[1] Hill was born in Brooklyn, New York in 1938; his father was a cook, his mother a domestic.
He then earned a bachelor's degree in sociology at the City College of New York in 1961.
It identified five family strengths, which for blacks constitute "adaptations necessary for survival and advancement in a hostile environment": strong kinship bonds, diligence at work, adaptability of family roles—a response to economic necessities on the part of black, low-income families, high achievement orientation and religious orientation.
WorldCat lists the eleven editions of this book in 707 library holdings.
While there, he served as an adviser and consultant at the White House during the Reagan Administration.