Bernard Kincaid (born June 5, 1945) is an American politician who is the former Mayor of

Birmingham, Alabama Birmingham ( ) is a city in the north central region of the U.S. state of Alabama. Birmingham is the seat of Jefferson County, Alabama's most populous county. As of the 2021 census estimates, Birmingham had a population of 197,575, down 1% fr ...

, elected in 1999. In 2007 he was defeated in a bid for re-election, winning only 8% of votes. He was succeeded by

Larry Langford Larry Paul Langford (March 18, 1946 – January 8, 2019) was an American politician who had a one-term tenure as the mayor of the city of Birmingham, Alabama. At the time of his death, Langford was hospitalized on compassionate release from servi ...

Early life and education

Kincaid was born in the Birmingham neighborhood of

Pratt City, Alabama Birmingham ( ) is a city in the north central region of the U.S. state of Alabama. Birmingham is the seat of Jefferson County, Alabama's most populous county. As of the 2021 census estimates, Birmingham had a population of 197,575, down 1% fr ...

, the son of a coal-miner. He began his political career early, being elected president of his fifth-grade class at South Pratt Elementary School. He was also president of the

Miles College Miles College is a private historically black college in Fairfield, Alabama. Founded in 1898, it is associated with the Christian Methodist Episcopal Church (CME Church) and a member of the United Negro College Fund. History Miles College bega ...

Student Government Association during his senior year of college. He graduated from Western Olin High School in 1962 and received his undergraduate degree from Miles College in 1970. He went on to earn an M.A. from

Miami University Miami University (informally Miami of Ohio or simply Miami) is a public research university in Oxford, Ohio. The university was founded in 1809, making it the second-oldest university in Ohio (behind Ohio University, founded in 1804) and the ...

Ohio Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...

(1971), a Ph.D. from the

University of Alabama The University of Alabama (informally known as Alabama, UA, or Bama) is a public research university in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. Established in 1820 and opened to students in 1831, the University of Alabama is the oldest and largest of the publi ...

(1980), and a Juris Doctor from the

Birmingham School of Law The Birmingham School of Law is a state-accredited law school located in Birmingham, Alabama. Founded in 1915 by Judge Hugh A. Locke, a judge of the Chancery Court and president of the Birmingham Bar Association, the Birmingham School of Law of ...

(1994). He served in the

United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the Aerial warfare, air military branch, service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part ...

between 1962–66 and was given an honorable discharge.

Career

Kincaid has served as a youth counselor for the

Social Security Administration The United States Social Security Administration (SSA) is an independent agency of the U.S. federal government that administers Social Security, a social insurance program consisting of retirement, disability and survivor benefits. To qualify ...

(1970–71), as an educational consultant, assistant professor and as assistant to the Dean of the School of Health Related Professions at the

University of Alabama at Birmingham The University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) is a public research university in Birmingham, Alabama. Developed from an academic extension center established in 1936, the institution became a four-year campus in 1966 and a fully autonomous univ ...

from 1971 to 1995 and contract director of development at Miles College from 1996 to 1997. He was also vice-president and later president of the Ensley Highlands Neighborhood Association and vice-president of the Five Points West community in Birmingham. In 1997, he was elected to represent District 8 in the Birmingham City Council and two years later defeated interim-Mayor William A. Bell in a runoff to become mayor. Kincaid was also member of the Alabama delegation to the

2000 Democratic National Convention The 2000 Democratic National Convention was a quadrennial presidential nominating convention for the Democratic Party. The convention nominated Vice President Al Gore for president and Senator Joe Lieberman from Connecticut for vice president. Th ...

. He is a member of the Metropolitan C.M.E. Church, Ensley and sings in the W. A. Baskerville Gospel Chorus. He is a member of American Legion, Post 1165 and of the Alabama Education Association. He has sat on the boards of various groups, including the Birmingham Sister City Commission, the Miles College Alumni Association and Booster Club, Omega Psi Phi fraternity,

Sigma Pi Phi Sigma Pi Phi (), also known as The Boulé, founded in 1904, is the oldest fraternity for African Americans among those named with Greek letters. The fraternity does not have collegiate chapters and is designed for professionals at mid-career or o ...

fraternity, the Jefferson County Progressive Democratic Council,

Sigma Kappa Delta Sigma Kappa Delta () is a collegiate honor society for students of English at two-year colleges. History The Society was established on in Chicago at a meeting of English professors from community colleges called for this purpose under the spo ...

law association, Glenwood Mental Health Services foundation, the Birmingham

Urban League The National Urban League, formerly known as the National League on Urban Conditions Among Negroes, is a nonpartisan historic civil rights organization based in New York City that advocates on behalf of economic and social justice for African Am ...

, the Pratt-Ensley

Kiwanis Club Kiwanis International ( ) is an international service club founded in 1915 in Detroit, Michigan. It is headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana, United States, and is found in more than 80 nations and geographic areas. Since 1987, the organizatio ...

, and the Birmingham Partnership. By virtue of his position, he also held positions on the boards of the

Birmingham Jefferson Convention Complex Birmingham ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1.145 million in the city proper, 2.92 million in the West ...

, the Birmingham Racing Commission, the Metropolitan Planning Organization, the Jefferson County Mayors Association, Alabama Conference of Black Mayors, and U.S. Conference of Black Mayors.

Personal life

Kincaid lives in Ensley. He has been married to the former Alfreda Harris since New Year's Eve 1972 and has one daughter, Amy.

References

Mayor's biography
at informationbirmingham.com - Accessed March 30, 2006 {{DEFAULTSORT:Kincaid, Bernard 1945 births Living people Mayors of Birmingham, Alabama University of Alabama at Birmingham faculty Miles College alumni Miami University alumni Alabama city council members African-American mayors in Alabama People from Ensley, Alabama 21st-century African-American people 20th-century African-American people