549 - Thematic Session. How Race Affects Finding Partners for Sex, Romance, or Marriage

Session Submission Type: Invited Session

Abstract

Who we form intimate partnerships with, for sex, romance, or marriage, is affected by race. Four panelists use diverse styles of analysis to illuminate partnering processes. Thomas considers how race and gender intersect to affect the settings where U.S. heterosexual partners meet and who introduces them. Torche considers whether blacks in the U.S. and other countries “need” more education to marry a white, and how trends in such exchange of education for racial status in U.S. marriages inform us about trends in racism and the color-blindness of marital preferences. Carillo uses ethnographically-based analysis to illuminate the racialized stereotypes, objectification, and cross-cultural affinities at play in gay partnerships between white American men and Mexican or Mexican-American men near the U.S./Mexican border. Kao uses survey data showing the marginalization of Asian men in youth and young adult dating markets, which is surprising given their high education and earnings potential.

Sub Unit

• Thematic Sessions

Session Organizer

• Paula England, New York University

Presider

• Cynthia Feliciano, University of California-Irvine

Panelists

• Reuben J. Thomas, University of New Mexico

• Florencia Torche, New York University

• Hector Carrillo, Northwestern University

• Grace Kao, University of Pennsylvania