The Legacy of Slavery and Mass Incarceration: Evidence from Felony Case Outcomes

Structural racism, family structure, and Black–White inequality: The differential impact of the legacy of slavery on poverty among single mother and married parent households

“…Because areas with higher former enslaved concentrations tend to be more economically distressed (Snipp, 1996), living in these areas would seem to further exacerbate the outcomes for families that are already more disadvantaged (e.g., Black single mother families). However, the punitive nature of the legacy of slavery, particularly its connections to the criminal legal system (e.g., Gottlieb & Flynn, 2021; Vandiver et al, 2006), may extend to the economic realm and impact marginalized families (i.e., single mother families) similarly, regardless of race. To this point, Berger (2018) concludes that the most important correlate for worse economic mobility outcomes today—for people of any race—are the “fragile family structures” (i.e., lower marriage rates and a larger share of children living in single‐parent households) in areas with higher concentrations of enslaved people.…”

“…Fortunately, our setup of the data—namely our use of a concentration measure of poverty and sub‐samples by family type—mimics the interaction used in the individual‐level analysis so that we can focus exclusively on the binary relationship without needing to use an interaction directly. We emphasize that we focus on the association rather than trying to identify a causal relationship, as has been done in previous research using an instrumental variable approach (see especially Acharya et al, 2016; Berger, 2018; Bertocchi & Dimico, 2012; Gottlieb & Flynn, 2021). This is because previous research demonstrates the relationship is robust, and more complex modeling strategies are unnecessary to meet our objective.…”

“…Slavery also severely limited Black families' abilities to generate income and accumulate wealth (Oliver & Shapiro, 2013). Hence, the legacy of slavery for contemporary outcomes has been of growing scholarly interest to scholars (e.g., Acharya et al, 2016; Berger, 2018; Bertocchi & Dimico, 2012; Curtis & O'Connell, 2017; Gabriel et al, 2021; Gottlieb & Flynn, 2021; Kramer et al, 2017; O'Connell, 2012; Reece, 2020; Reece & O'Connell, 2016; Vandiver et al, 2006; Zajonc, 2003).…”

“…Research has identified some damaging outcomes for Whites (e.g., Vandiver et al, 2006) and/or all residents in southern places with strong historical connections to slavery (e.g., Berger, 2018; Levernier & White, 1998). However, the dominant theme is one of White advantage (see especially Gabriel et al, 2021; Reece, 2020) and greater Black–White inequality (e.g., Gottlieb & Flynn, 2021; Kramer et al, 2017; O'Connell, 2012; Reece & O'Connell, 2016), both of which are seen across a variety of outcomes, including those related to health, the criminal legal system, poverty, and education. Critically, the empirical evidence suggestive of a legacy of slavery is robust to extensive contemporary and historical controls (e.g., Acharya et al, 2016; Gabriel et al, 2021; Gottlieb & Flynn, 2021), in addition to methods that attempt to isolate a causal relationship using cotton suitability as an instrumental variable (Acharya et al, 2016; Berger, 2018; Bertocchi & Dimico, 2012; Gottlieb & Flynn, 2021).…”

“…However, the dominant theme is one of White advantage (see especially Gabriel et al, 2021; Reece, 2020) and greater Black–White inequality (e.g., Gottlieb & Flynn, 2021; Kramer et al, 2017; O'Connell, 2012; Reece & O'Connell, 2016), both of which are seen across a variety of outcomes, including those related to health, the criminal legal system, poverty, and education. Critically, the empirical evidence suggestive of a legacy of slavery is robust to extensive contemporary and historical controls (e.g., Acharya et al, 2016; Gabriel et al, 2021; Gottlieb & Flynn, 2021), in addition to methods that attempt to isolate a causal relationship using cotton suitability as an instrumental variable (Acharya et al, 2016; Berger, 2018; Bertocchi & Dimico, 2012; Gottlieb & Flynn, 2021). For example, O'Connell (2012) demonstrated the relationship between local slave concentration in 1860 and Black–White poverty inequality in Southern counties, independent of contemporary demographic and economic conditions, racialized wealth disparities, and racial threat.…”