The other night my girlfriend and I were walking home after eating out, we'd had a nice time and were minding our own business when two guys walked past.
As they were a little past us, we both heard one of them aggressively shout "taking our women!" to me. I laughed it off at the time but then it really began to play on my mind and my girlfriend and I had quite an interesting conversation about it.
Perhaps I should begin by telling you a little about my relationship and my girlfriend. She is a beautiful and talented mixed race young woman. I never know the 'PC' way to term her race as for me it doesn't matter and it feels weird having to even bother spelling it out, but to avoid any issues she is half white-British and half African American. I'm white British and we've been together for over 4 years now.
I know this sort of thing happens quite regularly in America, for a wide variety of reasons and I assume they come down to an apparent race and cultural divide in certain places. But having lived in London for almost a decade and been with my partner for a good few years, I'd never come across anyone who felt they were entitled to claim her as "their woman" (even I wouldn't be so bold as to say that most of the time!).
I actually felt insulted for my girlfriend who was immediately objectified by these guys she supposedly 'belonged' too. She's a living human being and has as much - and in regards to these two 'men', more - of a right to do what and be with whoever she wants.
These guys don't know her...they haven't lived with her and supported her. Yet somehow she is their property? I'm sorry I didn't realise! I'll just hand her back over to you.
It's like saying 'hey! you took my sweets', but wait 'Oh shit! I actually did take them! I saw you buy them so they are definitely yours...my bad. Here, have them back'.
Except my girlfriend isn't a bag of sweets...and I'm pretty sure she doesn't want to and hasn't ever been owned by someone.
I don't know what made those guys say that and I really just feel sorry for them. Perhaps if they didn't have these dated opinions of women then they'd be in a relationship of their own instead of needing to vent their frustrations.
But I've got news for them anyway, my girlfriend is the first interracial girl I've been with and I plan on her being the last too.
Not because of what you said but because one day I know we'll get married and hopefully have little interracial babies of our own...I suppose this will just add to the problem because who will they belong too when they're grown up? Hopefully people will be a little more open to the fact that we are all the same, regardless of skin colour, when that time comes.
