Mood:
crushed outTopic: "Virginia is 4 Lovers"(4)
The Commonwealth of Virginia once described itself as "The Mother of Presidents," and with good reason, for four of the first five just happened to be Virginians. Over the years, that percentage, and as a matter of fact, most percentages in Virginia, have declined substantially. In more recent years, such eminent politicians as former US Senator William Scott (identified not only as the "dumbest man in the Senate today, but probably the dumbest ever"), and former Governor/Senator George Allen, whose choice of foreign epithets doomed him to permanent barrister positions outside of the political realm, have generally been characteristic. Frodo does note however, that current US Senator Jim Webb, and the former Governor and current Senate candidate Mark Warner are exceptional performers. There is nothing however, which can reverse that which permanently besmirches Virginia as its' stand for "states' rights" in the middle part of the twentieth century. Frodo's tale this night is so that some of us remember, and that the rest will learn.
Mildred Loving, age 68, died this past week. Born Mildred Jeter, she met Richard Loving and married him in 1958 in Washington, D.C. When they returned to their home in Central Point, Virginia, just north of Richmond, a few weeks later, they were arrested and charged with "cohabiting as man and wife, against the peace and dignity of the Commonwealth." In order to avoid jail, the couple agreed to leave Virginia, and to not return for at least 25 years. They moved from their home and settled in the District of Columbia.
Some years later, the Lovings wrote the the Attorney General of the United States, Robert F. Kennedy. The issue was referred to the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) who took up the case, and directed it all the way to the Supreme Court (when it was a "Supreme Court"). In 1967, the Court unanimously ruled that states could not deny their right to marry, and thus were laws changed in 17 states, and thereby the Lovings were able to return home to Virginia and raise their two children. Richard died in an automobile accident several years ago. The widowed Mildred was remembered this week by her daughter as "strong and brave yet humble--and believed in love."
Frodo's query is about the sanctity of marriage, and how it seems that it is again under assault by those who would challenge human beings who love and live together. No, dear reader, the issue isn't quite the same today as it was in 1958, when Richard Loving who was white, and Mildred Jeter who was black, got married. The issue, dear reader, today is so different, or is it?
Mildred Jeter Loving, goin' home.
