Why Are Asian-White Unions Perceived Differently

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Pages: 8

The central research question that I will address in this paper is why are Black-White unions perceived differently than Asian-White unions? Interracial unions have grown in acceptance since the 1970’s, but the coupling between different races, such as Black-White unions are often not seen as appropriate or “normal”, where other unions might be, such as Asian-White unions. The three factors to support why Black-White unions are perceived differently and often negatively in society are attitudes from white families toward unions, the history and legal legacy of the perception of blackness and lastly the perceived social distance to whiteness. Interracial unions will keep moving up in numbers, as we become more accepting of new norms in our …show more content…
Although the one drop rule reformulated this idea of exclusively labeling people as one race, the color of someone’s skin also made an impact on relationships that are interracial. George Yancey and Richard Lewis Jr., write in their book about how we live in a “hierarchical system whereby races of lighter skin color are more accepted than races with darker skin color” (2009). Because of this hierarchy of skin color, Black-white unions are often discriminated more often than Asian- White unions. “Individuals with darker skin color are viewed quite differently and more negatively by members of society, even in interracial marriages” (2009: 73). The reason that people with darker skin tones are viewed differently is because of this historical context that the darker the skin tone, the more inferior you are. There are racist ideologies that lead this idea that Whites have always been superior and those with dark skin, such as the slaves were not superior, or smart. Thus, those who had lighter skin tones were given the opportunity to have some form of education or have some property in colonial and in the slave era because the color tone of their skin was much lighter and closer to the superior …show more content…
Those who are in interracial unions with a Black person are often seen more negatively because of the beliefs of what people hold. Asian-White unions are thus perceived much differently in American culture because neither holds a one drop of Black blood and their skin tones are often much lighter, that many people will not acknowledge that they are of a different race. There is more direct discrimination when the union involves a Black person and a White person because of the history between the two races and of how much American culture has placed negative ideas about the Black