New Documentary Tells Loving Story of Interracial Marriage

In 1958, a Virginia couple named Mildred and Richard Loving married each other, only to be arrested shortly thereafter in middle of the night. Their crime: breaking the Racial Integrity Act of 1924, which  criminalized  marriages between white and non-white persons.  Mildred was of African and Native American descent. Richard was of European descent.  The Lovings initially pled guilty to the charges, but eventually fought back with a series of lawsuits that culminated in the Supreme Court case Loving v. Virginia. In 1967, the court ruled unanimously in their favor, proclaiming that laws criminalizing interracial marriage violated the Fourteenth Amendment. A new documentary takes a closer look at both the Lovings and their case. It’s called “The Loving Story.”  Nancy Buirski, who directed the film, joins us. Attorney  Phil Hirshkop, who represented the Lovings in Loving v. Virginia, remembers the case.