Turns out two-parent households are no fix for racial inequality - Harvard Gazette

"In "Inherited Inequality" (2025), Christina Cross summons large datasets to compare outcomes for generations of Black and white children raised in what is widely considered the optimal family structure for adult outcomes. The associate professor of sociology demonstrates that Black children raised by two parents have far fewer resources - with worse outcomes in school and in the labor market - than white youth from the same family structure."

""What really struck me was that African American children in two-parent families had outcomes more similar to their white peers from single-parent families," Cross said. "My research shows that opportunity gaps would remain high even if African American children lived with two parents at high levels." "Inherited Inequality" also revisits how single Black mothers became a cultural fixation. As Cross writes, these parents were assigned much of the blame for racial disparities in poverty, joblessness, and incarceration for decades."

""My goal with this book is to supplant that narrative with a more accurate one," she said. "I hope it helps us think more carefully about how we can support Black families - and disadvantaged families more generally." We caught up with Cross, a faculty member since 2019, to ask about the book, its methodologies, and its message. The conversation was edited for length and clarity."

Large-scale data comparisons show Black children raised in two-parent families possess far fewer resources and experience worse educational and labor-market outcomes than white peers from similar family structures. Opportunity gaps between Black and white youth would remain substantial even if Black children lived with two parents at high rates. Historical narratives disproportionately blamed single Black mothers for racial disparities in poverty, unemployment, and incarceration. Policy focus solely on family structure overlooks systemic resource differences and persistent inequality. Broader support for Black families and economically disadvantaged households is necessary to address deep-rooted opportunity gaps beyond marital status.

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