The 100 most influential black Americans

Ebony, May, 1992

EACH year, as Black men and women continue to break new ground and scale new heights, the task of selecting the individuals who are 'The 100 Most Influential Black Americans" becomes increasingly difficult.

The 1992 list offers a sampling of the innumerable Black American agencies and individuals that have had an impact on national policy, discourse and trends.

While the list is not to be viewed as an endorsement of any individual or school of thought, it is an indication of the diverse political and social opinions that are part of the spirited and continuing debate that shapes and interprets the Black American experience.

New to the list this year are Memphis Mayor W.W. Herenton, National Basketball Association greats Earvin (Magic) Johnson and Michael Jordan, and talk show host/producer/comedian Arsenio Hall. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas replaces retiring Associate Justice Thurgood Marshall.

As in previous years, the EBONY editors had the following criteria in mind during their deliberations:

* Does the individual transcend his or her profession or position and command widespread national influence among Black people?

* Does the individual, therefore, affect in a decisive way the lives, thinking and actions of large segments of the nation's Black population?

* Does the individual head an organization that commands widespread national influence among Black people, or whose individu'al members are influential in their communities?

* Is the individual influential among those Blacks and/or Whites whose policies and practices significantly affect the lives of large numbers of Black people?