The Loving v. Virginia Legacy

In American legal history, there are important cases, and then there are landmark cases. Landmark cases are the ones that contribute something truly profound to the whole society. The case of Loving v. Virginia (1967) is definitely a landmark case. In this post, we will provide a quick summary of this famous decision. We will highlight its importance for marriage today. It’s fitting that we should discuss this case so close to July 4th, because as we will see, this case could easily be described as one of the most thorough American court decisions of all time.

Quick Case Summary of Loving v. Virginia

In 1958, Richard and Mildred Loving were arrested and sentenced to one year in prison for violating the State of Virginia’s “anti-miscegenation” statute. This statute prohibited interracial marriage between Caucasians and non-Caucasian citizens. They got married across state lines, to comply with the then Virginia law. This maneuver was struck down. The Lovings were still found to have broken Virginia’s statute on interracial marriage. The Lovings contested the matter. Ultimately, the case was brought before the U.S. Supreme Court. In 1967, the Supreme Court issued its decision. It ruled that Virginia’s anti-miscegenation statute was unconstitutional. It conflicted with the Due Process Clause and the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment. This effectively eliminated any other race-based marriage laws in all other states throughout the country.

The Loving v. Virginia Legacy Today

After giving this brief outline of the case, I’m sure most of our readers will be able to grasp its overall importance without much effort. Simply put, this critical case expanded the freedom of Americans in the area of marriage in a very powerful way; before this case, similar laws against interracial marriage were actually fairly common throughout the country. This is something that many Americans today are not even aware of. Fortunately, the Supreme Court recognized the basic contradiction between laws against interracial marriage and the purposes of the 14th Amendment. Now, all Americans have complete freedom of choice when it comes to marriage. If we look at statistics on interracial marriage today, we can see the full impact of this crucial decision, as rates of interracial marriage are higher than they’ve ever been before. These statistics wouldn’t be possible without Loving v. Virginia.The legacy of Loving v. Virginia goes beyond just its impact on interracial marriage. If we look deeper, we can see that this decision also paved the way for other important decisions which expanded freedom in the area of marriage, such as Obergefell v. Hodges (2015). In point of fact, Loving v. Virginia was even cited in the case of Obergefell, as the justices felt that their case was following in the same tradition. Just as Americans shouldn’t be barred from marrying across racial lines, the same is also true for same-sex couples. The freedom to marry a person of our choosing is a fundamental human right, and this basic principle is captured perfectly in Loving v. Virginia.

Contact The Murphy Law Firm for More Information

If you’d like to learn more or need assistance with your case, reach out to The Murphy Law Firm today by calling 240-493-9116.