While reading Erica Chito Child’s article about the gendered and racial aspects, assumptions, and stereotypes surrounding interracial dating, the most salient example of this topic in popular culture that sprung easily to mind for me was Viola Davis’ portrayal of Annalise Keating in Shonda Rhimes’ How To Get Away With Murder (HTGAWM). Annalise wears her confidence, intelligence, and immaculate makeup and clothing as armor both in the classroom and in the courtroom. The much talked about scene in season 1 where she methodically removes her wig, fake eyelashes, and make up – all arguably markers of trying to ascribe to white supremacist beauty standards that she is doubly expected to seek to conform to as a professional and wife to a white man- in order to confront her white husband about his inappropriate sexual encounters with his dead white female student is a striking visual example of the tensions at play in American popular imaginary regarding interracial relationships. The audience has seen Annalise having an affair with a black detective, but it is in this confrontation with her husband that we seen how racist notions of beauty, desirability, and idealized submissiveness weigh heavily on Annalise and her marriage. As a defense lawyer, her job is intensely confrontational, but as she prepares do accuse her husband, Annalise looks exhausted. Tired of the stereotypes and assumptions in the intersection of race and gender that follow her into the most intimate places – even her own bedroom. I agree with Child’s that it is essential that the voices and experiences of black women be centralized and valued when it comes to discussions about interracial relationships and tensions. HTGAWM does this by having a black female lead, no questions asked. However, there is far more work to be done in popular culture in addressing how “white racism plays a central role in Black opposition to interracial relationships” (550) I find it troubling that interracial relationships are viewed as an indicator of social race relations insofar as if this is from a white academic standpoint there is a tendency to over-determine identities and be voyeuristic, distanced, and privileged (546). Additionally, this places a further onus on black women in particular who are in interracial relationships to leave their personal lives open to political public scrutiny, and cater to respectability politics.