Interethnic Marriage in the United States: An Introduction

Interracial marriage in the United States is no longer outlawed, yet for many mixed‐status couples (i.e., marriage between citizens and noncitizens), especially those including an undocumented Latino spouse, de facto discrimination is in effect. U.S. immigration policies have inadvertently made it difficult for citizens to love and marry the person of their choosing, all while remaining largely unknown to the public. Using existing literature, this article examines how immigration laws are contrary to the doctrine of marital privacy for mixed‐status couples, with a special focus on U.S. citizens married to undocumented immigrants. My aim is to shine a light on how contradictory policies impact mixed‐status couples and to trace back the roots of this problem by analyzing historical U.S. immigration policy choices.

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Barriers to Interracial Marriage? Examining Policy Issues Concerning U.S. Citizens Married to Undocumented Latino/a Immigrants

Schueths

2015

“…Race can be defined as the physical differences that lead to categorization of people (Gaines, Clark, & Afful, 2015). The physical differences are primarily based on skin color distinctions.…”

Section: Categorization and Operational Definitionsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Methodological Considerations and Challenges to Conducting Research on Interethnic Relationships: Using the Right Toolkit!

Craig-Henderson

Lewis

2015

This article discusses the methodological issues and challenges associated with research examining interethnic relationships and marriage. A major focus of this article is on the identification and classification of interethnic marriages. A second aim of the article is to explore the specific challenges faced by researchers who study these types of relationships. The third and final focus of the article is on reliable and specific guidance for researchers engaged in interethnic relationships research. The article provides an overview of specific methodological matters in conducting research on interethnic relationships and marriage including research design, sampling constraints, self‐classification labels versus other labels, comfort in discussing or disclosing what may be perceived to be a sensitive issue, as well as the in‐group or out‐group status of the researcher. More generally, by presenting a discussion of both qualitative and quantitative methods for research in this area and the limitations of each, we provide a “tool kit” of helpful guidance to those engaged in this type of research.

“…However, interethnic marriages can also help partners resolve their own uncertain feelings about interethnic relationships (Gaines et al., ) and help individuals clarify their own racial identity (Afful et al., ). Afful et al.…”

Section: Rewardsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…There are some factors that may not only be rewarding for the couple but also for society. It has been suggested that interethnic relationships are part of the bellwether of social change (Gaines et al., ), including the increased inclusion of persons of color, the improvement in ethnic relations, and the decrease in social distance between ethnic groups (Wu, Schimmele, & Hou, ). The research by Scheuths () suggests that despite the many problems caused by immigration policy, there may be some logistical immigration benefits to both individuals when one is and the other is not a U.S. citizen.…”

Section: Rewardsmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Concluding Thoughts: Interethnic Marriage through the Lens of Interdependence Theory

Clark

Harris

Hasan

et al. 2015

Self Cite

In this concluding article, we discuss the research and ideas on interethnic marriage put forth by our colleagues in this issue of the Journal of Social Issues by framing them using interdependence theory and the investment model. We discuss the work in terms of rewards, costs, investments, and alternatives. Next, we discuss several areas of future research needed to better understand interethnic marriage. Finally, we summarize issues related to social policy.