Dear Gen X Oak Parker,

Perhaps you're like me-not yet 40, from somewhere else originally, and happy you moved here. Maybe you smile the night before garbage pickup as you see there is more in the recycling bin than the garbage bin. Or perhaps you love the fact that you can't seem to go more than two blocks without running into a park. It's likely you're looking forward to when your child begins kindergarten. On chilly Saturdays, you could even already be anticipating this year's block party.

And, of course, if you're like me, the most important reason you and your family moved here in the first place wasn't because you can recycle just about anything (except plastic #6 for some reason) or that the park district makes swing sets redundant or that the schools seem to be improving all the time or that you actually get to know your neighbors (which is truly a joy). Nor is it the Farmers' Market or Harrison Street or downtown or any of the other jewels of Oak Park.

You moved here because you wanted to live in a diverse community. You valued diversity. You wanted your children to grow up in a place where multiculturalism isn't a dirty word. And you just knew that Oak Park was the place you could do that.

It's been 40 years (in May) since Oak Park passed its Fair Housing Ordinance. Longer still since our progressive ancestors stood up for Percy Julian's right to live here and stood against racists threatening him and his family. It's been 36 years since the Housing Center opened. And because all these things happened before you (and I) were able to ride a bicycle, you might think that struggle is finished-that Oak Park is destined to be a perpetual paradise of post-racial America.

Unfortunately, that isn't the case. Our diversity continues to require effort because the structure of segregation continues to dominate the region. We owe a lot to the vanguard Oak Parkers of the previous generation-both those who stayed put and those who moved in. They witnessed the blockbusting and panic peddling that made its way through Chicago's West Side. They steadfastly opposed the hostile and hateful mentalities that denied housing to people of color elsewhere. Their insistence that Oak Park could find a better, more dignified way to embrace racial change provided us with a foundation for an open and inclusive community.

When I go to events about fair housing, race relations, or diversity, the lined faces and gray hair usually dominate the room. But when I'm waiting for my coffee in the morning, picking up something at a shop, or playing with my son at the park, I see and hear my generation talking about how much we love it here and how glad we are to live in a diverse community.

Oak Park's core values and sense of place continue to be precarious. We're a small, unique community situated in the fifth most segregated region in the country. Earlier generations have provided us with a great place to live. Now, our generation must play the role of affirming our diversity. Otherwise, we could lose the very thing we moved here for in the first place.

Rob Breymaier is executive director of the Oak Park Regional Housing Center.