Cashin takes the reader from the inception of the country all the way to the present. The central theme of the book revolves around Richard and Mildred Love, a couple from Virginia who won a landmark case to legalize interracial relationships in America. This precedent was set 48 years later for same-sex marriage. Cashin writes that race mixing and same-sex marriages have been accepted since Loving was decided. “Social tolerance is increasing for people and lifestyles which differ from the white, patriarchal and heterosexual norms,” Cashin writes. The Lovings traveled to Washington, D.C. in 1958 to wed and then returned to their Central Point, Va. home. Richard was a white man, and Mildred was Native American. However, to Virginia, she was either “colored” or “negro,” which made their union illegal. Local police broke into their home at night a month after the couple were married and arrested them. They pleaded guilty to “cohabiting as man and woman, against the peace & dignity of the Commonwealth”. The couple was expelled from their home for 25-years. Mildred later wrote to Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy, who then referred Mildred to the American Civil Liberties Union. 16 Southern states had laws that prohibited “miscegenation,” which was the mixing of races. The case reached the United States Supreme Court. In 1967, the court ruled that the state could not interfere with a person’s decision about marriage and that anti-miscegenation laws are racist. Cashin doesn’t shy away from the historical hypocrisy surrounding these banned unions. He points out that while race mixing was illegal throughout slavery the rule didn’t apply to white male slave owners. Famous historical figures such as President Thomas Jefferson and Vice President Richard Mentor Johnson are known to have relationships with their slaves. Jefferson had slave children with Sally Hemings (a slave woman) and although he released some of their children under his will, he did not free her. Johnson was ridiculed for having a common-law marriage with Julia Chinn and had children with her slave wife. “Southerners knew that masters could take a slave woman to be their mistress. They were used to hiding the fact that they saw the little girls of pale skin in the master’s yard. Cashin writes that it was almost unheard of for any public figure to try to make such an arrangement official. Black people were also anxious. Cashin carefully describes the reactions of African Americans to interracial marriage. He also details the uproar experienced by Frederick Douglass when he married Helen Pitts (a white woman). Black journalists and thought leaders decried his marriage. It was his second after the death his African American wife Anna. The bride’s father, an abolitionist, did not approve. Douglass was mixed-race and wrote to a friend, “What business has the world with my wife?” He was aware of his disappointment. The book takes readers to the present day, where he points out that interracial marriages are legal and accepted by most people, but they still represent a small portion of the population. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, 19.7 percent of cohabiting couples were interethnic or interracial in 2015. Cashin also notes that white people are still more likely to surround themselves with white people, which can make it difficult for people of color to experience the world. She writes that if a white person is in a relationship with someone of another race, it’s impossible to ignore the racism and inequity they may encounter every day. “Ardent integrationors, someone who is captivated by the power and love of love, can’t ignore the inequity and racism their partner may face daily,” she writes. Sheryll Cashin will be on the panel “Race and Identity: One Year After Charlottesville” at 9:00 a.m. in Old Supreme Court Room. W. Ralph Eubanks and Jabari Asim are also on the panel.