Enacted in 1944 by President Roosevelt, the G.I. Bill aimed to assist veterans and is often credited with creating the American middle class. Although race-neutral in legal terms, the bill disproportionately benefited White veterans, potentially exacerbating Black-White inequality. Economists Christiane Szerman and Lukas Althoff will investigate the extent to which the G.I. Bill contributed to the racial wealth gap among veterans and their descendants.

The role of the mass media in shaping racial biases is frequently considered in public discourse and a growing academic literature is exploring the impact of the media on racial attitudes, in-group bias and prejudice, and its role in increasing racial and ethnic tensions. However, few papers have explored the mass media’s potential to reduce prejudice.

More than 600,000 individuals are released from state and federal prisons in the U.S. each year. Individuals reentering the community see high rates of unemployment, recidivism, and mortality. Economist Cici McNamara will examine the impact of Medicaid enrollment among recently incarcerated adults on post-release outcomes including employment and reincarceration. She will analyze data from the Institute for Research on Poverty’s Wisconsin Administrative Data Core for her study.

The death of a family member is a devastating life event for any household. However, little is known about how a death in the family affects the finances of surviving family members, particularly in the U.S., where safety net programs are weaker than in other advanced economies. Economist Marion Aouad will examine the financial effects of death on surviving family members. She will analyze data from the California Consumer Credit Panel and the California Comprehensive Master Death file for her study.

Migration has shaped the geography of race and ethnicity throughout U.S. history and attempts to exclude certain groups have been common. Although such exclusionary practices were eventually made illegal at the federal level, exclusion was more successful at the local level, especially in small towns. Many of these exclusionary events are not part of the historical record.