Mildred Loving and her husband Richard Loving in 1965 — two years before their challenge to Virginia’s ban on interracial marriage led to a landmark Supreme Court ruling. Then, in 1877, they were arrested and charged with “lewd and lascivious cohabitation” and violating Virginia’s law banning interracial marriage. (Ashleigh Joplin/The Washington Post)[The Loving Legacy: Five interracial couples in 21st century Virginia]Kinney’s attorney appealed the case to the Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals — the state’s highest appellate court. On Oct. 3, 1878, the Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals upheld the state’s law prohibiting interracial marriage and affirmed that Virginia law had priority over other jurisdictions. From 1865 to 1870, “more than 24 interracial marriages are reported in the Richmond Enquirer alone,” according to Encyclopedia Virginia.

Source: Washington Post June 11, 2017 12:01 UTC