Only about a half-dozen black families lived in Park Forest at that time, and the Robinson children were the first to integrate their elementary school.īefore the Robinsons moved in, the Park Forest Social Action Committee canvassed the neighborhood, calming concerns and getting an idea of how neighbors would accept the family. Yvonne Robinson, an educator in a nearby suburb, moved to Park Forest with her family in 1963. The first African American family moved into Park Forest in 1959, more than a decade after the village was founded. Park Forest was not officially segregated, but developers gave preference to white World War II veterans with families.
Black families, even those who could afford to move to the suburbs, were often unwelcome. One of the most striking features of the new suburbs was their uniformity: they were filled with young, white families.
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