The increased risk of hypertension in United States Blacks remains a major unsolved public health problem. Comparisons between macro-population groups in the United States suffer from confounding by social factors and genetic admixture. The study's international comparative design provides a unique opportunity to ascertain the evolution of hypertension among populations with a common genetic background currently living in widely varied social conditions. A well-organized network of investigators currently exists in the societies of the Black diaspora and provides for the first time an opportunity to conduct cross-national research on this question.