On February 3 at 3:15 PM in Posvar 4940, the Center for Governance and Markets will host The Origins of Generosity and Racial Exclusion in American Welfare by Shari Eli in partnership with the Economics Department.
Drawing on newly digitized welfare records from 1911–1935, the talk examines why early U.S. welfare programs were unevenly administered across counties and how race, immigration, and local conditions shaped the generosity of Mothers’ Pensions. The findings reveal lasting patterns of inequality and show that states that were most generous historically remain the most generous today.
Shari Eli is a Professor of Economics at the University of Toronto, a Research Associate at the National Bureau of Economic Research, and founder of the People’s History Lab. Her research focuses on economic history, health, and demography, with widely recognized work on welfare, health, and intergenerational outcomes published in leading journals and featured in major media outlets.