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60 Year Reflection Panel Discussion

Fight to Integrate Deerfield: 60 Year Reflection

Registration is Wednesday, Feb. 13, 9:00 am

Join us for an upfront and informative panel discussion on Deerfield’s history and its lasting legacy. Hear dramatic personal stories from residents and unique reflections from historians who have studied the fight to integrate Deerfield and Chicagoland. Q & A will follow the panel discussion.

Panelists

Graham Ambrose grew up in Deerfield and graduated from Yale in 2018. He wrote his history thesis on Deerfield’s integration crisis and brings to the panel the perspective of a historian, writer, and resident. He has written for The Boston Globe and The Washington Post.

Natalie Moore is an award-winning author and journalist, currently working as the South Side Reporter for WBEZ. Her 2016 book, The South Side: A Portrait of Chicago and American Segregation, combines memoir, reporting, and historical analysis to examine the effects of segregation today. Moore lives in Chicago.

Amy Roost & Angelle Smith

Amy Roost grew up in Deerfield knowing she was adopted. What Amy didn’t know was that she was the second girl adopted by her family. The family adopted and then gave back a black baby, Rebecca, deciding that raising her in Deerfield in 1962 would be too difficult.

As an adult, Amy found her sister Rebecca — Angelle Smith. Angelle had been adopted and raised by a loving black family in Chicago. In December 2017, they shared their story in a viral New York Times article, “The Adopted Black Baby and the White One Who Replaced Her.” Their story was also shared in the podcast “Finding Rebecca” for Snap Judgement. The film rights to their story were purchased by 20th Century Fox.

Amy Roost is a writer and documentary podcaster. She wrote and produced the podcast, “Finding Rebecca,” which was nominated for a Peabody Award. She is a contributor to and co-editor of the book Fury: Women’s Lived Experiences in the Trump Era. She is also the host of the podcast Fury, distributed by Critical Frequency Network.

Angelle Smith, a victim of racial discrimination in Deerfield in the 1960s, describes herself as "more than a conqueror." Angelle is a motivational speaker, transformational life coach, and blogger addressing the issues of family reunification, discrimination, self-awareness, forgiveness, and gratitude.

Look for Angelle and Amy’s co-written memoir, and the film of their story, coming Fall 2019.

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