Scottish professor shares ‘inspirational’ post about racism – and receives heart-warming praise from interracial couples across the world

A Scottish professor and his wife have been called "inspirational" after he spoke out about the racist abuse they had suffered in their more than 40 years together.

Professor John Struthers, the honorary consul for Ethiopia in Scotland, shared an image of himself and his wife, Justina, attending the Queen's garden party in Edinburgh.

In the post, he wrote: "I thought I would share. We've had disapproving looks, 'We are full', 'Is that your wife?' and many more actions questioning our relationship over the last 40-plus years.

"We haven't wavered...The best way of fighting racism is living your life, standing tall and educating."

The picture shows Prof Struthers wearing a kilt while standing next to his wife, who is wearing a dress made from traditional Ghanaian Kente cloth.

His comments appeared to resonate, as more than 18,000 people retweeted the post and more than 50,000 'liked' it. Hundreds shared stories of interracial couples in their lives.

Jay Smith, of Durham, said his grandmother "chose love over ignorance and bigotry" and was "disowned by her family" when she chose to marry his Nigerian grandfather in the 1950s.

In the US, lawyer Michael Brown, of Connecticut, shared a photo of he and his wife playing with their child, saying: "Living a full, happy life is the best weapon against hate."

Tom Quinn, based in London, shared a photo of himself with his wife on their wedding day, showing him in a traditional Scottish kilt and her in traditional Sikh garments.

He wrote: "I also wore a turban and sherwani for our Sikh ceremony."