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Hello. Come on in. The daddy writes about current events, literature, music and, once in a while, drops something on you from back in the day to make you pause and ponder, stop and stare, and begin to wonder. Who knows? You may start to pace the floor, shake your head from side to side, then fall down on bended knees in a praying position and cry, "Lawd, have mercy! What is this world coming to?" Check yourself! But this blog is NOT about the daddy. It's about you: your boos, your fam, your hood, your country...our hopes and dreams of a better tomorrow. So let's make a pact: the daddy will put it on the track if you'll chase it down and hit him back. Together, we can definitely take it to another level. Shall we?"

Monday, May 5, 2008

Know Your Black History, Know Mildred Loving

"There can be no doubt that restricting the freedom to marry solely because of racial classifications violates the central meaning of the equal protection clause," the court ruled in a unanimous decision."
--U.S. Supreme Court, 1967

Listen up: starting today, the daddy in commemoration of Black History month, will only post on historical figures who worked to make a difference in a positive sense for African Americans, who, as they say in gospel, "...brought us from a mighty long ways." He will post on musical, literary and political figures and events. Some will include historical figures about whom he posted and deserved to be posted again. Some will be new.

One of the people who helped bring us bring us "...from a mighty long ways" was Mildred Loving. If you say you know her, you will not get a prize like you're on a game show. No happy music for you. If you don't know her, don't worry. Chances are you'll still be on the job even in this terrible economy, the moon will hang low tonight, and the sun will rise tomorrow. But you know what? Mildred Loving died recently, and the daddy just had to pause and thank her. But before she left, she made a meaningful contribution to black Americans and America as a whole. What did she do?

Quiet, small Mildred Loving caused a hugh firestorm; she took the state of Virgina to the highest court in the land and won. The Supreme Court struck down laws banning interracial marriage in Virginia and 17 other states. Mildred and her equally kind and "loving" husband Richard were arrested for "co-habitating." They would have gone to jail had they not agreed to leave town. But the Supreme Court declared that such laws denied Mildred and Richard equal protection of the law. So, after 25 years, they moved back back to Virgina. Richard died in 1975.

But laws and history aside, Mildred was just a qui
et, humble young woman in love. As she said to the Washington Post in 1992: "The preacher at my church classified me with Rosa Parks. I don't feel like that. Not at all. What happened, we really didn't intend for it to happen. What we wanted, we wanted to come home."

Mildred is home now. She died of pneumonia in her rural home of Milford, Virginia. She was 68. But law knows she helped bring us from a mighty long ways so the next generation could sing "...How I got over/how I got over/My soul looks back and wonder/how I got over."

Know your black history. Know Mildred and Richard Loving.

7 comments:

LISA VAZQUEZ said...

Hi there!

Thanks for mentioning Mildred Loving!

There is a discussion firing up at my house (blog) about white men and black women:
"LOST ABSOLUTION: WHITE MEN AND THEIR HORRID HISTORY WITH BLACK WOMEN"

Some women who are married to white men have shared some perspectives.

It's wonderful that the black community has remembered Mildred Loving!

Peace, blessings and DUNAMIS!
Lisa

Mac Daddy Tribute Blog said...

blackwomenblowthetrumpet: Sounds like a spirited discussion going on at your crib...I'm coming to see you at your blog. Thanks.

SagaciousHillbilly said...

Hard to believe that such horrible things like this have happened in my lifetime. . . but then again, not.

Mac Daddy Tribute Blog said...

sagacious: It is hard to believe. I was born in the South. I've seen terrible things happen down there. But with the passage of time, it sometimes just seems like a b-grade, violent movie or a dream you had last night. But the stark reality of what Mildred Loving and her husband Richard went through wakes you up to reality...And, knowing how racist was doing that time, you and I can easily imagine the names they were called for having the gall to be young and in love. Blessings.

MountainLaurel said...

Great minds think alike. Here is my post . Yours is more eloquent, as always, but I thought you'd like to see it.

Anonymous said...

The blog is great...I love the sidebar with the interesting pieces and updates. Liked this piece about Mildred Loving...I would not have known about her had you not shared the information. Thanks macdaddy.

Mac Daddy Tribute Blog said...

Patti: Thank you. I usually post each night and change the sidebar about every other day. Come and visit again.