June Jordan

June Jordan (1936-2002) was one of the most widely-published and highly-acclaimed Jamaican American writers of her generation. Poet, playwright and essayist June Jordan was known for her fierce commitment to human rights and political activism. She produced twenty-seven volumes of poems, essays, libretti, and work for children. She was born in Harlem, New York and began writing at an early age. June said; “The role of the poet…always to be as honest as possible and to be as careful about the trust invested in you as you possibly can.”

And for ourselves, the intrinsic "Purpose" is to reach, and to remember, and to declare our commitment to all the living, without deceit, and without fear, and without reservation. We do what we can. And by doing it, we keep ourselves trusting, which is to say, vulnerable, and more than that, what can anyone ask?

— June Jordan, In A Personal Letter, 1970