It is predicted that some time soon America will have its own race. People of all ethnic backgrounds will come together, forming families and producing children, biologically breaking any racial barriers that may still exist.
The possibility of this happening is clearly evident on Temple’s Main Campus. *NUMBER* students polled on campus said they did not have a problem dating someone of another race.
In today’s world, we know more and are able to make more sound judgments, because of the vast amount of information available to us. Students acknowledge this and agree that interracial dating is more open now than it was 10 years ago.
“It is more accepted now than in the past,” said Amit Patel, 19, sophomore Computer Information Systems major.
None of the students asked had a problem with dating outside their own race. In fact, three of the students interviewed are currently in interracial relationships. Mike Gerome, 17, a freshman studying Biology is in an interracial relationship. He admitted the relationship has great potential and may turn out to be much stronger. Gerome explained that people are attracted to the quality of others, not their skin color.
Like Gerome, many students expressed that race has not been a barrier when there is interest in a potential date.
“I’m not picky,” said Tokes Ogunbiyi, a 24-year-old marketing senior. “If we click, why not?”
Patel agreed, saying he would date any girl as long as she looked good. David Hand, 29, a Journalism major, insisted that people should react to what they feel.
“You shouldn’t let other people’s opinions guide what you do,” he said.
However, sometimes it seems that people date interracially to get attention. Hand, who is white, said, “I like the attention I get when dating someone black. I’ve always been less in the mainstream, more on the fringes of society and doing what made me feel like I was slapping society in the face.”
He also suggested that others date interracially to shock their families and try and get a reaction from them.
Ogunbiyi found this motive for interracial dating sick and said: “You have to do it for yourself. That’s not ethical.”
People who find interracial dating the most difficult could actually be biracial people. Since they are brought up in a household where two cultures are molded together, trying to fit another culture in can be quite difficult.
Lisa Clark, a sophomore Psychology major is Korean and Caucasian. She said, “I have mixed feelings, and I can’t relate to one race. There is no difference in men when it comes to their race.”
However, despite students’ acceptance of interracial dating, only 50 percent of the students asked had dated someone from another race. This shows that even though people may readily accept the idea of interracial dating, the actual practice is not commonplace. But for those who want advice on interracial dating, there are many organizations on the Internet, which allow people to post messages and receive replies from other readers.
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