Interracial couple denied marriage license in Louisiana

aerial wrote:

blackredyellow wrote:

aerial wrote:

A point to show how anyone can claim racism on a whim. Or is it for attention, is it an easy out?.....I just don’t get it......

I agree that the term is used too much these days, but I don't get why you are bring that issue up in a thread about a guy who is clearly a racist... how can anyone say that they "just don't believe in mixing the races that way" and not be some sort of racist?

Why the label raciest? He was not hating on anyone because of their skin color . He is clearly concerned for the children of mixed couples. It’s not his fault people need to label themselves. If people would teach their children to be kind to others, be the better person, etc. and stop dwelling on skin color, we could all get along!

soulsinging wrote:

aerial wrote:

He is afraid of how others will treat the kids.
I wonder how old he is...he maybe just stuck in his ways, like my mother 89 she still uses the N word. She says she doesn't mean it in a derogatory way. You see way back that is what all blacks were called (in Va.). I'm like mom it is not a nice thing to say in fact you just can't say that no matter how you mean it. She really does not understand why. Hey I don’t get her sometimes.
I was very rebellious in my youth.... anything adults said was wrong . . . so in the long run her prejudice made me hate prejudices. You can’t change old people.

your grandma is not a public office holder denying US citizens their rights. he doesn't give a damn about the kids, that's just a lame justification for his racism. if he is, why doesn't he ask about their religion? will the catholic family except the offspring of a jewish-catholic marriage? or how about economics? if a rich person marries poor, that's going to lead to a lot of tension and it might be bad for the kid. maybe we should see if the couple is ugly... becos then the kid will be and we know other kids are going to make fun of him.

this has nothing to do with the well-being of the kids, this is purely the guys belief that the races shouldn't be mixing.

whoprincess wrote:

Johnny Sitar wrote:

And it all depends on his lincense. Is he required to marry anyone that applies to do so? Or does he have any sort of discretion? We should ask that before we call for this guy to be fired. If he's required to perform all legal marriages in his practicing state, then damn right he should get canned.

I'll not go into your views.

In 1967 the U.S. Supreme Court outlawed state prohibitions against interracial marriage. Therefore, interracial marriages have been permissible in all 50 states for over 40 years. That's one of the reasons why this man's actions are so shocking. It's not as if the law just changed and he's not exactly up to speed. He says he's been a justice of the peace for 34 years. Well, if this is how he's been doing things, then he hasn't been upholding the law as he was elected to.

I read in another article that before being issued a marriage license in Louisiana a couple are supposed to prove that they are eligible to be married. OK, no surprise. They are asked if they've been married before, if so, how long ago was the marriage dissolved, and to provide proof of that. I assume they may also have to provide proof that they are of age. Other than that, there are no "eligibility" requirements.

It's certainly not against the law to be an asshole. This man can believe whatever he wants about who should and shouldn't marry. If he doesn't think that Irish should marry Italians, he's entitled to his opinions. But if he's elected to a public office he can't decide to impose his beliefs on others. It's like the police deciding to pick and choose which laws to enforce. If he can't treat all citizens the same he's in the wrong profession.

inmytree wrote:

coo coo Crazy Cooter couldn't bring himself to marry this couple...

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20091016/ap_ ... ial_rebuff

Interracial couple denied marriage license in La.
By MARY FOSTER, Associated Press Writer Mary Foster, Associated Press Writer Fri Oct 16, 4:50 am ET

NEW ORLEANS – A white Louisiana justice of the peace said he refused to issue a marriage license to an interracial couple out of concern for any children the couple might have.

Keith Bardwell, justice of the peace in Tangipahoa Parish, says it is his experience that most interracial marriages do not last long.

"I'm not a racist. I just don't believe in mixing the races that way," Bardwell told the Associated Press on Thursday. "I have piles and piles of black friends. They come to my home, I marry them, they use my bathroom. I treat them just like everyone else."

Bardwell said he asks everyone who calls about marriage if they are a mixed race couple. If they are, he does not marry them, he said.

Bardwell said he has discussed the topic with blacks and whites, along with witnessing some interracial marriages. He came to the conclusion that most of black society does not readily accept offspring of such relationships, and neither does white society, he said.

"There is a problem with both groups accepting a child from such a marriage," Bardwell said. "I think those children suffer and I won't help put them through it."

If he did an interracial marriage for one couple, he must do the same for all, he said.

"I try to treat everyone equally," he said.

Bardwell estimates that he has refused to marry about four couples during his career, all in the past 2 1/2 years.

Beth Humphrey, 30, and 32-year-old Terence McKay, both of Hammond, say they will consult the U.S. Justice Department about filing a discrimination complaint.

Humphrey, an account manager for a marketing firm, said she and McKay, a welder, just returned to Louisiana. She is white and he is black. She plans to enroll in the University of New Orleans to pursue a masters degree in minority politics.

"That was one thing that made this so unbelievable," she said. "It's not something you expect in this day and age."

Humphrey said she called Bardwell on Oct. 6 to inquire about getting a marriage license signed. She says Bardwell's wife told her that Bardwell will not sign marriage licenses for interracial couples. Bardwell suggested the couple go to another justice of the peace in the parish who agreed to marry them.

"We are looking forward to having children," Humphrey said. "And all our friends and co-workers have been very supportive. Except for this, we're typical happy newlyweds."

"It is really astonishing and disappointing to see this come up in 2009," said American Civil Liberties Union of Louisiana attorney Katie Schwartzmann. She said the Supreme Court ruled in 1967 "that the government cannot tell people who they can and cannot marry."

The ACLU sent a letter to the Louisiana Judiciary Committee, which oversees the state justices of the peace, asking them to investigate Bardwell and recommending "the most severe sanctions available, because such blatant bigotry poses a substantial threat of serious harm to the administration of justice."

"He knew he was breaking the law, but continued to do it," Schwartzmann said.

According to the clerk of court's office, application for a marriage license must be made three days before the ceremony because there is a 72-hour waiting period. The applicants are asked if they have previously been married. If so, they must show how the marriage ended, such as divorce.

Other than that, all they need is a birth certificate and Social Security card.

The license fee is $35, and the license must be signed by a Louisiana minister, justice of the peace or judge. The original is returned to the clerk's office.

"I've been a justice of the peace for 34 years and I don't think I've mistreated anybody," Bardwell said. "I've made some mistakes, but you have too. I didn't tell this couple they couldn't get married. I just told them I wouldn't do it."