Living Interracial: Warren and Sherri Crockett

My names Warren Crock and this
is my wife Sherri Crock

and we've been married for
seventeen years.

Sherri and I both worked together,
when we were-

I was seventeen, she was sixteen.

Worked at a movie theater
right off a CN lane.

It was our Summer job.

And, you know, that's kinda
how it all started.

[both chuckle]

I thought he was funny.

That's why I like him.

And cute.

[laughs]

Don't forget that part.

[both laugh]

(Warren) I was pretty much the
first guy that she had ever-

I was a shy kinda kid, you know,
I didn't venture out too much.

And that was my first job and
then it was just,

we all got along,
everybody that worked there,

we had a good time.

And that's how we dated
a lot too, everyone would go in

like, a group.

We would all go out, and so
it didn't look like we were together.

'Cause there was other, you know,
couples, and... so but yeah

I was kinda that way,
you don't really tell me

what I can do.

You know, I just wanted to
do whatever I wanted to do.

and I liked him,
and he was nice and protective

and he was funny and
he reminded me kinda

of my daddy.

It was just, it worked it's way out
and you know,

he asked me to marry him,
and we did, and we did all of it

in a kinda... undercover.

It was just, worked out like that.

(Warren) I've always told
everyone and anybody that will

listen if you're gonna get in an
interracial relationship,

and it's something that you really want,
you gotta work twice as hard

as the average relationship.

Because of the things that you're
gonna face.

I mean, you run the risk of
losing your family, your friends,

you got the social pressure.

I mean, it's extremely, extremely
extremely a lot more difficult

than just a normal relationship.

I've had offices before
where I wasn't really even comfortable

with putting pictures of my wife
and my kids up.

Because, you know, not sure
how management or upper

management is gonna take that.

Especially back when we were young,
when we first had kids.

At our jobs, you were kinda..

I remember first putting
a picture out- like, you know,

that's your baby.

[laughs]

Yeah she was caramel. So-

So I'm like yes, and it kinda
breaks the ice but you know,

you're kinda nervous to put
it out like that.

Sixteen years ago, but yeah.

(Sherri) When we got married, both of
our mothers were there.

Nobody else, but we didn't invite
anybody else I don't think.

I don't know if they would have came anyway.

[both chuckle]

We had a small inner circle initially,
just due to the fact that of the

whole interracial deal.
(Sherri) yeah.

We, you know, when we got
started it was different

than it is now.

Sherri and I would go to the mall
to work, she would walk

five steps ahead of me,
that type of stuff,

So, we just had to keep
a- we kept our relationship

in the background.

Just due to the environment
we were in.

And her parents were
reluctant initially,

you know, once we got married,
and they got to meet me

and see who I was and
grandkids started coming along,

Everything pretty much played
itself out.

Her daddy died in '06
and at the time of his death,

I mean me and him were like
best buddies

whereas I didn't meet him
till we were married.

-Right.

So, we went from that point to--

That's the first time they met,
we were already married.

[both laugh]

Yeah, so.

But it's true, when
were dating we wouldn't

hold hands, we wouldn't-
we walked apart from each other.

We didn't have no public display
of affection.

(Warren) My mother was
really worried about us initially

to the fact that she thought
somebody would come in

and slaughter us in the
middle of the night

and all that kind of stuff.

She was concerned for my
safety, not knowing-

like I said, she didn't meet Sherri's
parents until way down the road

and I didnt meet them until
we were married.

So, we really didn't know what
we were up against.

Not that we were afraid of
Sherri's parents were gonna

hurt us, but we just
didn't know, I mean,

you know, I moved from
Glenn Oaks in Baton Rouge

where my parents have lived
their whole life to

Prairieville, where they were
hosting KKK meetings and stuff,

so, there were some concerns
initially, on my families behalf

about our safety,
but I mean, I was concerned.

I used to have nightmares about
someone coming into the house,

hurting us.

And you know, the funny thing-
it sounds really funny,

but when I put my family
in a car, we travel somewhere,

I make sure the path is a
safe path.

We don't go off to backroads,
we don't do any of that kinda stuff.

We don't stop in the lil' mom
and pop gas station off the road

or anything like that.

We stay on the main highway,
and that's due to the fact

that you don't know how people
feel around the country,

about our circumstances.

(Warren) I mean, we do not
venture off track.

So I mean, we say everything's okay
but we still have those deep rooted

fears regarding.

Everybody has fears, but we
have those pertaining to our

status.

Even like buying a home,
nervous about the neighbors,

what they would think,
are they're gonna be ugly.

(Warren) My thing about it all
has always been that if

I had a closed mind, or
if Sherri would have had a closed mind,

this wouldn't exist.

I wouldn't have met someone
that I've been with now for

twenty-two years.

I could have been on my
third marriage now,

or my fourth marriage,
but, you know, we were open.

We saw love, we found love,
we embraced love and

you know, twenty-two years later,
we've got each other,

we've got our family,
and it's not something that

we feel that we should necessarily
promote.

I mean, I just kinda think it
is what it is.

You find that someone,
no matter what race they are.

That's who you love.

It's that simple.

I don't think it's a thing
where you need to hang

a banner and say "Yay, interracial love"
and all that kinda stuff

but, if that happens,
then you need to open minded

enough to embrace it
because with a closed mind,

I mean, there's people walking
around every single day

that's closed minded, that
may have possibly passed

up on that love of their life,
for whatever reason.