The world has come a long way as far as interracial relationships are concerned. Millennials especially tend to be more accepting and open to the idea of dating someone from a different racial or cultural background.
Recently, interracial dating moves like Serial (Bad) Weddings and The Big Sick have become very popular. Both films give some really great insight into the challenges of interracial dating and marriage. Serial (Bad) Wedding details the troubles a French family faces as each of their daughters date and marry someone outside of their race. The Big Sick is based on the real life experience of Kumail Nanjiani and Emily V. Gordon, and the uphill cultural battle they faced after she was put into a medically induced coma in the early part of their relationship.
Though more people are open to having an interracial relationship, sadly, many couples still face common challenges or racial issues. Even with these challenges, interracial relationships also have strengths that other relationships may lack.
Cons of Interracial Relationships
People Will Assume You Aren’t Together
For some reason, people often make the assumption that biracial couples aren’t actually with each other. They may assume you are friends, or just two single people out together. Things can get even more awkward when a friend or server acts on that assumption and hits on your significant other. This can be one of the more annoying problems with mixed race relationships, because it leads to the constant need to correct those around you.
Culture Clash
Even in same-race relationships, partners have to navigate the differences between the family cultures they were raised in. In biracial relationships, couples face the added problem of navigating cultures that may be entirely different from one another. You and your partner may be able to deal with this easily, but you might find that your families clash with each other over things like religion, food, and other cultural issues.
Everyone Has an Opinion
And for some reason, they believe it’s perfectly fine to share it with you. This issue is one of those interracial relationship problems that most same-race couples don’t deal with to the same degree. These opinions can be seemingly benevolent or downright offensive, but there is a good chance that people will feel as if they have a right to share how they feel about your relationship… even if it’s none of their business.
They may also share jokes about biracial love that relate to your race or the race of your partner, which can also vary in range from mildly offensive to openly ignorant.
Pros of Interracial Relationships
You Can Expand Your Empathy
Sharing your life and your culture with someone of a different race can broaden your horizons and give you a new level of understanding and appreciation for your partner’s culture. That experience is valuable and having empathy for others leads to a better and kinder world.
Challenges Can Lead to Strength
The challenges of interracial dating might actually lead interracial couples to feel more connected to each other. To you, it’s not going to be an interracial relationship; it’s going to be your relationship. It is going to feel “normal” to you, until you have to deal with outside challenges.
In many ways, those unique challenges will test your relationship, but they can also make it that much stronger and bring you closer together. Just like other relationships, you are facing the tough stuff together.