Multiculturalism and Welfare Policies in the USA: A State-Level Comparative Analysis

This chapter examines the link between MCPs and the welfare state at the state level in the United States. The first section reviews existing data on the impact of race on the welfare state; the second section identifies a range of MCPs that have been adopted at the state level in the USA, as well as what is called 'anti-MCPs' designed to overturn or pre-empt the possible adoption of MCPs. The empirical relationship between MCPs and the welfare state is then examined to determine whether MCPs impact the welfare state independent of other factors, as critics contend. It is shown that while the impact of MCPs on the welfare state varies from one MCP to another, there is no general tendency for states with stronger MCPs to weaken their welfare policies compared to states with weaker MCPs (or anti-MCP states).