Certain People: America's Black Elite

By Stephen Birmingham and Carey Birmingham

Book Overview

Certain People is an extensively researched, fascinating, and intimate portrait of America's black elite which reveals the rarely publicized world of the heritage, conflicts, and characteristics of the black upper class.

Like its white counterpart, the black elite is divided into the nouveaux riches and the Old Guard. Birmingham's close-ups of the lives of two Chicago multimillionaires--John H. Johnson, president and executive officer of the Johnson Publishing Company, publisher of Ebony and several other magazines; and George Johnson (no relation), founder and president of Johnson Products Company, manufacturer of a wide range of black cosmetics such as Ultra Sheen and Afro Sheen--illuminate the characteristics of the black nouveaux rich. In addition to the business coups of these archrivals, Birmingham probes their private lives--the way they dress, decorate their homes, eat, and raise their children--to reach an understanding of the self-made black tycoon.

Despite the financial success of John Johnson and George Johnson, these men were not seen as socially acceptable by members of the black Old Guard: families--mostly educators, philanthropists, or society dilettantes--based mainly in Washington, DC. Mirroring the classic battle between established families and newcomers in white society, the black Old Guard admires dignity, discretion, and stability more than wealth. With the help of some of the families themselves, Birmingham traces their ancestry back to the pre-Civil War era and unveils the nuances attendant upon "passing" into white society, upon white ancestors, upon the recognition of the African heritage, and upon membership in the exclusive clubs and organizations that proliferate the black upper class.

As a scholar of black history, genealogy, and sociology, Birmingham offers not only a comprehensive view of the emergence of a stratified black society but also a sensitive portrayal of black-white relationships in business, recreation, social functions, and other spheres of contemporary American society.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 149302471X
• ISBN13: 9781493024711
• Release Date: August 2026
• Publisher: Lyons Press
• Length: 320 Pages

Customer Reviews

Certain People: America's Black Elite

Received in a timely manner and in good condition. A great book for dealing with internal and external racism.

A unique source of insight about life in the black community

Certain People is a classic study of the black upper class in America. Researched by one of the most impressive social historians of the day. Mr. Birmingham has produced works documenting the social history of almost every cultrue in this country and he has not fallen short with this study. I first read the book in 1978 and it opened up a whole world of information that I was unaware of even though I grew up in a black upper middle class environment. I have felt like most of the contributors to this book that blacks in the ghetto have been overexposed in the media, in print, and in the movies. Thank goodness for this book and others like Gerri Major's Black Society; Adelaide Cromwell's The Other Brahmins: Boston's Black Upper Class; Williard Gatewood's Aristocrats of Color; St.Clair Drake's Black Metropolis;and E. Franklin Frazier's two works The Black Bourgeoisie and The Negro Family in the United States to mention a few. It is a rich territory for research and because of this book I have established a lifelong interest in the social history of the black upper class in the United States. This book has introduced me to a vast world of research that dates back to the middle of the 19th century. In his introduction Mr. Birmingham explains how the book came about and the numerous persons that contributed to the success of his work. He then examines the family histories of some of the most prominent families in Chicago, New York, Washington, DC, Atlanta, Memphis, and Cincinnati. He does an excellent job of tracing the origins of such affluent organiztions as the Links, Boule, Jack & Jill, and other prominent fraternal and social oranizations that the black upper class hold membership. Among the most intriguing was the section on "Embattled Washington". This section establishes with other social historians the status of Washington, DC as being the first black" social capital", largely due to the fact that from the turn of the century up until the after the Great Migrati! on the city had more professional blacks than any other city in the country. In his section on "Good Addresses" it is pointed out that just as white society has its summer social capital at Newport, the comings and goings at the summer social captials of the black upper class at such enclaves as Oak Bluffs on Martha's Vineyard, Sag Harbor on Long Island, Idlewild in Michigan and Highland Beach in Maryland is just as entertaining.. Even though it is observed in the book that the white upper class is determined by vast amounts of wealth, the black upper places a great importance on education and family background. Black teachers, ministers, doctors, druggists, and even undertakers would be held in high esteem by virtue of their higher education and special training. Certain People is one of the finest examples of black social history, the kind of work that makes a difference in the study of Black America.