Research Guides: Black Studies: Finding Data

Public Data Sets

U.S. Census Bureau This link opens in a new window
Leading source of up-to-date demographic data about the United States people and economy.

PUMS Data
The U.S. Census Bureau's American Community Survey (ACS) Public Use Microdata Sample (PUMS) files are a set of untabulated records about individual people or housing units.
American Immigration Council
State-by-state immigration data and facts.
American National Election Studies
ANES produces high quality data from its own surveys on voting, public opinion, and political participation.
Bureau of Labor Statistics
The Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor is the principal Federal agency responsible for measuring labor market activity, working conditions, and price changes in the economy.

CLASP Center for Law and Social Policy - Data This link opens in a new window
CLASP conducts analysis of national, state, and local data to accurately document racial disparities and disparate policy impacts by race to inform our policy recommendations and advocacy.

Data.gov
United States Government's open data site
FRED Economic Research
Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, Download, graph, and track 672,000 US and international time series from 89 sources
General Social Survey
Contains a standard 'core' of demographic, behavioral, and attitudinal questions, plus topics of special interest since 1972 to facilitate time-trend studies as well as replication of earlier findings.
Hate Map | Southern Poverty Law Center

ICPSR Inter-University Consortium for Political and Social Research This link opens in a new window
Data archive hosting 16 specialized data collections in education, aging, criminal justice, substance abuse, terrorism, and other social science fields.
IPUMS This link opens in a new window
Database of census and survey data from around the world integrated across time and space. Users must create a free account to access.

National Center for Education Statistics
The primary federal entity for collecting and analyzing data related to education in the U.S. and other nations.
State of Working America Data Library
Provides researchers, media, and the public with easily accessible, up-to-date, and comprehensive historical data on the American labor force. It is compiled from Economic Policy Institute analysis of government data sources. Use it to research wages, inequality, and other economic indicators over time and among demographic groups.
UN Statistics Department
Compiles and disseminates global statistical information, develop standards and norms for statistical activities, and support countries' efforts to strengthen their national statistical systems.
World Bank
The World Bank provides free and open access to a comprehensive set of data about development in countries around the globe.

Public Policy Research

The American Enterprise Institute
AEI is a community of scholars and supporters committed to expanding liberty, increasing individual opportunity and strengthening free enterprise.
The Brookings Institute
The Brookings Institution is a nonprofit organization based in Washington, D.C. with a mission to conduct in-depth, nonpartisan research to improve policy and governance at local, national, and global levels.
Center for American Progress
The Center for American Progress is an independent nonpartisan educational institute dedicated to improving the lives of Americans through progressive ideas and action.
Center for Economic Policy Research
CEPR is Europe’s leading network of Economic Policy Researchers.
Center for the Study of Social Policy
Policy research on children and families. 1979-Current.

CLASP Center for Law and Social Policy - Data This link opens in a new window
CLASP conducts analysis of national, state, and local data to accurately document racial disparities and disparate policy impacts by race to inform our policy recommendations and advocacy.
Global Think Tanks This link opens in a new window
Database for public policy, covering reports, working papers, policy briefs, data sources, and media drawn from a directory of IGOs, NGOs, and research centers. Part of Policy Commons

Institute for Research on Poverty
IRP researches the causes and consequences of poverty and inequality in the United States. We bring together social scientists from across research disciplines such as economics, sociology, social work, and demography. The result is a well-rounded understanding of poverty issues.
Measure of America-SSRC Project
Measure of America provides easy-to-use yet methodologically sound tools for understanding the distribution of well-being and opportunity in America and stimulating fact-based dialogue about issues we all care about: health, education, and living standards.
Neighborhood Data for Social Change
A project of the USC Lusk Center for Real Estate, NDSC is a free, publicly available online resource for civic actors to learn about the trends, challenges, and opportunities facing Los Angeles County neighborhoods through maps, charts, data analysis, and storytelling.

North American City Reports This link opens in a new window
Over 1.5 million pages of in-depth surveys, reports, and research from more than six hundred North American cities and urban agencies. Part of Policy Commons.
Pew Research Center This link opens in a new window
A nonpartisan fact tank that publishes public opinion polling, demographic research, content analysis, and other data-driven social science research.
Policy Commons This link opens in a new window
Over 12 million working papers, policy briefs, data sources, and media from more than 35,000 municipalities, IGOs, NGOs, think tanks, and research centers.
Public Health & Social Care This link opens in a new window
Research, pilot projects, case studies, newsletters and collaborative proejct from global frontline health providers, hospital systems, foundations, patient groups, practitioner communities, governments and think tanks. Part of Policy Commons.

RAND Corporation
Research reports on Children and Families, Education and the Arts, Energy and Environment, Health Care, Infrastructure and Transportation, International Affairs, Law and Business, National Security, Public Safety, Science and Technology.
Southern Poverty Law Center
A nonprofit civil rights organization dedicated to fighting hate and bigotry, and to seeking justice for the most vulnerable members of society.
Urban Institute
"At Urban, we believe that data and evidence are essential to shaping a more inclusive, equitable, and just society."

World Cities This link opens in a new window
Over 1.4 million rare and hard-to-find research reports from more than 1,000 of the world’s major cities. Part of Policy Commons.
World Governments This link opens in a new window
Source for national, provincial, and state government publications, including coverage of the UK, Ireland, Canada, US Federal agencies, and Oceania, plus additional 700 national, state, and regional governments and agencies from more than 180 countries. Part of Policy Commons.

Data Mapping Tools

PolicyMap This link opens in a new window
Mapping and analytics tool with applications for research related to social sciences, urban studies, real estate and housing analysis, community development, public administration, public health, political science, education, business, economics, statistics, geography and more.
Social Explorer This link opens in a new window
Online research tool designed to provide quick and easy access to current and historical census data and demographic information.

My Community Explorer (U.S. Census)
An equity tool to identify underserved communities.
Mapping L.A.
Demographic data visualized by neighborhood from the LA Times
LAPD Crime Mapping
Interactive maps of crimes by type and neighborhood Sept 2011-Present.
Food Access Research Atlas
Presents an overview of food access indicators for low-income and other census tracts using different measures of supermarket accessibility. Offers census-tract-level data on food access that can be downloaded for community planning or research purposes.