“Race doesn’t matter”

Abstract

This study examines constructions of racial differences within online stories narrated by individuals involved in interracial romantic relationships. A dialogic analysis of the stories ( n = 76) revealed that interracial romantic partners challenged difference by positioning racial dissimilarity as problematic, contrasting differences with partner similarities, devaluing difference in the evaluation of relational success, and erasing difference or refuting an interracial relational identity altogether. The marginalization of difference in contrast to the dominance of similarity in individuals’ talk suggests that interracial partners participate in a great deal of discursive work to legitimize their relationships.