A new marriage squeeze for black women: The role of racial intermarriage by black men

Recent declines in the rate of marriage among Black women have been accompa nied by substantial increases In rates of interracial marriage, especially between Black men amid non-Black women. Explanations for the retreat from m arriage among Black women have focused on deficits bl the quantity amid qua lity of available partners, and the role of racial intermarriage largely ha s been ignored This study examines the impact of interracial marriage by Bl ack men on the marriage prospects of Black women. First. our analysis of da ta from the 1990 Integrated Public Use Microdata Series (IPUMS) reveals tha t intermarried Black men are selective of those with the highest levels of education income, and occupational prestige. Second multilevel analyses, us ing both the IPUMS and Panel Study of Income Dynamics, show that the level of intermarriage in metropolitan areas is significantly related to the mart ial behaviors of Black women Local rates of intermarriage among Black men r educe the likelihood that Black women currently will be married and that th ey will make the transition to marriage. These effects are especially acute for highly educated Black women whose marriage,markets are defined by thos e Black men who are most likely to intermarry Finally, our analyses indicat e that intermarriage affects the marital prospects of Black women by negati vely affecting the pool of economically attractive marriage partners in the metropolitan area.