Despite social disapproval, Mary and Jake decide to follow their hearts and get married. It was a decision that came at a high cost as Mary was ostracized by her family and faced discrimination from society at large.
A British woman fell in love with a black man at a time when interracial relationships were banned in Britain. She had to make the difficult decision to leave her family or follow her heart. Here is her story.
When Private Jake was in Trinidad as a member of the US forces sent by the Air Force to the UK for training in the 1940s, Britain’s Lady Mary was attending typing and shorthand courses at a technical school at the time.
The girls were delighted to discover that Jake and his army buddies could speak English when they called Mary and her friend over to talk. Jake started quoting Shakespeare to Mary, whom she adored, and they started talking.
A few weeks later they went on a picnic. When the woman saw Mary at the picnic and told her father about it, Mary was not allowed to see her father in motion.
After a few years, Jake returned to Trinidad to take a higher-paying job in Trinidad, but they still wrote letters.
Mary, who was only 19, agreed to marry Jake, but her father, disapproving of her choice to stand up to a black man, later threw her out of the house. Mary married Jake in 1948 and none of her family was there as she had little luggage.
THE FIRST YEAR OF MARRIAGE IS HARD
Mary was horrified to discover that society held interracial couples in the same disdain it showed them whenever they crossed the street.
The couple had trouble renting an apartment because no one wanted to house a black man in Birmingham, where they lived. Because of Jake’s inability to get a job, they had no money or friends. He recalled: “Back then you couldn’t work in an office – because a black man in an office with all white girls wasn’t considered safe.”
Their circumstances worsened when Mary gave birth to a stillborn child eight months into the pregnancy. Because of how broken she was, the couple decided not to have any more children.
PROGRESS
Fortunately, the hardy couple’s situation improved. Jake began working in a factory before moving to the post office, while Mary obtained teaching positions and eventually became a deputy teacher.
They also started making new friends, but before bringing them into their house, they let them know in advance about their interracial relationship. Although they reconciled before his death, Mary’s father, who died when she was 30, never approved of her choice to marry Jake.
NOW WHERE ARE THEY?
Mary and Jake, who have been together for seven decades since 2018, said they consider themselves lucky to have found and married each other.
Jake admitted that they were never fully accepted by society, but it still hurts. He explained how one person once wiped his hands on his neck and remarked, “I wanted to see if the dirt would come off.” He then went on to discuss his struggle with racism.
The couple has been married for many years and continues to work on their union. For example, Jake does not prepare food when kosher guests are expected. Although there is no cure for Mary’s mild case of early-onset Alzheimer’s, doctors are doing what they can.
Howard Foster and Myra Clark, high school sweethearts, were forced to break up in 1967 due to racial animosity in the country at the time, unlike Jake and Mary.
Foster decided to end things with his white girlfriend because he couldn’t let Clark suffer the difficulties that came with their type of relationship. However, 45 years later they reunited and married.
Maria’s story is a powerful reminder of the ongoing struggle for racial equality and acceptance of interracial relationships. It is a story of love, resilience, and perseverance in the face of adversity and should inspire us all to strive for a more open and accepting society.