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Cultural & religious observances header image. A photo in the upper left hand corner is a stained glass image of Mary holding Jesus. The photo in the upper right hand corner is a woman wearing a burqua standing near a fence. The image on the bottom left corner is a monk, and the image on the bottom right corner is a mandala sand painting.

Cultural and religious observances – June 6-12, 2022

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Loving Day

Mildred and Richard Loving with their three children
Mildred and Richard Loving with their three children. Image credit: Soulfull, Flickr.com

Culture/religion: National observance
Date: June 12

Loving Day is a national recognition of the June 12, 1967 Supreme Court decision Loving v. Virginia finding anti-miscegenation laws unconstitutional, thereby removing 16 state bans on interracial marriage.

Loving v. Virginia centered around Mildred Jeter and Richard Loving who married in 1958 in Washington, D.C. After moving back to their hometown of Richmond, Virginia, not realizing interracial marriage was illegal, the couple was arrested for “cohabitating as man and wife, against the peace and dignity of the Commonwealth.” To avoid jail time, the couple agreed to leave Virginia and not return to the state for 25 years. Richard and Mildred returned to Washington, D.C. and began legal action.

Ken Tanabe is credited with the idea of Loving Day after learning about the Supreme Court decision. Reportedly, he was intrigued because of his interracial heritage and developed his college thesis around the topic.

Sources:

The History Behind Loving Day, Time

Loving Day, Wikipedia

What is Loving Day? June 12 marks landmark Supreme Court decision for interracial marriage, USA Today

Race Unity Day

Four people taking a selfie together
Image credit: PxHere.com

Culture/religion: Bahá’í
Date: June 12

Race Unity Day began in 1957 (then called Race Amity Day) when the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of the United States, the annually elected governing council of the American Bahá’í community, established the day to promote racial harmony and understanding.

When it began in 1957 as Race Amity Day, “race amity” was a general expression used during the Jim Crow era for harmonious race relations. Early American Bahá’ís took a leadership role in promoting “race amity” to the fullest extent, including advocating interracial marriage. Race Amity Day was changed to Race Unity Day in 1965.

Race Unity Day is celebrated on the second Sunday in June. While a Bahá’í sponsored observance, it is not a Bahá’í holy day or religious event, but one that is acknowledged worldwide.

Alternate name: Race Amity Day (until 1965)

Pronunciation:  Bahá’í: Ba-HIGH

Sources:

Race Unity Day, Bahá’í Library Online

Style guide, glossary and pronunciation guide, Bahá’í World News Service

Ongoing observances

LGBTQ+ Pride Month