93 Responses to “It’s About Interracial Sex Folks”

1. Ann on June 26th, 2007 2:22 am

   “(Probably while masturbating to interracial porn.)”

   

2. elle on June 26th, 2007 2:23 am

   I’ve been “hearing” the case, seeing the pictures of Davis, but I’ve never sat down and watched coverage. I didn’t realize it was an interracial relationship.

   My heart goes out Davis’s family. I remember in the aftermath of Nicole Brown Simpson’s murder, hearing people comment something to the effect that she “got what she deserved” because she “took” OJ from his black wife. And in scanning a message board just now, someone whom I assume is black voiced the opinion that Cutts deserves “whatever he’s going to get,” not because he is allegedly abusive and homicidal, but for “messing with a white girl.”

   I am in an awkward place–a survivor of domestic violence who feels deeply for Davis and her family and also a black woman (not that the two are magically separable) whose first response, on reading that a black man is suspected, was to cringe: another brush with which to tar all black men.

   I’ve wondered aloud enough, I suppose. Great post, Rachel.

3. elle on June 26th, 2007 2:25 am

   another thing–i was amazed by the fact that a pregnant, single mother was receiving so much (sympathetic) coverage by the media–i honestly wondered why.

   now knowing that she was in an interracial relationship…

4. Rachel on June 26th, 2007 2:37 am

   She’s getting sympathetic coverage from the MSM, but not from the commenters on messages boards. One big problem outside of race that makes people unsympathetic to her is that fact that she was about to have two children by a married man. He and his wife have apparently been separated for some time, and the wife knew about Davis’s pregnancies. You can check the comments and Terrence’s site as examples.

   As for him, I think he’s going to have a really hard time garnering sympathy from any racial group. Simpson had a history of being a black hero, but this guy never rose past the ranks of high school football star. And unfortunately he’s being portrayed as a walking stereotype of black men–4 children with three baby mama’s, unfaithful to his wife, player, former star athlete, abusive boyfriend, law breaking cop, power hungry psychopath, and so on. I suspect all things have some validity, but those things are not the totality of this guy’s life.

5. Rachel on June 26th, 2007 2:50 am

   You know elle, I also cringed at this case. Partly because I hate seeing racial stereotypes reaffirmed, and partly because interracial couples are almost completely absent from mass media and pop culture, until we have a case like this.

6. The Angry Independent on June 26th, 2007 3:22 am

   Of course it’s about sex. This kind of racism is one of the last frontiers when it comes to race in this country… one of the last big social taboos that people like to pretend doesn’t exist.

   Black men are stigmatized enough already… we didn’t need any help from Cutts.
   I am interested in women from all races.
   When you are a black male who dates outside of your race… you are not just dating the person… you are dating her entire family… it’s like you have to be “approved” by them. It’s sickening.
   White families (already paranoid about their daughters) will really start going nuts. I recall the story from last year of the white couple who kidnapped their own daughter after they found out that she was dating a black kid. Sure he was probably no good… but there are no good people of all groups. The parents were motivated by race. If the guy was a white creep… they would more than likely have been o.k. with it. (that’s the part that really blows my mind).

   I recall when I dated outside of my race for the first time… (an hispanic woman)… I remember how uncomfortable it was. All the stares and so on… I couldn’t wait for the date to be over. When these kinds of incidents happen, like with Cutts/Davis, it just makes it worse.

   Black males are already viewed with a certain cautious eye as it is. So much so that I have run across several women who are from families that won’t let them date Black men at all…. simply based on race. They would be disowned by their families. They love to see Black men running up and down the basketball court… running up and down a football field… in military uniform, etc… but not dating their daughters. Because we are monsters after all.

   The media is going into a frenzy over this thing.

   We have not come all that far from the Jim Crow South.

   Will I ever see the day when I am judged as an individual… for my character instead of a stereotype or racial category?
   I will probably be dead before that day arrives, unfortunately.

7. Dylan Gaine on June 26th, 2007 3:54 am

   i’d like to add that i wonder who decides to run these top stories? i mean, is this like a walmart distribution thing? where a select few run the media we see and based on that we draw a conclusion thats what the entire canvas seems to be? surely the news folks may say that this is what the audience wants and it becomes a symbiotic relationship. in the end, it may leave some to draw the conclusion that the US has a thing about interracial relationships but was the cause inherent or is it fueled?

8. Gandalph Mantooth on June 26th, 2007 5:04 am

   I will go you one better in the specificity thing — people perk up when one of the people involved in the crime is Black and the other White. If this woman was Asian, interest evaporates by half a ton. The man is Latino, interest evaporates by a ton, unless the man is an undocumented worker.

   Just like in pr0n logic, it’s only “interracial” if the man is Black.

9. Tariq Nelson on June 26th, 2007 7:25 am

   I know what you mean Rachel. I really felt bad for the case when I initially heard about it, but I just couldn’t help but cringe when I saw the interracial element because I knew that the white supremacists would jump all over it (they seem to live for stories like this) and use it as “proof” that blacks are inherently violent and dangerous to whites

10. Rachel on June 26th, 2007 10:02 am

    Gandolf has a point, the interracial relationship general has to involve a black person and a white person to blow up this big.

11. Rachel on June 26th, 2007 10:10 am

    Angry Independent said, “They would be disowned by their families. They love to see Black men running up and down the basketball court� running up and down a football field� in military uniform, etc�”

    Yeah, many whites are quite comfortable with blacks serving them, and that’s what these cases involve. Sports is providing entertainment for largely white audiences. The military is also perceived as contributing to the well being of whites.

    But interracial relationships, in their view hurts the status of whites. What’s really funny is how many whites will say crap about how black people just need to work harder and racism is over, but all of the sudden if it is their relative in an interracial relationship, they start talking about how hard their relatives life will be, nobody will accept them, blah, blah, blah. Those two thoughts are so completely incompatible with each other.

12. Regina on June 26th, 2007 10:55 am

    Great post, Rachel.

    I think you are spot on re: the media fascination b/c of the interracial relationship thing.

    But it’s also the missing white woman phenom at work, I think. I first starting following this case without knowing about all the players involved, but *assumed* she had to be white because otherwise why am I hearing about a missing Ohio woman? Meanwhile, at the same time in my area three black woman have been found dead within a couple of weeks time and in the same general area - the LOCAL media is BARELY covering this and I know if it had been 3 white women, … well, anyway.

    Meanwhile, Stepha Henry has been missing since the end of May… a black woman; where’s the coverage?

13. Ann on June 26th, 2007 11:45 am

    Rachel.

    I went over to Terrance’s site.

    (Can a brother get some help? Sheesh, he sure did need some, that’s for sure.) I left a comment at his site.

    “The truth of the matter is that the US is a culture obsessed with interracial sex, but nobody will say this in polite company. During the slave era and the Jim Crow era, white people spoke with repulsion and disgust at interracial sex even though many white men were routinely engaging in sexual encounters with black women.”

    True.

    That white men sexually degraded black women for generations and lied on black women and labeled them sluts/whores/bitches (afterall, they were the original group of men who called us “hos” and “bitches” first), has left black women with a devalued status in this society. That the white man has put white women on a pedestal and that he said to the world that she was better than all women, has left us with this legacy of sexualized gendered racist sexism in which some women will be treated with respect and humanity (white women), and in which some women will not (black women).

    Because of the pervesion of sexual acts of barbarity against black women, and the fact that white men were NEVER punished for their sexual crimes against black women, white society devalues black women. And because of his rape and abuse of black women, the white man came to believe that any and all black men could not wait to degrade, debauch and defile white women.

    It’s okay for black men to go to school with the white man’s daughters, okay to go to work with them; but, God forbid, if the black man becomes intimate with the white woman. Such an image in the white man’s mind is enough to send him into a psychotic rage. When it hits closer to home, it is more than the white family can take. But, on the other hand, it would be okay for white son to lay up with a black woman, just as long as he does not MARRY her.

    Even today, as this case points out, white men go into a rage when they see a BM/WW couple. But, on the other hand, his response is entirely different when he sees a WM/BW couple.

    It goes back to his fear of a black planet comment, “Would you want your daughter to marry one?” Never is the exact comment, “Would you want your SON to marry one?” uttered. It is accepted that white women have so much value that if a black woman is with a black man that HE must be abusing or using her; she is less than human in being with a black man, therefore, any and all consideration for her being goes out the window. She has put herself into a position of less value, she has lowered herself by being with a black man, so no concern for her well-being comes into mind from onlookers and haters who do not want to see a black man and a white woman together. She is considered of low class, because even 400 years later, many white people still say, “How can she go with him? Can’t she do any better?”

    Black men are seen as the vicious “brute” who is out to take “our women!” Nevermind that this is what white men have been doing to black women for over 400 years.

    And the would you want your daughter to marry them saw points up that it is expected of the black man to MARRY the white woman, not to lay up with and use her. On the otherhand, it is expected of ALL MEN (white men, especially)to lay up with, use, defile and abuse a black woman. It is expected to treat a black woman as less than human, and to do otherwise, causes the white man who gives her humanity humane treatment is looked upon as having something wrong with him. He is expected to use and throw her into the trash after he is finished with her. He is not expected to treat her womanhood with respect and consideration. Therefore, you see little to no coverage of black women in the media in comparison to the all blitz of media coverage given to white women.

    Because of white America’s 400 year perversion of sex between black and white, of course it will bring up responses of fear and hate, repulsion, and attraction.

    Because of the way white America has degraded sex between white and black, it will continue to elicit disgust and contempt.

    Out of all the IRs in America, the black/white dynamic has the most sickest and perverted history behind it.

    Not much chance of that outlook changing anytime soon.

    Maybe in the next 14,000 to 16,000 years from now.

14. Ann on June 26th, 2007 11:51 am

    “It is accepted that white women have so much value that if a black woman is with a black man…”

    Typo error. That was supposed to read:

    “It is accepted that white women have so much value that if a WHITE woman is with a black man…”

15. Rachel on June 26th, 2007 1:06 pm

    Yeah, I encourage anyone to fo over and defend Terrence. Those crazies are trying to get him down.

16. Rachel on June 26th, 2007 1:07 pm

    Regina, would you like to give links or names of the black women who were murdered? I’d like to get more information.

17. Tiffany in Houston on June 26th, 2007 1:12 pm

    Great post. I agree with everything you have said.

    And I’m probably going to get flamed for saying the truth but I was one of the ones thinking that when black men get with white women and something goes wrong that alot of times it is hyped beyond belief. Had it been a black man/black woman, not a peep would have been heard.

18. Rachel on June 26th, 2007 1:19 pm

    I can’t even think of a case that has had major media attention in the recent past of a married black man killing his wife, so that seems to confirm whay everybody is saying.

    Tiffany, I don’t think anybody will flame you. The real problem here is that interracial relationships are put under a microscope, and any relationship that is messed up gets attention. Thus, all of the functional interracial couples don’t get any attention, and they are made out to be dysfunctional when they are not. I think it’s like being the only person of color at your job; you know that feeling of everybody is watching. It’s the same kind of problem; everybody’s watching and many of them are waiting for the brown person to mess up.

    It’s like the enemies of interracial relaitonships and the one brown person at the job are invested in failure to prove the fact that black and brown people don’t make good employees or interracial couples make bad couples.

19. Rachel on June 26th, 2007 1:21 pm

    I knew this post would blow up. I don’t know Dylan, but I think it is quite interesting that only black folks have commented thus far….well except for myself.

    If you go over to Alas you can get a more white perspective on it.

    Most white people are REALLY scared of this topic…..

20. Tiffany in Houston on June 26th, 2007 1:37 pm

    White people are scared because they don’t want to state the obvious.

    Black men AND women are hypersexualized in many white folks subconscious minds. THis goes back to slavery and the stereotypes of ‘buck’ negroes and ‘jezebel’ or ‘hussy’ black women.

    That’s just real talk.

21. Rachel on June 26th, 2007 1:46 pm

    Thanks to this post I already have one pornographer and some sick site called interracial blonde linking to my site…I just saw it. It says some crap about white women bored at home so they want big black pensis, or something to that effect. I’m at work and the site is really pornographic, so I couldn’t read over it.

22. Rachel on June 26th, 2007 1:47 pm

    The other sad thing Tiffany, is that I’m actually finding some black people who are buying into that same crap about themselves. Obviously not anybody who has posted here, but some of the people on the black messages boards are acting like black white supremacists.

23. dylan gaine on June 26th, 2007 2:56 pm

    Rachel, I went over to Alas as you suggested. Here are my thoughts:

    News targets groups 35 years of age+, the mean age must be around 45? I can see, when deciding to run a story, they fall back on topics that are the good ol’ standbys. the frantic 911 call, the interracial couple and i’m sure there are others. After all, in the game of ratings (and news have to compete with entertainment now for ratings), you don’t take chances with stuff that has not worked in the past. As a result, progress is slow. Funny tho, because after the news is out, you have the 35+ group still paying attention to it, since for many, it reinforces their fears. And for the 35 and under group, it made them angry and it becomes a hot topic. Either way, the decision to move with that story worked since it brought the attention. am i stating the obvious here?

24. B on June 26th, 2007 3:47 pm

    Spot-on post, Rachel. America definitely is obsessed with interracial sex, and it certainly isn’t just in the media. I could write tomes about the reactions my fiance and I have had as a BW/WM couple, but generally, we’re met with disbelief, confusion (from all races), or, our least favorite, white guys who try to hit on me figuring that since I’m with a white guy already, I’m their opportunity to explore their curiosity, because it isn’t like we’re serious or anything or that black women are monogamous (that was dripping with sarcasm, in case anyone missed it). We definitely get reactions our same-race couples don’t get. (Of course, I agree that, in any case, the Davis family is dealing with the unimaginable right now,and I hope that they can get through this.)

    I also think that your “Note to readers” was appropriate. I often have to take a break from this blog because I get to a point where I can’t read any more horrible comments from racist trolls. To that end, more power to you for deleting their comments.

25. Rachel on June 26th, 2007 4:31 pm

    B said, “I often have to take a break from this blog because I get to a point where I can�t read any more horrible comments from racist trolls. To that end, more power to you for deleting their comments.”

    You can’t even imagine all of the ones I don’t let through. Some of them manage to get through moderation, and then I delete them.

    However, sometimes I let them through or I turn them into posts because I want the colorblind racists to see that these kinds of bigots are still out there. I know most of the people of color who read my site know this, but there are many white people in denial. These types of racists always deny racism, and accuse me of “exaggerating” about the racist comments, which is one reason I let some of them through.

    One thing I can definitely say, is that there is nothing white supremacists get more riled up about than a white woman who doesn’t buy their crap.

26. Lyonside on June 26th, 2007 4:32 pm

    Everyone is spot-on - I remember a year or so ago when the missing-young-blonde-white-on-vacation-in-Aruba got all the attention (WHY would that ever be on my local news when she had ZERO connection to Philadelphia?), and the local Philadelphia missing-young-pregnant-black-Latino-mom story was buried. In fact, that story only got a hint of national press BECAUSE people started pointing out the disparity of coverage.

    I think we have to ask ourselves not “what is wrong with XYZ men” or even “what is wrong with men,” but what is wrong with our entire society?? Why do so many men (usually) see killing their partners or ex-partners as a way out or an viable option? Do they think they’ll get away with it?

    The Petersons, The Vaughns, The Davis/Cutts, and now the Benoits, evidently (http://sports.yahoo.com/top/news?slug=ap-wrestlerdead&prov=ap&type=lgns). And that’s just off the top of my head (and my inbox).

27. Regina on June 26th, 2007 7:54 pm

    Here’s a link to a story printed after the third woman was found. The headline reads “Police see no correlation in deaths of 3 females”.

    http://www.southbendtribune.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070623/News01/706230348

    Let me know if the link doesn’t work.

    In fact, there may be no link between the deaths of these three women. The point, however, is that if three white women were found dead within that span of time and in such close proximity to each other, it would be all we’d hear about.

28. B on June 26th, 2007 9:41 pm

    Rachel,

    I see your point. I’m glad someone has the stomach for it. I hope you maintain this blog for a while.

29. Angel H. on June 26th, 2007 9:44 pm

    I first heard about the case one morning while getting reading for work. I was leaning over and tying my shoes when the news anchor mentioned “the search for a missing pregnant woman”. I thought to myself, “Betcha she’s white.” Then I looked up at the TV, and ta-dah!

    When the media began showing pics of the husband and talking about how the police was questioning him further about the disappearance, I kept hoping, “Pleasedon’tlethimbeinvolved. Pleasedon’tlethimbeinvolved. Pleasedon’tlethimbeinvolved.” And then he was arrested. Damn.

    One thing that really pissed me off about the media’s handling of this case: Last week, a baby was found about 45 miles away from where the woman disappeared. There was specualtion that the baby could’ve been here’s but it was dismissed because she was pregnant with a biracial baby and the baby was too light. They did DNA testing anyway, and we all know now that the baby wasn’t hers, but for them to dismiss it because it didn’t look Black enough was just stupid!

30. Regina on June 27th, 2007 12:05 am

    It’s so interesting to see how many people over at Alas are saying “I didn’t know what race the people were until a few days into the story”. The fact that it got so much coverage beyond northeast Ohio should have been the first clue.

31. Rachel on June 27th, 2007 12:14 am

    I know Kate, and she doesn’t have any cable these days, but I have a really hard time believing that people didn’t know about the dude’s race.

32. Rachel on June 27th, 2007 12:29 am

    Yeah, Angel I caught that as well. Given how light the two year old is, I would have expected the second child to be fair, especially as a new born. In fact, the lady who found the baby described it as a black curly haired white baby.

    But many white people don’t know that most black babies are born lighter. They don’t know the old, look behind the ear trick.

    Doing the DNA test was the right thing, and you know I’m a little curious now who the mother of that child is.

33. Ann on June 27th, 2007 2:30 am

    

    “But many white people don�t know that most black babies are born lighter. They don�t know the old, look behind the ear trick.”

    That’s news to me.

    I have heard of looking at the knuckles, elbows and knees, but, never behind the ears.

    And it is ridiculous that many white people do not believe a very light-skinned baby can come from a black/white coupling. Even more white do not believe that a black woman can give birth to an extremely light baby.

    Sheesh.

    It’s been happening ever since the first black slave woman gave birth to the master’s child, and it has not changed since, especially since modern present-day black Americans have more white blood in them than the black people who arrived in America in 1619.

    Not much chance of the baby being born pure jet-black.

34. Lyonside on June 27th, 2007 11:38 am

    I was appalled last night when the spouse and I were flipping channels and the 2 year old’s picture was RIGHT THERE. It was that talking head woman’s show on Headline News (her name escapes me - she’s the “former prosecutor” with a bad attitude who gets blasted on E’s The Soup).

    Isn’t there a general rule, or at least a professional agreement, to not show minors (unless they’re missing, etc.)? I’m sure that kid is going to be SO glad that CNN and its affiliates showed his mug a week after he witnesses his mother’s murder.

    Then it hit me: it’s an opportunity to gawk at a biracial (black/white) baby. Of COURSE they’ll broadcast it.

35. Angel H. on June 27th, 2007 12:13 pm

    But many white people don�t know that most black babies are born lighter.

    When I was born, there was also another Black baby girl born with the same last name on the same day. When the family came to see me at the nursery, they “ahhed” and “cooed” over the pretty dark-skinned baby with the thick, curly hair. My dad had to correct them: I was the pink, bald thing next to her with the cone-shaped head.

36. Sailorman on June 27th, 2007 2:19 pm

    When you go into the whole “crimes against blacks never make it into the media” thing I get a bit confused. This woman was white? So what? I see stories about white victims in the news; I ALSO see stories about black victims in the news. And yes, they get attention; wasn’t the Duke case front page news across the entire freakin’ nation for weeks?

    Do they get “equivalent” attention? Perhaps not, but you’d need to support that a lot better than saying “hey, look, here’s an uncovered news case.” There are TONS of cases in the U.S. which are putatively newsworthy; most of them get ignored.

    I would, FWIW, expect that the news would show nonwhites less often than whites, seeing as nonhispanic whites are about 66% of the US. Similarly, I would expect the news to show blacks much less often, seeing as they are less than 15% of the population. (these percentages from http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/00000.html)

    Yes, the media focuses less on poor people; it also probably focuses somewhat more on white people. But you’re getting those responses at Alas because you seem to be taking a fairly tiny sample (white supremacists and people searching at technorati) and using it to make a much larger judgment about society in general. It’s simply not supported by your post here.

37. Rachel on June 27th, 2007 2:24 pm

    You know Lyonside I didn’t even think about the gawking at biracial people part, but I have seen some comments about the kids appearance. One person on black voices said the 2 year old proves that not all biracial kids are cute. I couldn’t believe a kid just saw his mom killed, and that’s what someone wanted to talk about.

    I think that is a really good point.

    You know what I also find intersting…I’ve watched the coverage very closely and I have never seen a photo of the two of them together.

38. Rachel on June 27th, 2007 2:26 pm

    Angel are you saying you were a funny looking baby. LOL!!

    Ann, I’m shocked you have never heard of the behind the ear thing. I have heard the knuckles thing–from my partner’s sister.

    Who else has heard of the behind the ear theory?

39. Arnold Presser on June 27th, 2007 2:40 pm

    White victim + black perp = national coverage?

    2 words… Channon Christian.

    2 more… Chris Newsome.

    Some more words…

    Brad Heyka, Heather Muller, Aaron Sander, Jason Befort, and Ann Walenta.

40. Rachel on June 27th, 2007 2:41 pm

    Sailorman a couple points,

    First there has been an empirical test of the hypothesis that white victims get more coverage. Here is a link to a book about race in media by Entman and Rojecki. On page 81 you can see their findings for local Chicago news.

    A few key findings–
    About an equal number of blacks and whites were portrayed as criminals (which is an overrepresentation of blacks since they make up well under half of the Chicago metro area’s population. Moreover, this even exceeds the higher crime rates of blacks.)

    The total number of white victims exceeded the total number of black victims (241-160)

    The average black victim received 106 seconds of time and the average white victim received 185 seconds of coverage.

    When the authors tallied the total story tiem devoted to white and black victims–the time dedicated to white victims out number the time dedicated to black victims by 3:1.

41. Rachel on June 27th, 2007 2:57 pm

    Second,
    Sailorman said, “When you go into the whole �crimes against blacks never make it into the media�

    You’re exaggerating did I say “never” C’mon on, I’m not that slow.

    You bring up the Duke case, but what is absolutely fascinating about that case is that the media and high priced attorneys were able to spin the media around and turn the white men into victims. I think that is abig piece of what kept it in the media for soooo long.

    Sailorman said, “I would, FWIW, expect that the news would show nonwhites less often than whites, seeing as nonhispanic whites are about 66% of the US.”

    You can see the data above. The media tends to show a disproportionate number of crimes committed by blacks. If we were to just look at murders. Somewhere around 45% of murder victims are black, so fair coverage of the population of murder victims would have 45% blacks, and by the time you add Latinos, Asians, and American Indians, I’m fairly certain well over half of all murder victims are people of color.

    (I know of one show that actually seems to do a fair job of portraying people of color as murder victims- AE has a reality show called the First 48, which follows big city homocide detectives. The vast majority of the cases they cover have people of color as victims, which would accurately reflect the homicides in those cities–Memphis, Miami, Detroit, Dallas, etc. They may actually underrepresent white victims since they do not cover rural areas.)

    So if blacks were 15% (which is high by the way because you are probably including Latinos) of murder victims yeah, but they are not.

42. Rachel on June 27th, 2007 3:04 pm

    Sailorman said, “But you�re getting those responses at Alas because you seem to be taking a fairly tiny sample (white supremacists and people searching at technorati) and using it to make a much larger judgment about society in general. It�s simply not supported by your post here.”

    No Sailorman, I’m getting those responses because many whites even many liberal minded whites, do the old anything but race crap.

    That’s what’s really going on. In know what the research says. I’m a sociologists for Christ sake, but many whites don’t respect my view because it doesn’t conform to what they want to believe. I’m not going to make arguments that are contrary to research, and when I don’t know of any research (as in the thread on Black and Indians), I’ll say more research needs to be done. I’ll say I’m unfamilar with the research, etc.

    That also seems to imply that whites are looking for rational facts while blacks are being overly emotional/irrational by agreeing with me. From the little research that is out there (and there does need to be more), it is the whites (and their POC buddies) who want to deny the disparity who are being emotional and not looking at the facts.

43. Sailorman on June 27th, 2007 3:18 pm

    This is the type of “never mind the man behind the curtain” analysis that I find so distressing.

    Blacks make up a tiny minority (12%) of the population of Chicago. However, the linked book you cited above notes that the black/white ratio of violent crime arrests was 41%/57%. A fully accurate accounting of the violence described in that article would be much closer to equality than to 12%. And it is.

    Now, 41% isn’t 49%. So where did the extra 8% come from? We don’t see from the article (perhaps it’s unjustified racism; perhaps it’s a reflection on the type of crime at hand; “violent” crime is a big area and not always newsworthy.) We don’t know what the reason is. Perhaps 8% is simply normal variation.

    We don’t see that because the article–like this post–is trying to cloud the issue. You, and they, seem to be implying that there’s significant overrepresentation without specifically acknowledging the inconvenient fact that (in the study) the crimes were fairly close to equal.

    Reading that linked article, one is “supposed” to conclude that the “appropriate” news would be proportionate (closer to 12%.) That’s why they present it the way that they do.

    You also (FWIW) don’t note the, um, “interesting” language of the victim analysis. The article complains that whites are overrepresented though blacks are “more likely to have been victimized.” Note that it DOESN’T SAY that there were more black CRIMES; it only discusses rates.

    This is initially deceptive. Switching from numbers to rates shouldn’t be done without making is quite clear. Moreover, it’s presented as being a conflict when it’s actually fully consistent with reality:

    Chicago is 12% black; for heck’s sake let’s guess it’s 60% white. White victims in the news exceed black victims by a factor of 1.5. Even if blacks in chicago were three times as likely to be victimized, there would still be far fewer black victims–which is a perfectly rational explanation for the report.

    Similarly, that “total story time” is sort of funny, as it seems to ignore the number of victims. More whites on the news = more story time. I can only assume it’s there because “3:1″ sounds a lot more compelling than “1.5:1″

    Now… that 106 second / 185 second issue. THAT seems like it might well be the type of thing you’re talking about. Standing alone, that claim looks pretty strong, and would need to be explained.

    But it isn’t standing alone. It’s in company with a lot of other stuff which is poorly analyzed. When I read an article like that, which seems to be so biased, how can I trust it?

44. Rachel on June 27th, 2007 3:26 pm

    Sailorman, you could not possibly have read that entire chapter in that short of time.

    Ok, sorry. I see they don’t have the whole chapter on book preview. In that chapter they control for things like crime rates, population size, and victimization rates. If I remember the entire chapter correctly, they find that they greastest disparity is in the time dedicated to victims, and the other disparties are not as significant (number of black victims to white victims; number of black perpetrators to white perpetrators).

45. Rachel on June 27th, 2007 3:28 pm

    How the hell is the aritcle biased, they analyzed the coverage. They timed it; they noted the race of the victim, and the nature of the crime.

46. john harland on June 27th, 2007 3:46 pm

    How fitting for you to ban any posts that are contrary to your clouded thinking. How fitting indeed. Enjoy your progressive circle jerk.
    I know exactly what you are about. You declined my invitation to discuss the long beach racial beatings and the juneteenth racial mob violence. I have said it before and you keep crystallizing my point. You are no different from the bigots you rail against..you simply work a different side of the street.

    Classify me as a “white supremacist (ha!) if that makes you sleep well at night. I simply asked a legitimate question and you are too cowardly to answer it.

    ENJOY

47. Angel H. on June 27th, 2007 4:33 pm

    Sailorman:

    I would, FWIW, expect that the news would show nonwhites less often than whites, seeing as nonhispanic whites are about 66% of the US. Similarly, I would expect the news to show blacks much less often, seeing as they are less than 15% of the population.

    As of May 2005, there were 3,189 more men missing than women, yet their stories rarely (if ever) make the news. Also, whites - including hispanics - make up only 61.7% of missing persons. (Unfortunately, I haven’t been able to find the percentage for missing hispanics.) If, however, missing minorities make up a majority of missing persons, then their stories need to be told.

48. Sailorman on June 27th, 2007 4:34 pm

    Well, OK. If that’s supported and shown, then it’s supported and shown. As you note, only part of the chapter is available. I read fast, but not THAT fast! ;)

    The article doesn’t appear biased in the methods; I didn’t say it was. It appears biased (but may not be in light of the part of the book that I didn’t see) in terms of the presentation. As for how the hell I can think that, I discussed that above, didn’t I?

49. Angel H. on June 27th, 2007 4:40 pm

    Rachel:

    Angel are you saying you were a funny looking baby. LOL!!

    My aunt broke into tears, and my grandmother said, “God Lord! What’d they do to that baby!”

    And people wonder why I’m the way I am now!

50. Liz on June 27th, 2007 5:50 pm

    Sailorman: 35% of Chicago is black. The 12% figure is for the U.S. overall. Check the census web site for more information. I know this is a moot point anyway, since you clearly didn’t read the article.

    Rachel: Something that struck me during the coverage of this story on the television “news” was the how many family members of Jessie Davis and another baby’s mother avoided saying anything bad about Cutts until explicitly asked. For example, Nancy Grace asked Jessie’s mother what kind of guy he was, and if she had a problem with him. And the mother said “no, not at all.” But later, when Nancy Grace asked if she had a problem with the fact that he was married, the mother went on a tirade about how she tried to get her daughter to stop dating him, and how she had “words” with Cutts, and was very upset about the whole thing.

    It seems to me that in the coverage, people choose words very carefully as to not _seem_ racist, but when probed further about their feelings the initial responses crumble. This is not to say that the mother is racist, but instead that her initial positive responses (which are later contradicted) are an attempt to shield her from being called a racist. This is a great example of how the average person has developed sophisticated methods of avoiding talking about race, and how it makes it even harder to talk about race in this situation.

    I know this is all a little bit of an sidenote to the discussion, but I think it is important to discuss since the media seems directly linked to how people develop these sorts of discursive techniques. That is, repeated showings of the biracial child (when children of kidnapped women are rarely shown) can work to reproduce white supremacist ideologies covertly, while overtly saying nothing about race.

    One more thought: I was also wondering to myself if I would be upset if this case didn’t receive a lot of attention. Would I blame the lack of coverage on a devalued status a white women with biracial children? Would I have looked back to the Scott Peterson case and said: “If she were with a white man, there would be an uproar!”

51. B on June 27th, 2007 6:01 pm

    I’ve heard of the “behind the ear” theory as well.

    Angel, I’m sure you weren’t more funny looking than most babies. The only ones born w/out the conehead are cesarean births. Most of us were funny looking for the first few days

    I also think it is surprising that people continue to be so puzzled by the color thing with mixed race babies. Guess no one is assigning Nella Larsen in the high schools.

52. Rachel on June 27th, 2007 6:14 pm

    B said, “Most of us were funny looking for the first few days.”

    Yeah, most newborns look like little wrinkly bulldogs.

    And the conehead thing, is definitely a sign of a vaginal birth. I have often thought that is why they put hats on newborn babies.

53. Kate L. on June 27th, 2007 7:38 pm

    Totally participating in thread derailment…

    but most newborns are ahem. Unattractive. I tried to prepare my husband and I for that fact, but of course, MY child was gorgeous, right from the get go so it was an unnecessary exercise.

54. Jessie Davis and Bobby Cutts - all the attention is about interracial sex? « My Internal Dialog by Saliva on June 27th, 2007 9:29 pm

    [...] Davis and Bobby Cutts - all the attention is about interracial sex? Time for you to take a moment and read this post, it’s a very interesting take on the attention the Jessie Davis murder case is [...]

55. Stephanie B. on June 27th, 2007 10:06 pm

    To be honest, this case has all the racial/sexual dynamics. Already, I’ve seen hate post on IRs because of this case and that the Cutts’ family has received death threats from White supremacist groups. White supremacists such as American Renaissance and David Yeagley are having a field day over this as do some Black nationalist groups. They want their views confirmed that IRs are “immoral”. Had Mr. Cutts been white, and Davis Black, would there be any media blitz? No way!

    As the family of Ms. Davis are preparing for her funeral, let’s also remember Latoyia Figueroa and Reyna Marron. These women didn’t get the attention from the media as they’ve should have because of their race.

    Ann and Rachel are always right on the money on the racial/sexual dynamics of this case. I have to give them a hand.

    Stephanie B.

56. Changeseeker on June 28th, 2007 1:46 pm

    I wasn’t going to comment on this thread because I am so totally OVER this topic, but I was reminded yesterday of the work of Calvin Hernton, whose book Sex and Racism in America (originally published in 1963) is STILL in print in multiple languages all over the world. If you’re interested in reading a most fascinating and unapologetic examination of interracial relationships, I highly recommend a trip to the library or the bookstore post haste.

57. Salvia on June 28th, 2007 5:52 pm

    Last evening I found a very interesting post over at RachelsTavern.com providing an alternative view on what the Jessie Davis/Bobby Cutts murder story � all the media attention is directly related to Interracial sex. What?!?

    Before we even look at why she claims this to be the true cause for the attention, let us take a look at Rachel�s background. From her about section:

    �Rachel is a sociology professor who lives and blogs in the New York City metro area. Her research and teaching focus on race, African American Studies, gender, sexuality, and popular culture.�

    I bring this up so we understand where Rachel is coming from when she makes her statements. That said, let�s take a look at why she says this is about interracial sex.

    Rachel wanted to see what people were thinking, and this is where she make her very first substantial comment case:

    �I went around to a few blogs, and I visited AOL Blackvoices and a couple white supremacist message boards to see what they were saying, and quite frankly it was horrible�.I can�t tell you how many racist and misogynistic comments I read; and not surprisingly the white supremacists were giddy over this case.�

    So wait, were you looking for a general view of what society was thinking about this murder investigation or were you looking for the most extreme opinions of what the fringe of society was thinking? I mean, did you truly expect to see white supremacists says anything less than happy about this?

    How many expected mother websites did you visit to see their reactions? How many forums focused on Grandmothers did you visit? How many law enforcement forums did you visit? Were they all saying the victim was �white trash�? Better yet, did you look at any Media blogs or forums, and if so, how many of them were talking about it as an interracial sex issue?

    The piece of evidence she points out is the Christopher Vaughn murder story (which I spoke about a few days back). While the case was equally graphic and disturbing, it hardly had any coverage in the nation media. And this where Rachel makes her claim:

    �I agree that white women victims get much more attention than Black, Asian, Latino, and American Indian women, and I agree that race is a big factor in the media attention the case has gotten, but I would be more specific than Terrence. It�s about interracial sex.�

    Again, wait, what?

    She then goes one to say:

    �Interracial crimes make big sensational news stories, but crimes that involve interracial sexuality arouse the deepest passions of American bigotry. The OJ Simpson case, the Duke Rape, the Kobe Bryant rape case, and now this one�they all have tremendous sexual overtones.�

    So, the OJ Simpson given the attention because of interracial sex? Not the fact that a former Football superstar was involved? Not the fact that the crime was so severe? Not because the actual trial became a circus?

    The Duke rape case was about interracial sex? You mean the attention wasn�t due to the fact that the case involved a major, and well respected, institution of higher learning or because of a sports team? You mean that it wasn�t because a number of people allegedly involved in the crime? You mean that it wasn�t because of the politics of the prosecutor?

    Also, the Kobe Bryant case didn�t get the attention because he is a superstar or because he tried to hid the event? You mean it wasn�t because of the infidelity he committed?

    Nope, according to Rachel � these all got the attention because of the interracial sex.

    This is where things get really interesting. Rachel points to her own website, and it�s traffic, as proof that society is obsessed with race and sex. You know what, that very well may be the case. We me be obsessed with it, we may be obsessed with race and sex but that does not mean we are obsessed with both topics concurrently.

    She then goes to show some of the searches ran on her site:

    * black men impregnating white women stories
    * savages on blondes
    * Biracial family pictures black and white
    * BLACK ATHLETE MARRYING WHITE WOMEN
    * Black men breeding white girls
    * black negro slave woman naked pictures
    * black women with white men in adult movies
    * differences between white and black women�s breasts
    * blacks in bed sexing
    * george lucas in love black women
    * how do you feel about interracial relationship

    So, as you already established you are researcher and teacher who focuses on race, African American Studies, gender, sexuality, and popular culture. You run a website that focuses on these very same topics. What kind of searches did you expect to have? Did you expect people looking for information on the rain in Texas or the wildfires out west? No, you are going to get searches that relate to the topic on your site!

    The search request that are more sexual, that is to say �blacks in bed sexing� are, most likely, people who came to your site thinking it was a porn site and wanted to find things that related to their fetish.

    Here is why the case received so much attention � the son. The impact of the comments he made to his grandmother �Mommy was crying. Mommy broke the table. Mommy�s in rug.�

    This is the comment that was said over and over and over. The news pounded this into our heads from the very beginning and was closely followed by the fact that the woman was pregnant and was due any day. The ex-boyfriend wasn�t a suspect in the beginning and wasn�t even mentioned until several days later.

    What I think we have here is some who is too close to a topic � someone who can no longer see the forest from the trees � and is drawing a conclusion based on her biased opinion.

    For the record, my very first reaction was �it�s Lacey Peterson all over again�. I *NEVER* thought about this topic being a racial issue until I ready Rachel�s view.

58. Aimee on June 28th, 2007 6:33 pm

    I am a strong, white woman and am married to a wonderful black man, who also happens to be a great police officer. We can not hold an entire race accountable for a person’s bad decision or action. There are bad inter-racial relationships just as there are bad relationships between people of the same race. There are good people of all races and there are bad. Stop holding entire races or types of relationships accountable for the likes of Cutts/OJ/etc. Look at all of the other people that come apart at the seams and do horrible things to other good people. We are all one race - the human race - we were all created equal - and we will all face the same Judge some day, regardless of the color of our skin or who we have chosen to love.

    The media attention that the Cutts case is getting is sure to start racial wars all over the place. It is very sad.

59. Purification « Professor Zero on June 28th, 2007 7:28 pm

    [...] points out that interracial sex is still a huge taboo in this country and I am sure she is right. On the other hand I get tired of Euro-Americans who [...]

60. Angel H. on June 28th, 2007 11:26 pm

    Did you actually read the whole article, or are you picking apart what you don’t like?

    So wait, were you looking for a general view of what society was thinking about this murder investigation or were you looking for the most extreme opinions of what the fringe of society was thinking?

    Since when did AOL Blackvoices - a forum for African American to talk about anything and everyhting - cater to “the fringe of society”?

    Better yet, did you look at any Media blogs or forums, and if so, how many of them were talking about it as an interracial sex issue?

    If you read the comments following her post, several people stated that they saw racist and mysogynist remarks on other message boards, as well.

    So, as you already established you are researcher and teacher who focuses on race, African American Studies, gender, sexuality, and popular culture. You run a website that focuses on these very same topics. What kind of searches did you expect to have?

    Have you ever read the blog at all? If you had even bothered to slightly skim through her her posts, you would see that those searches have absolutely nothing to do with the blog’s content at all. Yes, she does “focus on race, African American Studies, gender, sexuality, and popular culture”, she focues on the inequalities ofthose subjects. Her topics are on feminism, human rights, and anti-discrimination. You would’ve known that if you had bothered to take 2 minutes and actually done a little research before slamming someone you obviously don’t even know.

    I *NEVER* thought about this topic being a racial issue until I ready Rachel�s view.

    It’s seems to me that there’s a whole lot that you don’t know, but I’ll start you off slowly.

61. Professor Zero on June 29th, 2007 1:12 am

    Ann - here (Louisiana) you are also supposed to look at the half-moons at the base of the fingernail. Bluish tinge = not pure European descent, baby will get darker.

    Lyonside - opportunity to gawk at biracial baby, yes, I’m sure that’s true.

    Sailorman - you’re trolling, and your figures are off. I’m all for detail, but not when it’s for purposes of overgrowing the issue (so to speak) - and details need to be *right.*

    Salvia - of course there are multiple factors
    which play in here. That doesn’t invalidate the main insight of the post, or its focus.
    On the search terms - the point is that people *search for those things.* Of course it is not surprising that such searches would lead here. But the point is, look what they’re searching for.

    Liz - on people trying not to seem ‘racist’ and then having the facade crumble … yes.

62. Noli Irritare Leones » Blog Archive » Jessie Davis, Bobby Lee Cutts, and Rachel’s take on the racial aspects of the case on June 29th, 2007 1:52 pm

    [...] any rate, Rachel S. of Rachel’s Tavern, both at her blog and at Alas, A Blog, has a theory about why this story has been so big in the media: It�s About [...]

63. Ann on June 29th, 2007 9:57 pm

    Professor Zero.

    “Ann - here (Louisiana) you are also supposed to look at the half-moons at the base of the fingernail. Bluish tinge = not pure European descent, baby will get darker.”

    Yes! Yes! I know of that one (the bluish-tinge), and that’s the one I forgot to put up.

    Funny thing. Two days ago I asked one of my younger brothers about the behind the ear thing, and HE remembered that. (Maybe I was told by my mother, but, heck, you can’t remember every weird insane irrational saying out there.

64. Kim on June 29th, 2007 11:29 pm

    Okay, I don’t think the interracial relationship had anything to do with the media coverage. The Laci Peterson murders were focused on just as much if not more than the Jessi Davis murders. I agree with Salvia’s comment above, all the references made to the previous interracial media booms, all involved very wealthy or famous people…

65. Professor Zero on June 30th, 2007 2:20 am

    Then Kim, how are the comments referred to here *not* reactions to and discussions of
    interracial sex?

    [From the original post:]

    “Many people were saying that the victim deserved it; that she was ‘white trash;’ that her child was ugly; and that she was a sleazy, homewrecking whore. Not surprisingly, the accused murderer, who is the poster boy for anti-black stereotypes, was also being trashed as a violent womanizer who lusted after white women. I can�t tell you how many racist and misogynistic comments I read; and not surprisingly the white supremacists were giddy over this case.”

66. Lynn Gazis-Sax on June 30th, 2007 12:22 pm

    The only one of those tests that I (vaguely) think I’ve heard before is the fingernail one.

67. Donald Douglas on June 30th, 2007 6:19 pm

    Actually, the interracial aspect is exactly what excites people about this awful story. My heart indeed goes out to the victim and her family, but to say race issues played no part in the intense media coverage is dumb. Obviously, Jessie Davis was loved — the thousand-plus search party proved it. But her choice in men left something to be desired.

    In any case, I came over to see if you had a post up on the Supreme Court’s desegregation ruling, but found that you’ve got an “R” rating instead! What’s the blog world coming to!

68. Faith on July 1st, 2007 2:40 pm

    Everyone,
    Let’s face it where they are white are black these women did’t deserve to be killed as we all heard Ms. Roacha say “there are courts” all 3 these men could have gotten away from these women and could have probably gotten away with paying child support the way the child support court moves these men would be on Social Security by then. I have never been in these families lives, but pray that they will let God guide them through their suffering. With all 3 women there were thousands of people searching for them, even though we all have skeletons in our closets just like them doesn’t give us the right to judge. I have been following and reading on all 3 women and have not heard all this remakes being made to any of them. Yes, Ms. Davis’ mother admits her daughter made a mistake but was moving back into the right track, but ofcourse all 3 mothers made the same comment all 3 daughters made a mistake just like all 3 men did. So lets speak with words of kindness so if any of the families read these columns they won’t be hurting more than they should. Let be caught with their blood on your hands pray for those that are in pain and you will see God will bless you for it.
    Your sister in Christ Jesus!

69. bitchwhoblogs on July 3rd, 2007 12:40 am

    I hated that this was an interracial couple… and the first thing that struck me was the racial aspect… Being white and married to a black man - maybe I am oversensitized to racist media potrayals.. but I don’t really think so… regardless, I am sick of how such couplings are portrayed in media and popular culture… whether its murdering black men or freakin’ white women the potrayals are harmful… they hurt us, they hurt our kids and they harm our communities… there are countless acts of violence against women that are white on white or black on black that never play out in the media arena.. the facts and circumstances of this case are no more sensational than the hundreds and hundreds of acts of violence committed monthly… I agree with the original post-

    Sure, I just spent a week in rural Texas with my husband and child and am feeling a bit more piqued by this issue than usual… but I am weary of how racism and misogyism play out in how families like mine are recieved and portrayed - and I do think for every case that involve interracial couples/sex there are literally hundreds of similar, if not identical cases, that go unsensationalized…

70. Carnival against Sexual Violence « Take Back the News on July 5th, 2007 1:13 am

    [...] It’s About Interracial Sex Folks posted at Rachels Tavern, we get a discussion about why certain crimes become a prolonged media [...]

71. Lola on July 5th, 2007 2:14 am

    I came to this post via Alas, a blog, and while I agree that race probably did factor into the media attention this story received I still feel compelled to explain why I was so drawn into the story myself. I’m a mother of twin boys almost the same age as Davis’ son, and immediately my thoughts were about the horror that boy (still really a baby) witnessed and his mother’s complete inability to protect him from it. I couldn’t help but feel great sadness and even grief for the terror he unquestionably experienced while watching his mother being murdered in front of him then being left completely alone afterwards with no capacity to care for or comfort himself. I couldn’t help but imagine how he must have wandered around his home afterwards feeling scared, alone, confused (and likely hungry), wondering why his mother was gone and not there to put her arms around him, wipe his tears away, and tell him it was going to be ok.

    I also couldn’t help but imagine how horrible it must have been for Ms’ Davis to know while she was dying that she was completely unable to protect her son, to shield him and comfort him as he likely witnessed her die. Because as a mother, as a parent, it is a primal sort of instinct to protect our children from harm and comfort them when they are afraid.

    And I couldn’t imagine how the assailant could do that to a child without (apparently) seeing to it that he was still going to be safe and cared for after the fact. I cringed when I heard news reports that the father of the child was African American, because I knew that the racist loons out there would have a field day with the story and turn it into a circus while deflecting attention from what this story was really about.

    It is shameful that the media does not strive to cover news story in a color blind fashion, but please don’t let us loose focus on how horrible these events were for the Davis family and for yet another child who will grow up without his mother as a result of her murder.

72. Ayda on July 5th, 2007 2:54 am

    It’s always about the interracial sex. why is just the idea still so scary?

73. Abu Sinan on July 5th, 2007 5:14 pm

    Interesting article and discussion. This transcends the black white issue. I am a white guy married to a Arab woman and we get some of the same issues, sometimes from Arab women, but most often from Arab men.

    It is about race and some of it is about national/ethnic pride and there is the religion issue as well. There is a double standard, ie taking a non Arab spouse is okay if you are a man, but not for the Arab woman.

74. Mike John on July 8th, 2007 5:02 am

    You’re still calling it the “Duke rape” case? My, how we hold on to what we wish was the truth.

75. Rachel on July 8th, 2007 2:49 pm

    Mike, Go away troll.

76. blogger200 on July 14th, 2007 8:46 pm

    I empathize with interracial couples and the bigotry they may have to deal with. Here in FL, I remember meeting an interracial couple stranded with two children. The husband was black and the woman was white. Out of respect for the children, I gave them gas money. The father told me a white male had called him the “n” slur while he had been asking for help since they were stranded. I felt bad for the kids. As for me, I am Native American from an Arizona Indian Reservation. I often get mistaken for an illegal alien or foreign worker (i.e. Pakistan, India, Pacific Islander, etc). My ancestors called themselve “Nnee” or “The People.” I grew up on a reservation and am now an engineer in FL.

    In terms of raw statistics, it doesn’t seem like the younger generation gets mad as much about “interracial dating.” I am talking about the people born after 1980. If you walk into college gyms, it is not uncommon to find mixed relationships (black/white, Hispanice/white, Asian/Black, etc). However, I know the racism still exists, especially among older people. Whereas a white teen male might not care that a white female classmate has a black boyfriend, the white grandparents probably resent it badly.

    Among Native Americans, the vast majority are part white. There ar hardly any full-blooded Natives left. They were mostly killed off by smallpox.

    In regards to interracial dating, it seems lik the “forbidden fruit” syndrome is a factor. As a brown Native and Catholic, I surprisingly get interest from white Southern Baptist females. These blonde, blue-eyed Baptist women aren’t supposed to like a brown Catholic from Arizona, but the reality is that I have gotten approached more than once. I guess the forbidden fruit syndrome works.

77. GoodbyeKitty on July 27th, 2007 3:04 pm

    Hello Folks. This is a very interesting blog. I was glad to get the link in an email from colorlines, which i recently subscribed to.

    Where to begin! lol

    Rachel said ” interracial couples are almost completely absent from mass media and pop culture”

    I find it amazing that this is still an issue in the US.
    Its interesting to note that in British culture/media/society you see many interracial couples, and w/ the exception of a few extreme wingnuts, it never seems to be an issue, and the relationships are just there.
    They arent planned to create controversy, they are relationships presented no different than any relationship would be, they are just there.period.
    Like life should be

78. It�s About Interracial Sex Folks | The Morningwood News on July 28th, 2007 11:33 am

    [...] Ok, I�d be remiss if I didn�t say something about the latest crime to become a media circus.? I?… Bookmark to: [...]

79. Mr.O on July 30th, 2007 8:01 pm

    I would not want my daughter to date a white male.

80. Dana on July 31st, 2007 7:17 am

    Mr. O, could you please explain the relevance of your post to… well, anything besides a dismal attempt at being a provocateur and/or why your daughter should disown you as soon as she gets old enough to do so?

81. dbshawn on July 31st, 2007 2:23 pm

    I saw the coverage of this woman’s disappearance and murder and have to slightly disagree. I didn’t even know for a while that she was in an interracial relationship because the media didn’t flash his picture until he was named as a suspect. (I also don’t watch the news every millisecond, so maybe I was a little late.)

    Anyways, I first and foremost think this is about the way white women are placed upon a pedastal in the media. Of course her being in an interracial relationship is part of the fascination, but if this were a black woman dating a white/latino/asian man she STILL wouldn’t have recieved 1/4 of the coverage that this woman did. Missing white women in the media are usually described as pretty and beautfiul, their life stories and backgrounds are examined, their families and friends are given faces and time to express their concerns. This is absolutely NOT TRUE for women of color in the same position. Most of the time I don’t even HEAR of women of color being missing unless I’m watching a crime show on TV and by then the news is YEARS old.

    As a black woman I’m intrigued at the conversations people have started with me about interracial relationships. They usually don’t care about discussing these relationships from a full vantage point, but are more concerned with my perceptions about white women and black men; once again with the primary focus beginning with white women.

    Maybe the day will come when news media can report and take interest in interesting stories regardless of race but I wonder just how long that will take…

82. Guess what? on August 5th, 2007 4:48 am

    Nobody needs interracial relationships. Stick to your own race, it’s better for you AND the any kids. Jesse David was just another stupid woman!!!

83. Guess what? on August 5th, 2007 4:48 am

    Nobody needs interracial relationships. Stick to your own race, it’s better for you AND the any kids. Jesse David was just another stupid woman!!!

84. Lyonside on August 5th, 2007 11:10 am

    Ah, it’s a good things most Trolls are sterile, ain’t it?

85. pvb on August 22nd, 2007 9:51 pm

    response to Lyonside comments on the girl lost in Aruba:

    Money talks. I’ll bet this girl’s family had the money to go over there get on TV, stay on TV, print posters, they probably knew more people in higher places, etc.

    I have a family member in an interracial marriage. I worry about what they might have to face in the furture. I have seen the stares from people, both black and white.

    Blogger is right about the reactions from the older white generations over a white/any other race relationship, but I believe there is concern from the black oldster too about whites/black relationship.

    I have a blonde friend that is always being hit on by black males!!

86. Selma Goods on August 24th, 2007 12:34 am

    As a black woman, I am amazed to find that racism is alive and well in the US. It seems much more prevalent on the internet because of the anonymity. It exists in all races, not only white against black. In the case of Michael Vick, YouTube posters who are black insist that this is racially motivated. Bullshit!. This is about a man who has cruelly abused dogs for his own sick entertainment. Race has nothing to do with it. Whites or non-blacks call him a nigger, use other derogatory words to describe him and MUST use the word �black� mixed in with the negative adjectives. Example: �he�s nothing but a low-life, piece of shit, black thug�. These idiots may not even THINK that that is a racist comment, but it is. Would a black person use the word �black� along with negative adjectives? No, of course not. My favorite is �there are good black people and there are niggers�. OK, and there are good white people and there are . . ? I have called him a cruel, worthless piece of garbage but I did not need to add the word �black�. A white person would not use the word �white� in their description of Jeffrey Dalmer. I can only hope that the racist comments made behind a computer monitor are adolescent morons who really do not harbor such hatred towards blacks or other races in �real life�.

87. Stephanie B. on October 14th, 2007 10:55 pm

    Thinking about the Jesse Davis and Bobby Cutts case has me thinking about the race/sex mythology that’s still strong in America, the reaction of many regarding the case, and hypocritical silence from “conservatives” who were quick to comment on the Duke Rape Case by calling the Black women all kinds of hateful names, slurring them left and right and yet is stone silent on the case, with the exception of extreme right wingers and paleoconservatives such as Jared Taylor of American Renaissance who always have something to say regarding Black men and white women relationships, saying that white women deserved whats coming to them because of their involvement with Black men.

    Newsflash: Michael Medved blames single mothers such as Jessie Davis for their fate. He adds his voice to an increasing misogynistic, racist views of conservative media.

    Stephanie B.

88. Stephanie B. on October 14th, 2007 10:57 pm

    Also,

    This article tells about what Americans are thinking when it comes to racial/gender dynamics of IR and the response to such relationships. Black/White or, shall I say, Black/nonBlack relationships are the most stigmatized, marginalized, and hated relationships of all IRs. Believe me there are all types of other Interracial, interethnic, interfaith, and interclass relationships some people have problems with, Black/nonblack IR relationships takes the cake.

    Throughout most of the American history, the powers that be made laws governing Black/non-black, particulary white relationships in such a way that doesn’t threaten whiteness and white male supremacy. Some right-wingers on the internet have written that if Cutts wasn’t an affirmative action hire, none of this would have happened. Come on, people. Affirmative action didn’t cause Cutts to do harm to his girlfriend and unborn daughter. Please spare me the talk.

    This case has brought up all the nasty stereotypes of race, gender, and interracial relationships to the fore. To those who say that race doesn’t matter, give me a break!

89. Amaofone.Com » It�s About Interracial Sex Folks on October 28th, 2007 5:35 pm

    [...] wrote an interesting post today on Itâ??s About Interracial Sex FolksHere’s a quick [...]

90. Don on June 14th, 2008 4:59 am

    As the surviving (white) husband of a beautiful and intelligent, black woman, I can only wish that the bigots in this world, especially here in the U.S., would get over their backward attitudes and come to understand that we are all people. As Malcolm X stated, “I am a human being first and foremost, and as such, I am for whatever will benefit humanity as a whole.”

    For the media to play up the negatives and stereotypes of IR relationships, as shown by the coverage that is the subject of this blog, is only playing into the hands of those backward individuals who refuse to grow up and accept that humanity comes in all sizes, shapes and colors. It is unconscionable, and it is nothing more than pandering to the ignorant fears of those who refuse to wake up and acknowledge the humanity of ALL people or to recognize that, in the larger world, we so-called “white” people are truly in the minority.

91. Deborah on December 5th, 2008 5:58 am

    Fascinating and Vile read right here.. upon initial once-over mood sweeps, i was repulsed and eventually educated at the crimes of a Jealous man. ego’s are challenged and seems these men fight back with 100 percent D E S P E R A T I O N motivator. - yuck !@! and then i say -lets get to the bottom of this !@!
    thankyou Rachel for the showcase of a popular & misunderstood life workshop know as contemporary interracial relations.

92. Katie on December 21st, 2008 7:16 am

    Don on June 14th, 2008 4:59 am said:

    “I can only wish that the bigots in this world, especially here in the U.S., would get over their backward attitudes and come to understand that we are all people.”

    As a white female living in West Texas, my relationship with my intelligent, thoughtful, kind, adoring, handsome, sophisticated, motivated, beautiful, geeky boyfriend (can you tell I’m a fan?) is often scrutinized simply because he’s black. Many people here fail to see what a beautiful person he is, simply because they can’t get past his skin color.

    I don’t understand. I really and truly don’t.

93. George on February 9th, 2009 6:17 pm

    “I can only wish that the bigots in this world, especially here in the U.S., would get over their backward attitudes and come to understand that we are all people.”

    Comment: They did it, when they elected Obama, but they were flat on their belly financially..a white man named George Bush wrecked the country so bad that they decided to give the black man a chance! So do give George Bush some credit.

    “I don’t understand. I really and truly don’t.”

    You can take a white Texan or a white southerner out of racism, but you cannot take racism out of a Texan or a white southerner!

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