Category: Discrimination

Abolition Will Not Be Randomized

caseybuchholz1 Comment

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叠测听 and听Casey Buchholz

In the wake of the current uprising in support of Black Lives Matter, there has been increasing interest in the use of mainstream empirical methods in economics — like randomized control trials (RCTs) and administrative data evaluation — to address issues of racism and violence in the institution of policing. These interests are well intentioned, but similar to prior debates, we are reminded that about the relevance of these approaches amidst a mass movement calling for deep structural and institutional change. In just two weeks, mass protests have sprung up across the U.S. and the world calling for the defunding, disbanding, and abolition of police as well as the dismantling of white supremacy. This moment has the potential to bring about an institutional and structural shift in our politics, society, and economy. Given this, we will echo many of the concerns shared by economists about the limits of some empirical methods, the biases embedded in administrative data, and the relevancy of these approaches to the current moment calling for immediate change.听Read More »

Mind the Gap: Addressing the Class Dimension in Higher Education

Lorena Lombardozzi2 Comments

7038952701_bb67cdb2d7_oThe debate in Higher Education (HE) in the UK is slowly starting to recognise that inequality in education is both the cause and consequence of societal elitism. As a result, there is an increasing debate about widening access to academia, and more and more newspaper are devoting attention to the few who made it through the close-circle system.听

On the 17th of May 2019 the and working group organised a on economic pluralism, teaching and research. I was chairing the panel on 鈥淐hallenges and Opportunities for the Economics Curriculum Around Decolonisation, Gender and Diversity鈥� which included brilliant contributions from Dr Meera Sabaratnam (SOAS), Dr Lucia Pradella (King鈥檚 College), Dr Ingrid Kvangraven (University of York) and Ali Al-Jamri (Rethinking Economics, Diversity Campaign Manager). They addressed various political, historical and cultural听 issues around neocolonialism, imperialism, racism, sexism and gender segregation in HE at large and in the economic discipline in particular. Considering the potential great complementarity of the topics, I thought it was relevant to bring in the class dimension in the discussion. I noticed that while the marginalization of women and people of color is rightly getting increasing attention, the class dimension is sometimes forgotten. Indeed, although class remains a crucial lens to untangle injustice and exclusion in the HE industry, it isn’t dealt with with as much urgency. Maybe also because it’s a bit less visible. Indeed, last week I was discussing this issue with another 鈥榓cademic migrant鈥� from Southern Europe, and he suggested: 鈥淧anels should ask 鈥渨hat do your parents do/did for a living?鈥� during job interviews.

To prepare my presentation, I approached a couple of 鈥榙ata intelligence鈥� offices in UK universities asking for facts about the class dimension of access to higher education in the UK. I was pointed to the , which is a new resource that enables us educators, but also students, to look at various key bits of data on the university sector as a whole, and on individual universities. A very useful resource indeed!听

So here is what I found, and the results are pretty discouraging.听Read More »

Female Economists and the Blogosphere – Do We Dare Mention Sexism?

Carolina Alves3 Comments

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I recently read Claudia Sahm鈥檚 on why there are very few female economists in the blogosphere. As a blogger herself, as someone who is active on Twitter, and as a follower of approximately eighty blogs, she states with no hesitation: 鈥淚t’s true, very few female economists blog. Period.鈥� For her, three hypotheses may explain this absence: women with opinions are not well received, women are busy with other forms of service, and women underestimate what they would contribute by blogging. But aren’t these actually manifestations of a deeper issue?

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