Changes in racial and gender inequality since 1970

The decades following 1970 to the present were an important period because they marked an era in which measures such as Affirmative Action were introduced to improve opportunities for American minorities and women. Ironically, this also was a period when income inequality dramatically increased in the United States. We analyze Census data from 1970 to 2009 to assess whether inequality in the earnings received by women and minorities has changed in this period. We find a complicated set of results. Racial inequalities persist though to a lesser extent than they did four decades earlier. Asian workers in particular have seen improvements and a lessening of inequality relative to White workers. Gender inequality also persists, though more in some groups than others. Overall, the results of this study underscore the persistence of racial and gender inequality in the United States

On the Costs of Being American Indian: Ethnic Identity and Economic Opportunity

This paper examines the assimilation of American Indians, specifically in relation to the role that economic discrimination has played in making American Indians one of the poorest groups in American society. The relationship between assimilation and discrimination is particularly important in this context. As assimilation increases, discrimination should decrease and the economic position of the assimilated group, American Indians, should improve. Conversely, those groups least assimilated into American society bear the brunt of racial and ethnic discrimination, and their economic position should be correspondingly lower than more assimilated minorities.American Indians are a particularly interesting group among whom to examine these ideas. This is because it is possible to identify, in empirical data,distinct groups of persons with American Indian background that are more or less assimilated into American society. In studying the ways in which assimilation and discrimination affect the economic standing of American Indians, this research will address two closely related questions: 1) to what extent are American Indians assimilated into mainstream culture, and to what extent are different levels of assimilation manifest in different types of American Indian ethnic identities; and 2) what are the economic "penalties" assessed on persons who decline to assimilate into the mainstream culture

Indian Reservations in the United States: Territory, Sovereignty and Economic Change. By Klaus Frantz. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1999. Pp. xxvi, 370. $25.00, paper.

As its title indicates, American Indian reservations are the subject of this book. In particular, this book deals with issues pertaining to the economic conditions of federally recognized reservations, of which there are 314. It does not address the special circumstances of Alaska Native communities or those of reservations established or recognized only by state governments.

The American Opportunity Study: A New Infrastructure for Monitoring Outcomes, Evaluating Policy, and Advancing Basic Science

The American Opportunity Study is an ongoing initiative to build the country’s capacity to access and analyze linked administrative data. It is best viewed as a population-level scaffolding on which other administrative data can then be hung. This scaffolding, if used as a stand-alone resource, will allow for long-run analyses of fundamental population and labor market processes. If combined with data from other sources, it will allow for long-run program evaluation and other experimental and quasi-experimental analyses. We discuss the current status of the American Opportunity Study, its potential to advance the field, remaining obstacles that must be overcome to build it, and how it can work within the guidelines suggested by the Commission on Evidence-Based Policymaking