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A Cure for Discrimination? Affirmative Action and the Case of California Proposition 209

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  • Caitlin Knowles Myers

Abstract

Proposition 209, enacted in California in 1996 and made effective the following year, ended state affirmative action programs not only in education, but also for public employment and government contracting. This paper uses CPS data and triple difference techniques to take advantage of the natural experiment presented by this change in state law to gauge the labor market impacts of ending affirmative action programs. Employment among women and minorities dropped sharply, a change that was nearly completely explained by a decline in participation rather than by increases in unemployment. This decline suggests that either affirmative action programs in California had been inefficient or that they failed to create lasting change in prejudicial attitudes.

Suggested Citation

  • Caitlin Knowles Myers, 2005. "A Cure for Discrimination? Affirmative Action and the Case of California Proposition 209," Middlebury College Working Paper Series 0525, Middlebury College, Department of Economics.
    • Handle: RePEc:mdl:mdlpap:0525
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    Cited by:

    1. repec:spo:wpmain:info:hdl:2441/1203 is not listed on IDEAS
    2. Prakash, Nishith, 2008. "Improving the Labor Market Outcomes of Minorities: The Role of Employment Quota," MPRA Paper 11010, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    3. Hélène Périvier, 2007. "Les femmes sur le marché du travail aux Etats-Unis: une mise en perspective avec la France et la Suède," Sciences Po Economics Publications (main) hal-00972845, HAL.
    4. Hélène Périvier, 2007. "Les femmes sur le marché du travail aux Etats-Unis: une mise en perspective avec la France et la Suède," Working Papers hal-00972845, HAL.
    5. Nayoung Rim, 2021. "The Effect of Title IX on Gender Disparity in Graduate Education," Journal of Policy Analysis and Management, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 40(2), pages 521-552, March.
    6. Solomon W. Polachek, 2019. "Equal pay legislation and the gender wage gap," World of Labour, LISER, pages 1-16, October.
    7. Sloane, Peter J. & Grazier, Suzanne & Jones, Richard J., 2005. "Preferences, Gender Segregation and Affirmative Action," IZA Discussion Papers 1881, IZA Network @ LISER.
    8. Hélène Périvier, 2008. "Les femmes sur le marché du travail aux États-Unis," Documents de Travail de l'OFCE 2008-12, Observatoire Francais des Conjonctures Economiques (OFCE).
    9. Hélène Périvier, 2008. "Les femmes sur le marché du travail aux Etats-Unis," Sciences Po Economics Publications (main) hal-00973039, HAL.
    10. repec:spo:wpecon:info:hdl:2441/6142 is not listed on IDEAS
    11. Justin Marion, 2011. "Affirmative Action And The Utilization Of Minority‐ And Women‐Owned Businesses In Highway Procurement," Economic Inquiry, Western Economic Association International, vol. 49(3), pages 899-915, July.
    12. Hélène Périvier, 2009. "Les femmes sur le marché du travail aux États-Unis," Sciences Po Economics Publications (main) hal-02081114, HAL.
    13. repec:spo:wpmain:info:hdl:2441/eu4vqp9ompqllr09hahqp4sa4 is not listed on IDEAS
    14. Najam, Rafiuddin, 2024. "Closing the gap : Effect of a gender quota on women's access to education in Afghanistan," Policy Research Working Paper Series 10674, The World Bank.
    15. repec:spo:wpmain:info:hdl:2441/6142 is not listed on IDEAS
    16. Prakash, Nishith, 2020. "The Impact of Employment Quotas on the Economic Lives of Disadvantaged Minorities in India," IZA Discussion Papers 13847, IZA Network @ LISER.
    17. repec:spo:wpecon:info:hdl:2441/1203 is not listed on IDEAS
    18. Nick Feltovich & Lata Gangadharan & Michael P. Kidd, 2013. "Implementation and Removal of an Affirmative-Action Quota: The Impact on Task Assignment and Workers' Skill Acquisition," Canadian Public Policy, University of Toronto Press, vol. 39(s1), pages 123-140, May.
    19. Najam, Rafiuddin, 2024. "Closing the gap: Effect of a gender quota on women’s access to education in Afghanistan," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 99(C).
    20. Prakash, Nishith, 2020. "The impact of employment quotas on the economic lives of disadvantaged minorities in India," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 180(C), pages 494-509.
    21. Robert Fairlie & Justin Marion, 2012. "Affirmative action programs and business ownership among minorities and women," Small Business Economics, Springer, vol. 39(2), pages 319-339, September.

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    JEL classification:

    • J71 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Labor Discrimination - - - Hiring and Firing
    • J78 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Labor Discrimination - - - Public Policy (including comparable worth)

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