Working Paper: NBER ID: w29200
Authors: Francisca M. Antman; Kalena Cortes
Abstract: We present the first quantitative analysis of the impact of ending de jure segregation of Mexican-American school children in the United States by examining the effects of the 1947 Mendez v. Westminster court decision on long-run educational attainment for Hispanics and non-Hispanic whites in California. Our identification strategy relies on comparing individuals across California counties that vary in their likelihood of segregating and across birth cohorts that vary in their exposure to the Mendez court ruling based on school start age. Results point to a significant increase in educational attainment for Hispanics who were fully exposed to school desegregation.
Keywords: Mexican American; School Desegregation; Educational Attainment
JEL Codes: I24; I26; J15; J18
Edges that are evidenced by causal inference methods are in orange, and the rest are in light blue.
| Cause | Effect |
|---|---|
| end of de jure segregation for Mexican American schoolchildren (J78) | increased educational attainment among Hispanics in California (I24) |
| cohorts who began school after the Mendez ruling (J78) | increased educational attainment (I24) |
| cohorts born 10-20 years earlier (J26) | increased educational attainment (I24) |
| high segregation counties (R23) | decline in educational attainment among non-Hispanic whites post-Mendez (I24) |
| Mendez court ruling (K37) | increased educational attainment among Hispanics in California (I24) |