The issue of race relations in America has reached a new high pitch with the killing of George Floyd by a Minneapolis policeman, followed by mass peaceful demonstrations and instances of violence, looting, and arson in cities around the country. A new soul-searching on matters of race and racism are now, also, impacting a growing number of academic and professional fields, including the economics profession.
On June 5, 2020, the American Economic Association (AEA), the premier organization among economists in the United States, issued a statement saying that it was time for officers and governance committees within the Association to look into racism and racist practices and presumptions within the profession. It was pointed out that while black Americans make up 13 percent of the nation’s population, only 3 percent of economists who are members of the AEA identity themselves as black, and 47 percent of those surveyed said that they experienced instances of discrimination within the profession.
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