The Best Disparity, or Lack Thereof, That Money Can Buy

• Published in: The Review of Black political economy 2021-06, Vol.48 (2), p.228-250
• Main Authors: Atkinson, Christopher L., McCue, Cliff, Saginor, Jesse
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Affirmative action; Commissioning; Development studies; Government contracts; Government purchasing; Home based businesses; Money; Political economy; Public policy; Underserved populations
• ISSN: 0034-6446; 1936-4814
• DOI: 10.1177/0034644620973927

This research examines the complex interactions underlying disparity studies. While communities do frequently encounter disparity in public procurement, the commissioning of a disparity study may not ultimately solve the pressing challenges that hinder access to public contracts. Instead, disparity studies promise a politically palatable “quick fix” for a societal problem. In doing so, disparity studies may satisfy a legal basis, but their content and recommendations may fail to achieve their intended rationale. This failure ultimately raises serious questions about the legal merit of these studies and their methods, the growth of a cottage industry, and the benefit of the study for underserved groups. The greatest failure is that disparity studies may ultimately exacerbate, rather than resolve, a government’s ability to reduce chronic, and often historical, challenges to inclusion.