Layhmond Robinson Jr.

Layhmond Mack Robinson Jr. helped open doors for generations of Black journalists in America. One of the early Black reporters at The New York Times, he built a distinguished career across newspapers, television, public affairs, civic communications, and radio while making Hollis his family home for nearly half a century.

From Louisiana to the Newsroom

Layhmond Mack Robinson Jr. was born on February 11, 1925, in Abbeville, Louisiana. His early life in the segregated South shaped his lifelong commitment to education, civil rights, and professional excellence. Before he became a New York journalist, he served in the United States Navy during World War II, where his writing, editing, and photography skills were put to use.

After his military service, Robinson continued his education with determination. He studied journalism and political science at Syracuse University, where he also wrote for The Daily Orange. He later pursued graduate study at the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism, placing himself in New York City at the center of American media.

Breaking Barriers at The New York Times

Robinson joined The New York Times in 1950, beginning as a copy boy and rising through the newsroom to become a beat reporter. At a time when Black journalists were rare in major white-owned daily newspapers, his presence in the Times newsroom was itself a breakthrough.

He covered crime in Brooklyn, New York politics, and the New York State Legislature in Albany. His reporting career placed him inside some of the most important political and civic conversations of the postwar period, including the turbulent years of the civil rights movement.

A Veteran Political Reporter & Front-Page Exclusive

Robinson rapidly became a formidable, deeply respected presence in New York political journalism. In Albany, his investigative focus and institutional knowledge earned him the deep respect of his peers. This culminated in a historic milestone when he became the first person of color elected president of the Legislative Correspondents Association of New York State. The appointment cemented his professional standing and marked a major breakthrough in a deeply segregated field.

As a seasoned metropolitan and political reporter, he interviewed key political figures including Mayor Fiorello La Guardia and Governor Nelson Rockefeller. He was also on the front lines documenting the national Civil Rights movement. In May 1963, Robinson secured a major front-page exclusive for The New York Times, breaking the news of Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy's meeting in New York City with James Baldwin, Lorraine Hansberry, and other Black cultural leaders who were seeking greater urgency and federal action on the issues of civil rights.

Television, Public Affairs, and the National Urban League

In 1965, Robinson left The New York Times for ABC News. He became a correspondent and editorial director at WABC-TV in New York, moving from print journalism into the growing power of television news. At a time when Black faces were still uncommon on local television news, Robinson's presence helped broaden what authority and expertise could look like on screen.

Later, as a broadcast panelist on the television show The Newsmakers, he interviewed Whitney M. Young Jr., the executive director of the National Urban League. Young later asked Robinson to join the organization as Director of Public Relations. That move placed Robinson at the intersection of journalism, civil rights advocacy, public communication, and institutional leadership during a period of grief, urgency, and national reassessment following the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

Public Service and Radio

Robinson's career continued across public affairs and government communications. He served as Public Relations Director for the New York City Health and Hospitals Corporation during the 1970s and later worked in federal public affairs. These positions required the same skills that had shaped his journalism: clarity, accuracy, judgment, and the ability to translate complicated institutions for the public.

In the final decade of his professional life, Robinson returned to newsroom work as an editor and news writer for WCBS radio.

A Hollis Family

Robinson married Elsie Blair in 1955. In 1964, the Robinson family bought a home at 99-04 202nd Street in Hollis, Queens, where Layhmond and Elsie raised their five children. The house stood near the Long Island Rail Road tracks, close to the daily movement of the neighborhood, and became a gathering place remembered by the family and community.

Elsie Robinson was herself a formidable presence. She worked for the New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA) and helped build the family life that made the Robinson home part of the Black middle-class story of Hollis. Their daughter Teresa Kamara later described Hollis as a place where the Black middle class "made a way out of no way," and placed her parents within that proud tradition.

In Hollis, the Robinson family's story was not only about professional success. It was about home ownership, education, public service, neighborhood ties, and the quiet excellence of families who built stability across generations.

Credits & Archival Acknowledgments

Dignity Memorial obituary — Layhmond Robinson Jr. ♦ The New York Times — Daniel E. Slotnik, "Layhmond Robinson Jr., 88, Dies; Paved the Way for Black Journalists" (July 2013) ♦ Gothamist / WNYC — "Hollis horror: Family locked in legal nightmare to reclaim their loved one's remains and home" (Robinson family home at 99-04 202nd Street) ♦ The New York Times Archives — May 25, 1963: "Kennedy Meets Baldwin Here; Talks on Rights Impress Aide" ♦ New York Amsterdam News (1964) — Coverage of Robinson as senior Black staff writer at the Times ♦ Legislative Correspondents Association of New York State — Robinson as first person of color elected president ♦ WNYC Archives — "Who Speaks for Harlem?" (Layhmond Robinson as panel questioner) ♦ Julian Bond Papers Project — Layhmond Robinson to Julian Bond, September 23, 1969 (National Urban League PR Director) ♦ HPA research notes — Robinson's Hollis residency (1964–2013) and family history ♦ HPA Notable Residents draft for Layhmond Robinson Jr. ♦ HPA neighborhood framing — Notable Residents of Hollis series