Tracing their quest for social recognition from the time of Cecil Rhodes to Rhodesia's unilateral declaration of independence, Michael West shows how some Africans were able to avail themselves of scarce educational and social opportunities in order to achieve some degree of upward mobility in a society that was hostile to their ambitions. Though relatively few in number and not rich by colonial standards, this comparatively better-off class of Africans challenged individual and social barriers imposed by colonialism to become the locus of protest against European domination. The Rise of an African Middle Class explores the origin, identity, and consciousness of the new "elite" as well as their educational and residential patterns, political and social affiliations, and the community associations that provided structure and strength to their numbers. By revealing the interests, aspirations, and unity of purpose of Zimbabwe's African middle class, West shows how they became political and social leaders and played a key role in building the postcolonial democratic state. West's focus on an unintended consequence of colonialism opens new perspectives into relations between colonizers and colonized in colonial Zimbabwe.

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