In October 2009, Keith Bardwell, a

Robert, Louisiana Robert is an unincorporated community in Tangipahoa Parish, Louisiana, United States. It lies east of Hammond, at the intersection of US 190 and LA 445, from which it has a signed exit on Interstate 12. Robert is the largest settlement in Tangi ...

Justice of the Peace A justice of the peace (JP) is a judicial officer of a lower or ''puisne'' court, elected or appointed by means of a commission ( letters patent) to keep the peace. In past centuries the term commissioner of the peace was often used with the sa ...

, refused to officiate the

civil wedding A wedding is a ceremony where two people are united in marriage. Wedding traditions and customs vary greatly between cultures, ethnic groups, religions, countries, and social classes. Most wedding ceremonies involve an exchange of marriag ...

of an interracial couple because of his personal views, in spite of a 1967

United States Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that involve a point o ...

ruling Rule or ruling may refer to: Education * Royal University of Law and Economics (RULE), a university in Cambodia Human activity * The exercise of political or personal control by someone with authority or power * Business rule, a rule perta ...

which prohibited restrictions on interracial marriage as unconstitutional. The story was first publicized by newswriter Don Ellzey of the '' Daily Star'' (

Hammond, Louisiana Hammond is the largest city in Tangipahoa Parish, Louisiana, United States, located east of Baton Rouge and northwest of New Orleans. Its population was 20,019 in the 2010 U.S. census, and 21,359 at the 2020 population estimates program. Ham ...

). Within a day the story was on the front page of the

New Orleans New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans
Merriam-Webster. ; french: La Nouvelle-Orléans , es, Nuev ...

'' Times-Picayune'' and was circulated by the

Associated Press The Associated Press (AP) is an American non-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association. It produces news reports that are distributed to its members, U.S. newspa ...

. Bardwell has asserted that he is not a racist and that he did not prevent the couple from obtaining a license from another justice of the peace. His action was widely criticized, and many public officials in Louisiana called for his resignation. He resigned on November 3, 2009. Deslatte's article, augmented with local contributions by Lil Mirando & Don Ellzey, appeared a
"JP Bardwell resigns: ACLU, NAACP say bigotry not tolerated"
''Daily Star'' (Hammond), 4 November 2009, pp. 1A, 3A.

Refusal

On October 6, an interracial couple, Beth Humphrey and Terence McKay, inquired of Bardwell, the justice of the peace for the 8th Ward of Louisiana's Tangipahoa Parish, about getting a

marriage license A marriage license (or marriage licence in Commonwealth spelling) is a document issued, either by a religious organization or state authority, authorizing a couple to marry. The procedure for obtaining a license varies between jurisdiction ...

signed. His wife Beth Bardwell reportedly told them that the justice "does not do interracial marriages". Justice Bardwell referred the couple to a justice of the peace of a neighboring ward, who performed the wedding. Although the news media frequently alleged that Bardwell had refused to issue a marriage license, he has emphasized that he has no authority to "issue" a marriage license and that he simply "recused" himself from officiating the ceremony. When interviewed, Bardwell said that he had refused applications to four couples over a period of 2½ years before the news of his refusals was publicized.

Bardwell's justification

Bardwell justified his refusal to officiate interracial marriages as based on his concern for the children of such marriages, as he believes they are fully accepted neither by black nor white society. Bardwell said, he "came to the conclusion that most black society does not readily accept offspring of such relationships, and neither does white society", and, "I don't want to put children in a situation they didn’t bring on themselves. In my heart, I feel the children will later suffer." Bardwell asserted that he was not a racist. According to the reporter Tara Bennett, Bardwell was advised by an

attorney Attorney may refer to: * Lawyer ** Attorney at law, in some jurisdictions * Attorney, one who has power of attorney * ''The Attorney'', a 2013 South Korean film See also * Attorney general, the principal legal officer of (or advisor to) a gove ...

to say that he was "busy" on days when he was requested to officiate interracial weddings, "but Bardwell refuses to lie and says hathe will step down" if obliged to change his policy. On October 19, Bardwell appeared on the '' CBS Early Show'', where he was interviewed by Harry Smith. Bardwell apologized to the couple for offending them. He maintained that he did not deny the couple from being married but only recused himself from performing the ceremony. As he referred them to another justice to be married, he did not see a problem.Bardwell's CBS interview with Harry Smith
/ref>

Legal status of interracial marriages

State laws prohibiting interracial marriage were ruled unconstitutional by the

Supreme Court of the United States The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that involve a point o ...

in the 1967 case ''

Loving v. Virginia ''Loving v. Virginia'', 388 U.S. 1 (1967), was a List of landmark court decisions in the United States, landmark civil rights decision of the U.S. Supreme Court in which the Court ruled that Anti-miscegenation laws in the United States, laws ban ...

''. The

American Civil Liberties Union The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) is a nonprofit organization founded in 1920 "to defend and preserve the individual rights and liberties guaranteed to every person in this country by the Constitution and laws of the United States". T ...

of Louisiana (ACLU), via attorney Katie Schwartzman, cited that ruling and said that Bardwell knowingly violated judicial precedent by his action. Calling for Bardwell's removal, the ACLU requested that the Louisiana Judiciary Commission investigate the justice's conduct. The interracial couple filed a

civil rights Civil and political rights are a class of rights that protect individuals' freedom from infringement by governments, social organizations, and private individuals. They ensure one's entitlement to participate in the civil and political life of ...

lawsuit - A lawsuit is a proceeding by a party or parties against another in the civil court of law. The archaic term "suit in law" is found in only a small number of laws still in effect today. The term "lawsuit" is used in reference to a civil actio ...

with the United States Federal Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana, claiming their civil rights were violated. The suit named Beth Bardwell, Keith Bardwell's wife, as co-defendant and sought a monetary settlement, including restitution for emotional distress and mental anguish. Lawyer Laura Lanier Catlett filed the suit on behalf of the plaintiffs.

Reactions

On the day the story broke,

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) *President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...

Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, Obama was the first African-American president of the U ...

, the son of an interracial marriage, was at nearby

University of New Orleans The University of New Orleans (UNO) is a public research university in New Orleans, Louisiana. It is a member of the University of Louisiana System and the Urban 13 association. It is classified among "R2: Doctoral Universities – High rese ...

for a much-heralded "

town hall meeting Town hall meetings, also referred to as town halls or town hall forums, are a way for local and national politicians to meet with their constituents either to hear from them on topics of interest or to discuss specific upcoming legislation or ...

" concerning local recovery from the

Hurricane Katrina Hurricane Katrina was a destructive Category 5 Atlantic hurricane that caused over 1,800 fatalities and $125 billion in damage in late August 2005, especially in the city of New Orleans and the surrounding areas. It was at the time the cost ...

disaster. When asked about Bardwell's statements, Bill Quigley (Legal Director for the

Center for Constitutional Rights The Center for Constitutional RightsThe Center for Constitutional Rights
(CCR) is a Bill Burton said that they had reason to believe a biracial child could do well. A number of state and local public officials criticized Bardwell's actions.Heidi Rogers Kinchen
"City, parish officials disavow connection"
''Daily Star'' (Hammond), 17 October 2009, pp. 1A, 3A. Louisiana's

U.S. Senator The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and powe ...

s Mary Landrieu ( D) and David Vitter ( R) both objected to Bardwell's refusal, Vitter's statement being that judges "should follow the law as written and not make it up as they go along" (quoted in Bruce Alpert & Jonathan Tilove
"Tangipahoa justice still under fire"
in ''Times-Picayune'', 25 October 2009, Metro Edition, p. A11). Louisiana Governor

Bobby Jindal Piyush "Bobby" Jindal (born June 10, 1971) is an American politician who served as the 55th Governor of Louisiana from 2008 to 2016. The only living former Louisiana governor, Jindal also served as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives a ...

called for Bardwell to be fired: Jindal's office released a statement calling Bardwell's refusal to officiate the

"a clear violation of constitutional rights and federal and state law" and urged that " sciplinary action should be taken immediately—including the revoking of his license". In response during an interview, Bardwell pointed out that he was an elected official and that it was not a licensed position. The '' Daily Star'' editorialized that "Bardwell's personal beliefs are his own, but his responsibility as an elected official is to provide services to the public" and called on him to resign. Front-page articles in the ''Daily Star'' reported the disavowal of Bardwell by state, parish, and municipal officials and summarized the worldwide attention to the story. Bardwell, who had another five years in what he had said would be his last term as a justice of the peace, resigned his post on November 3. Bardwell's resignation was a one-sentence statement to Louisiana Secretary of State Jay Dardenne. Bardwell offered no explicit explanation and did not immediately respond to requests for elaboration.

Lawsuit

Bardwell continued to face a federal lawsuit, which in 2010 continued with the court's determination of pertinent witnesses.Heidi Rogers Kinchen, In November, 2010, the lawsuit was dropped by the McKays.

References

{{reflist, 30em Louisiana Interracial Marriage Incident, 2009 2009 in Louisiana African-American history of Louisiana History of African-American civil rights History of Louisiana Interracial marriage in the United States Race and law in the United States Tangipahoa Parish, Louisiana October 2009 events in the United States History of racism in Louisiana