CLEP US History II

Answer: E - The decision in Loving v. Virginia (1967) declared anti-miscegenation laws that prohibited interracial marriage unconstitutional. It overturned the previous Supreme Court ruling in Pace v. Alabama (1883), which allowed states to impose race-based legislation regarding marriage laws. The case pertained to the marriage of Mildred Loving (née Jeter), who was of African and American Indian heritage, and Richard Loving, who was Caucasian. They were Virginia residents but married outside the state due to Virginia’s refusal to license interracial marriages. States are legally required to recognize marriages performed lawfully in other states, which meant that the Lovings should have been considered married in Virginia since they were lawfully married elsewhere in the country. However, Virginia refused to recognize their union and attempted to kick them out of the state, ultimately leading to the case that reached the Supreme Court.