks as whites do,” Gibson said.
Ciara Jeffery, a junior from New Orleans, said she does not understand why people are so concerned about the nationality of his or her partner. “Color should not matter because human beings need to be open-minded. If someone finds love within another race, he or she should interact with that person,” Jeffery said.
Although Jeffery said she does not think there is anything wrong with interracial dating, she does not believe people should altogether stop dating within their race. “I don’t mind interracial dating, but people should not date interracially because they have a complex against their race,” Jeffery said.
According to an article titled, “Interracial dating attitudes among college students,” 620 university students completed an anonymous questionnaire. This questionnaire was designed to assess attitudes toward interracial dating. The survey reported that out of 620 students, 24.2 percent have dated interracially and 49.6 percent expressed an openness to become involved in an interracial relationship.
According to an article written by the psychology department at LoyolaUniversity titled, “College Students’ Attitudes and Behaviors toward Interracial Dating,” interracial dating is among the fastest growing non-traditional dating interest, averaging at about five percent of all marriages in the U.S. The article also said that black Americans are twice as likely to date interracially as white Americans.
Although DillardUniversity does not consist of a diverse setting of nationalities, students for the most part said if dating interracially makes a person happy, he or she should go for it. “Let go and let flow,” Heffner said.
