Certain People

The #1 New York Times–bestselling author of Our Crowd shares an intimate social history of America's elite Black society in the 1970s.

From New York to Chicago, Atlanta, and Washington, DC, Stephen Birmingham met with members of Black America's upper crust—those old families of money and lineage who send their children to boarding schools and make business alliances over charity dinners. Invited into their homes, he became acquainted with their private world: their traditions and customs, their networks and conflicts, and, of course, their many stories.


In Certain People, Birmingham presents a panoramic social history of upper-class Black society, one full of anecdotes and telling observations. From the Palmer Memorial Institute of North Carolina, where the best families sent their children, to the halls of the Johnson Publishing Company, creator of Ebony and Jet magazines, Birmingham provides an intimate glimpse of this exclusive crowd.