Loving Couple Goes to Washington

 

Maybe you've never heard of Richard and Mildred Loving, but their's is a fascinating tale.  An interracial couple from Virginia, they were the plaintiffs in a landmark 1967 case, in which the Supreme Court overturned the legal ban on such unions.  More on that later.

They met in their hometown of Central Point, Virginia in 1950, when he was 17, and she was just 11.  They started dating several years later, during Mildred's senior year in high school.  By the time she was 18, Mildred was pregnant with their first child, and after a few years of living together, they decided to make their union official. In June 1958, they drove up to Washington, DC, where they took their vows before God and State.

At the time, interracial marriage was still against the law in Virginia.  An anonymous source informed the Caroline County Sheriff's Department, who proceeded to arrest the couple while they slept in their bed. They were charged with "cohabitating as man and wife, against the peace and dignity of the Commonwealth."  The Lovings pled guilty and were sentenced to a year in prison.  The sentence was suspended however, when the Lovings agreed to leave Virginia for 25 years.

The couple relocated to Washington, but whereas jobs had been plentiful in Central Point, they now faced economic hardships.  They also discovered that the city could be unforgiving as well, when their young son was hit by a car on the busy streets.  In their hearts, they knew it was time to go home.

After a few years of legal wrangling, the case of Loving v. Virginia finally went before the Supreme Court in 1967.  In a ruling passed down on June 12th, the Court overturned their convictions and ruled the ban on interracial marriage as unconstitutional.

The Lovings returned to Virginia, where they began to raise a family.  Their happiness would be short-lived, however.  On June 29, 1975, their car was hit by a drunk driver.  Richard, only 41, died on the scene.  Mildred survived the accident, and would spend the next 40 years living a quiet, secluded life in Virginia, often downplaying her role in history, giving the real credit to God.  She ultimately passed of pneumonia on May 2, 2008.  She was 68 years old.

The Lovings are laid to rest in a quiet church cemetery in Central Point, Virginia.  A historical marker lies just outside the park.

Rest in peace.

Trivia

• If you want to learn more about Richard and Mildred Loving, take a voyage to Amazon.  It's all in books.
  
  
• Following the Supreme Court ruling, the couple discussed their story with ABC News.  You can watch that interview on YouTube.
  
  
• The Loving story has been chronicled in a number of films, with varying degrees of accuracy.  Of 1996's Mr. and Mrs. Loving, Mildred would state "not much of it was very true.  The only part of it right was I had three children."  Other adaptations include the 2011 documentary The Loving Story and 2016's Loving.
  
  
• In 2009, country artist Nanci Griffith released her single The Loving Kind in tribute to the couple.  Take a listen on Amazon.
  
  
• In honor of the landmark case, June 12th is now an unofficial U.S. holiday - Loving Day.