Forum explores interracial dating

Simply finding a date can be hard enough, but dating across racial lines brings up a whole other set of complications.

CheckOne, an organization devoted to exploring multi-cultural issues, hosted an open forum last night on interracial dating.

Held at Huntsman Hall, the forum included a panel of four current students and one recent graduate and was attended by a predominately female audience.

The forum was organized around general questions posed to the panelists, who made a diverse group though none was white. Of the two female and three male panelists, two were multi-racial, one had never dated outside of his race, one had only dated white women and one came with the intent of representing a gay voice.

Questions regarding a perceived stigma around people of color dating white people and how the social hierarchy of color fits into the world of dating were explored. This was followed by more specific discussions about racial groups that are viewed either as sexual objects or not sexual at all in the context of dating at Penn.

Some students said that within their families and social groups, race was less of an issue than other characteristics. When questioned about difficulties in his family concerning interracial dating, Wharton junior Brandon Celestin said that his family had bigger issues with him bringing home someone of the same sex than someone of a different race.

College freshman Efe Johnson said that her family would be more upset if she were to date someone of a different religious background than someone of a different race.

While many people said their families had no problems with them dating interracially, there was a general consensus that dating and marriage carried differing expectations.

Some who participated in the forum indicated that attitudes toward interracial dating vary by generation.

College sophomore Jamal Alsarraj said that his parents believe dating within his race "will make life easier."

"If you are different, there might be a conflict of interest," Alsarraj said of his parents' opinion.

College freshman Jason Sanders said of the forum that while the discussion was necessary, its topics were not new.

"Everyone always talks about this," Sanders said. "Every cultural group beats at it."

College sophomore Martha Dua-Awereh said the forum opened her eyes to the issues other cultures face.

"Some of the comments raised, I thought other cultures weren't aware of," she said, adding that she didn't realize other people shared concerns of this type.

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