Welsh interracial marriages
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White Welsh women entered the Muslim networks in the mid-20th century, as they "married Muslim seafarers, and adopted new names by consequence". In the "less than politically correct study" conducted by Collins, he argues that these relationships were formed through socio-economic connections (Gilliat-Ray and Mellor, 468). Lower-class white women were familiar with the faces at the "boarding houses and cafes of Muslim seafarers", and formed intimate relationships with them on this basis (468). This meant that their relationships with their parents became strained, as their marriages to Muslim seafarers often piqued cultural anxieties of the time around family purity, and inter-mixing race relations. The religious differences, along with the stigma associated with marrying outside of their community, likely intensified tensions within their families. In adopting new names and embracing aspects of their husbands' cultures, these women may have been seen as distancing themselves from their cultural roots, further complicating their familial bonds.
An interesting aspect to consider of these marriages is the element of class. In many ways, their class position rendered them more vulnerable to judgment, as inter-racial and inter-religious unions were often seen as transgressive and a threat to social order. However, within working-class communities, economic survival and shared spaces often transcended rigid social boundaries, allowing women to form bonds based on mutual support and daily interactions. They were also permitted more daily mobility, and granted "greater autonomy, responsibility and independence" generally as their husbands were away from the domestic home for longer periods (468). This meant that this meant that these women experienced a degree of independence and agency that was less common in more traditional or middle-class households. With their husbands frequently away at sea, they navigated their lives and responsibilities more autonomously, managing both domestic and social affairs. This independence may have empowered them within their relationships and communities, but it also further distanced them from conventional gender roles. These women, already situated on the periphery due to their socio-economic status, found themselves further alienated by their decisions to marry outside of their race and religion, challenging both class and racial hierarchies. Class plays a dual role: facilitating these relationships through shared spaces, but equally exacerbating the stigma and social exclusion they faced for crossing boundaries.
The themes of race, class, and cultural boundaries in these marriages resonate with the lyrics of Empire Empire by Charged, which critiques the lingering legacy of empire and colonialism. The lyrics underscore how colonial hierarchies continue to influence relationships and social dynamics. The unions between white Welsh women and Muslim seafarers can in some ways be seen as challenges to these imperial legacies, where the women’s relationships symbolised an unsettling breach of racial and cultural 'purity' enforced by colonial structures. -
I especially like @alice_maitlis' point about how class was involved in the marital unions that Gilliat-Ray and Mellor discuss. Excellent!