Judge Keith Bardwell, an elected justice of the peace for Tangipahoa Parish's 8th Ward in Louisiana is refusing to issue a marriage license and preside over the wedding of Beth Humphrey, 30, and her boyfriend, Terence McKay, 32, both of Hammond, Louisiana. Terence McKay is black and Beth Humphrey is white.
In an interview with the town paper Hammond's Daily Star, Bardwell said he was "concerned for the children who might be born of the relationship and that, in his experience, most interracial marriages don't last."
Bardwell further said, "I'm not a racist. I do ceremonies for black couples right here in my house. My main concern is for the children." Bardwell stressed that he couldn't personally endorse the marriage and that he asked his wife to refer the couple to another justice of the peace.
In an interview with CNN, Humphrey said she called Bardwell on October 6 to ask about getting a marriage license, and was asked by Bardwell's wife whether it would be an interracial marriage. Humphrey said she was told that Bardwell will not sign off on interracial marriages.
There have been calls for Judge Keith Bardwell to resign but so far, he has shown no inclination to do so. The local NAACP chapter has forwarded the case to the state and national levels of the civil rights group.
This case is important as it shows the deep seated ignorance of some people in power. In the deep south, the justice of the peace is an important position of power and influence and is an elected position. From another point-of-view, the case is clearly no different from the discrimination gay couples suffer when government refuses to grant them right to marry.
Hammond is not some teeny-tiny town in Lousiana. Tangipahoa Parish is located in eastern Louisiana. The parish seat is Amite City, but the major city is Hammond. As of 2000, the population was 100,588. The median income for a household in the parish was $29,412, and the median income for a family was $36,731. Males had a median income of $31,576 versus $20,066 for females. The per capita income for the parish was $14,461. About 18.00% of families and 22.70% of the population were below the poverty line, including 28.60% of those under age 18 and 20.10% of those age 65 or over. It is 70% white and 30% black.
I'd like to see what the state's governor, a first generation Indo-American Bobby Jindal will do about the matter or if the state's legal establishment will sue to remove Bardwell.
Yes, it's 2009 and we still have a long way to go.
Read more:sfgate.com
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