The Black elite can be dated back to slavery. When they arrived in Jamestown, Virginia in 1619, many slaves were already skilled in many fields. By the 1870's a handful of blacks first broke into the middle-class by attending early black universities such as: Howard, Fisk, Atlanta, and Morehouse Universities. During these early times the black elite most often associated with the Episcopal Church or the Congregational Church. They seemed to like these two denominations because other blacks were not of these faiths. Also during the early days of the Black elite, these members were often members of a membership-by-invitation only group called Jack and Jill. It helped families and their children to meet other families who were interested in educational programs, community services and other activities that helped improve their lives. The Children of such a group even attended their own private summer camp called Camp Atwater in Massachuse

Some of the most popular organizations that are mentioned throughout this book include Jack and Jill (which was mentioned earlier), Links and the Girl Friends for the women and the Boule, 100 men's club and Guardsmen to name just a few for the men. Links is an invitation only national organization. If you are accepted into this group it shows that your "social background, lifestyles, physical appearance, and family academic and professional accomplishments passed competitive scrutiny against other women." (pg 102). The girl friends would argue that the Links are not like they used to be. Today they are all about Power, money, and ambition, and Girl Friends are not into that kind of power. Many of the Girl Friends are however still have very prominent jobs. They don't want to be outdone by their husbands, so they too are educators, attorney's, physicians, professors, and government officials. On the other side of the spectrum we have the men's organizations. These groups focus on attracting collegiality and intellect among the black elite. The Boule only operates on a local level. The guardsmen, on the other hand, was a national organization, but put emphasis on allowing members who were physicians and attorneys. And lastly, the 100 Black Men club is more of a professional organization and less of a selective club.

In Washington D.C. they had many cultures and traditions not mentioned in the other cities. The most notable here would be the "jumping of the broom" during a wedding ceremony. This symbolizes marriage. Here members of the black elite mentioned how important it was for them to contribute to their social, cultural, and educational institutions, and also become members of organizations I mentioned earlier. Middle to Upper-class blacks in Washington D. C. lived in places live LeDroit. Moving onto New York City, here many members of the black elite chose to live in Manhattan and Brooklyn, although New York City is one of the most populated cities in the world and is always changing. Westchester County was also a popular choice of residence for the black elite families. Elite families in New York City are very connected to their organizations they belo

Some common words found in the essay are:
Girl Friends, Otis Graham, York City, African Americans, African American, Atwater Massachusetts, Jack Jill, Washington DC, Sherwood Forest, Henry Kennedy, black elite, elite families, girl friends, york city, fraternities sororities, black elite families, mentioned earlier, city black elite, children attended, washington dc, lawrence otis graham, national organization, jack jill, luther king jr, martin luther king,
Approximate Word count = 1465
Approximate Pages = 6 (250 words per page double spaced)