State Withdrawal, Inaction and Weakness: Racial Inequality and Democratic Gridlock

Taking the United States as its primary case, this paper explains why the inactivity or simple stoppage of states’ public policy focus on racial inequality results in severe reversals of past progress towards racial equality and all but ensures future crisis and conflict. The paper uses examples from American school and housing segregation as well as household wealth in order to make its point. Relevant comparisons among other advanced democracies will be drawn.