Marriage as a Tool of White Supremacy (ep.71)

The Supreme Court struck down bans on interracial marriage in Loving v. Virginia, the landmark ACLU case decided in 1967. But the government‘s regulation of marriage and sex didn’t start with anti-miscegenation laws or end with Loving. Melissa Murray — an expert in family law, constitutional law, and reproductive rights and justice at the New York University School of Law — discusses why the institution looms so large in America's past and present. This episode was recorded live at the Brooklyn Public Library, as part of “‘Til Victory is Won,” an evening commemorating the 400th anniversary of the arrival of the first enslaved Africans to America’s shores.

If you enjoyed this conversation, you can check out:

• At Liberty's earlier episode with Melissa Murray on marriage and the regulation of sex.
• Professor Murray's article on the legacy of Loving.
• Professor Murray on the complicated inheritance of Obergefell.