History in Black and White
Confederate Streets and Black-White Labor Market Differentials
Jhacova Williams
AEA Papers and Proceedings, May 2021, Pages 27-31
Abstract:
Using a unique dataset, this paper examines the extent to which streets named after prominent Confederate generals are related to Black-White labor market differentials. Examining individual-level data shows that Blacks who reside in areas that have a relatively higher number of Confederate streets are less likely to be employed, are more likely to be employed in low-status occupations, and have lower wages compared to Whites. I find no evidence that individual characteristics, local characteristics, or geographic sorting explain these results.
Racial and Ethnic Differences in the Financial Returns to Home Purchases from 2007 to 2020
Matthew Kahn
NBER Working Paper, May 2021
Abstract:
The racial and ethnic composition of home buyers varies across geographic locations. For example, Asians and Hispanics are much more likely to buy homes in California than Blacks and Blacks are more likely to buy homes in Georgia than other demographic groups. Home prices grow at different rates across geographic units such as counties or zip codes. Hedonic bundling inhibits buyers from purchasing shares of different homes and forming a spatially diversified housing portfolio. Spatial variation in purchases suggests that the average rate of return to housing varies across racial and ethnic groups. To test this claim, I construct a geographic shift-share index by combining Zillow geographic specific home price index data with HMDA micro data. The shift share calculations yield the average rate of return to home ownership by purchase year, and sale year for different demographic groups. Over the years 2007 to 2020, Blacks earned a lower rate of return on home purchases than Asians and Hispanics and the sample average. Within geographic areas, average loan differences across racial and ethnic groups are very small.
Close to Home: Place-Based Mobilization in Racialized Contexts
Sally Nuamah & Thomas Ogorzalek
American Political Science Review, forthcoming
Abstract:
How do racially concentrated policy changes translate to political action? Using official election returns, the Cooperative Congressional Election Study, and original data on the unprecedented mass closure of schools in segregated, predominantly Black neighborhoods across Chicago, we demonstrate that those living in the communities affected (1) increase their attendance at political meetings; (2) mobilize in support of ballot measures to avert future closings; and (3) increase their participation in the subsequent local election, while decreasing their support for the political official responsible for the policy on the ballot - at a higher rate than every other group. These findings shed light on how groups that previously participated at the lowest rates go on to participate at the highest rates on community issues that matter to them. We develop a theory of place-based mobilization to explain the role of "the community" in acting as a site of coidentification and political action for marginalized groups.
Homefront: Black Veterans and Black Voters in the Civil Rights Era
Thomas Koch, Trevon Logan & John Parman
AEA Papers and Proceedings, May 2021, Pages 32-36
Abstract:
While the role of World War II veterans in the civil rights movement has been well documented, debate about the causal effect of military service remains. Combining detailed information on World War II enlistments and Civil Rights Commission data on voter registration, we present the first causal estimates of the role of Black veterans in high-risk political participation in the US South. Each Black enlistee increased Black voter registration by more than two additional Black registrants after the Voting Rights Act of 1965. We find similar effects on the presence of Black rights groups and, in response, White nationalist organizations.
PM2.5 polluters disproportionately and systemically affect people of color in the United States
Christopher Tessum et al.
Science Advances, April 2021
Abstract:
Racial-ethnic minorities in the United States are exposed to disproportionately high levels of ambient fine particulate air pollution (PM2.5), the largest environmental cause of human mortality. However, it is unknown which emission sources drive this disparity and whether differences exist by emission sector, geography, or demographics. Quantifying the PM2.5 exposure caused by each emitter type, we show that nearly all major emission categories - consistently across states, urban and rural areas, income levels, and exposure levels - contribute to the systemic PM2.5 exposure disparity experienced by people of color. We identify the most inequitable emission source types by state and city, thereby highlighting potential opportunities for addressing this persistent environmental inequity.
Freedom, Firearms, and Civil Resistance
Dustin Crummett
Journal of Ethics, June 2021, Pages 247-266
Abstract:
The claim that guns can safeguard freedom is common in US political discourse. In light of a broadly republican understanding of freedom, I evaluate this claim and its implications. The idea is usually that firearms would enable citizens to engage in revolutionary violence against a tyrannical government. I argue that some of the most common objections to this argument fail, but that the argument is fairly weak in light of other objections. I then defend a different argument for the claim that guns can safeguard freedom. I claim that firearm ownership among members of oppressed groups can hinder the use of systematic violence aimed at preventing them from exercising their basic liberties. I show how a commitment to armed self-defense is compatible with non-violent civil resistance as a tool of political change, and show how the former facilitated the latter during the Civil Rights Movement. Finally, I consider the policy implications of my argument. I don't think it vindicates lax gun control policies. However, it may vindicate some individuals acquiring guns and learning how to use them, and some organizations aiding them in doing so.
Race, Reconstruction, and the Invention of "Negro Superstition," 1862-1877
David Cox
Journal of American Studies, forthcoming
Abstract:
This article traces the postbellum development and dissemination of the notion of "negro superstition." By the end of Reconstruction, many whites across the nation, both liberal and conservative, shared in the belief that credulity was the keystone of African American culture. The formulation of superstition as innate racial trait served the conjoined causes of sectional reconciliation and white supremacy, eroding white support for black citizenship. As liberal estimations of black Christianity declined and conservative depictions of African American magical beliefs proliferated, "voodoo" gained traction as a potent imaginary, shorthand for racial atavism, unreason, and dangerous sexuality.
The Life Cycle of a Bank Enforcement Action and Its Impact on Minority Lending
Byeongchan An et al.
University of Chicago Working Paper, April 2021
Abstract:
This paper studies the role banking supervision plays in improving access to credit for minorities by investigating how enforcement decisions and orders (EDOs) affect bank borrower base. We document significant changes in the underlying demographic mix of residential mortgage borrowers. After an EDO's termination, banks significantly increase residential mortgage lending to minorities and increase their market share of lending to this group within the counties where they operate. EDO banks are also less likely to deny loans to minority borrowers, and their reasons for loan denial change. Our results are consistent with banks catering to regulators after EDO termination.