Inequality in the Arts: How Race, Gender, and Location Shape Representation

Abstract: 

Occupational discrimination and inequality have shaped the arts industry and its workers, disproportionately affecting certain minority groups. An analysis of the art industry’s workforce—categorized by race, gender, and county location across each decade from 1980 and 2000—shows that overrepresentation of white Americans has declined, while Black Americans and Hispanics remain underrepresented. The data also reveals that there is a stronger incentive to work in the arts in counties with higher concentrations of Black American or Hispanic populations. Occupational disparities in the arts reinforce the predominance of white representation and restrict the economic mobility of minority groups in the industry.