• Celebrity
    • Of The Essence
    • Celebrity News
    • If Not For My Girls
    • The State Of R&B
    • Time Of Essence
  • Fashion
    • 2023 Best In Black Fashion Awards
    • 2023 Fashion House
    • Red Carpet
    • Fashion News
    • Accessories
  • Beauty
    • Girls United: Beautiful Possibilities
    • 2023 Best In Black Beauty
    • Skin
    • Makeup
    • Nails
    • Hair
  • Lifestyle
    • Love
    • Parenting
    • Relationships
    • Bridal Bliss
    • Lifestyle News
    • Health & Wellness
    • ESSENCE Eats
    • Travel
    • Food & Drink
  • Entrepreneurship
    • Money & Career
  • News
    • Latest News
    • Paint The Polls Black
    • Culture
    • Politics
  • Shopping
  • Video
  • Events
    • 2023 Fashion House
    • 2023 ESSENCE Festival Of Culture
    • 2023 Wellness House
    • 2023 Black Women In Hollywood
    • 2023 ESSENCE Film Festival
    • 2023 HOLLYWOOD HOUSE
  • Studios
  • Girls United

WHERE BLACK CULTURE, COMMUNITY AND CONSCIOUSNESS MEET

Sign up for ESSENCE Newsletters the keep the Black women at the forefront of conversation.

Your email is required.
Your email is in invalid format.
Confirm email is required.
Email did not match.
Select the newsletters you'd like to receive:
Please select at least one option.
By clicking Subscribe Now, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
Skip to content
SUBSCRIBE
  • MAGAZINE
  • NEWSLETTER
  • Celebrity
    • Of The Essence
    • Celebrity News
    • If Not For My Girls
    • The State Of R&B
    • Time Of Essence
  • Fashion
    • 2023 Best In Black Fashion Awards
    • 2023 Fashion House
    • Red Carpet
    • Fashion News
    • Accessories
  • Beauty
    • Girls United: Beautiful Possibilities
    • 2023 Best In Black Beauty
    • Skin
    • Makeup
    • Nails
    • Hair
      • Hair News
      • Natural
      • Relaxed
      • Transitioning
      • Weave
      • 4C
  • Lifestyle
    • Love
    • Parenting
    • Relationships
    • Bridal Bliss
    • Lifestyle News
    • Health & Wellness
    • ESSENCE Eats
    • Travel
    • Food & Drink
  • Entrepreneurship
    • Money & Career
  • News
    • Latest News
    • Paint The Polls Black
    • Culture
    • Politics
  • Shopping
  • Video
  • Events
    • 2023 Fashion House
    • 2023 ESSENCE Festival Of Culture
    • 2023 Wellness House
    • 2023 Black Women In Hollywood
    • 2023 ESSENCE Film Festival
    • 2023 HOLLYWOOD HOUSE
  • Studios
  • Girls United
Home · News

Regina King to Black Women: 'Date Outside Your Race'

Actress Regina King has reignited the interracial dating debate by writing an open letter urging Black women to date outside their race. In the letter, published in Vibe Magazine, King says Black women should "open up," especially considering that Black men are dating outside the race. "When you have everyone else who is willing to explore but a Black woman is like, 'I want me a brother'... then that makes our percentage rate lower and the chances of finding love lower, because we're only looking in one specific place for finding love -- with Black men," she writes... Here's what you had to say: Nikki commented: "I love Brothers...period." Date Out wrote: "Regina King is soo right!"
By Yolanda Sangweni · Updated October 29, 2020
regina-king-106-park.jpg
Actress Regina King has reignited the interracial dating debate by writing an open letter urging Black women to date outside their race. In the letter, published in Vibe Magazine, King says Black women should “open up,” especially considering that Black men are dating outside the race. “When you have everyone else who is willing to explore but a Black woman is like, ‘I want me a brother’… then that makes our percentage rate lower and the chances of finding love lower, because we’re only looking in one specific place for finding love — with Black men,” she writes… King is also fed up with Black women who make up excuses as to why they won’t date outside the race. “They never really say it’s because he’s White, or because he’s Spanish or something like that,” she writes, “It’ll be more like, ‘Well, you know he works at such and such, and our schedules don’t match.’ But we’ll know really what it is. It’s ’cause he’s White.” Indeed, Black men do date outside their race more than Black women, but is interracial dating really as simple as just saying “go out and do it”? While I agree with most of King’s assertions, I think characterizing Black women in this manner makes it appear as though while everyone else in the world is evolving (read: seeing beyond race), we’re stuck in some sort of time warp and can’t seem to shake off our love for Black men. Um, no. We don’t need a prompter telling us to go and do anything, even dating outside the race, because we know we can if we want to. The truth of the matter is lots of Black women date non-Black men and will continue till the end of time. We have choices, this we know. We also know that dating is a matter of preference. The idea that a Black woman will deny a man who is interested in her (and she in him) simply because he is not Black is unfair and seems to feed into the idea that we’re so foolishly loyal that we’ll choose race over love. Sadly, this sort of discussion always falls back on the woman. It’s almost as if we’re being told: Black women, you’re alone and it’s your fault. Oy vey, enough already. What do you think?  
COMPANY INFORMATION
  • Our Company
  • Customer Service
  • Essence Ventures
  • Change Your Address
  • Contact Us
  • Job Opportunities
  • Internships
  • Media Kit
  • tag
SUBSCRIBE
  • Newsletters
  • Give a Gift of ESSENCE
  • Magazine Tablet Edition
FOLLOW US
MORE ON ESSENCE
  • Home
  • Love
  • Celebrity
  • Beauty
  • Hair
  • Fashion
  • ESSENCE festival

ESSENCE.com is part of ESSENCE Communications, Inc.

Essence may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.

©2023 ESSENCE Communications Inc. All Rights Reserved. | Privacy Policy | Terms of Use | Essence.com Advertising Terms

Get The ESSENCE Newsletter and
Special Offers delivered to your inbox

By clicking Sign Up, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.

Get The ESSENCE Magazine
by subscribing below
subscribe now