The term amalgamation was derived from metallurgy (see [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amalgam_(chemistry) amalgam]). It has been linked to the [[metaphor]] of the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Melting_pot melting pot], which also originated in the US, and which described the [[cultural]] assimilation and intermarriage of [[different]] ethnicities. The intermarriage of whites with African Americans and, to a lesser [[degree]], other non-whites was until recently in [[social]] [[Stigma|disfavor]] in the United States, despite the long [[history]] of informal [[liaisons]] between white men and nonwhite women during the long years of [[slavery]] and after emancipation. Until 1967, interracial marriages were prohibited in many US states through [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anti-miscegenation_laws anti-miscegenation laws]. | The term amalgamation was derived from metallurgy (see [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amalgam_(chemistry) amalgam]). It has been linked to the [[metaphor]] of the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Melting_pot melting pot], which also originated in the US, and which described the [[cultural]] assimilation and intermarriage of [[different]] ethnicities. The intermarriage of whites with African Americans and, to a lesser [[degree]], other non-whites was until recently in [[social]] [[Stigma|disfavor]] in the United States, despite the long [[history]] of informal [[liaisons]] between white men and nonwhite women during the long years of [[slavery]] and after emancipation. Until 1967, interracial marriages were prohibited in many US states through [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anti-miscegenation_laws anti-miscegenation laws]. |