June Jordan By: Kierra Harper

June June was born in Harlem,New York City in She was a poet, activist teacher, and essayist. She was a prolific, passionate, and influential voice for liberation. June Jordan lived and wrote on the frontlines of American poetry, political vision, and moral witness. She was the founder of poetry for people.

Early Life She was born on July 9,1936 in Harlem, New York City to Granville and Mildred Jordan.When she was five years old she moved to Bedford,Texas. In 1953 she enrolled at Barnard College.

Later In Life There she met a white man named Micheal Meyers.They married and had one son named Christopher. They divorced in 1966.In 1967 she began teaching at the City College of New York. She also taught at Yale University.

Literature She loved to write. She wrote many books.She wrote Who Look At Me,which was a Collection of poems for children, Some of Us Did Not Die, Directed by Desire,which was published when she died, The Collected Poems of June Jordan, her autobiographical Soldier: A Poet’s Life,which came out in 2000.

Directed By Desire

Awards ˚Rockefeller Grant for Creative Writing from ˚Yaddo Fellowship Award in 1979 ˚National Endowment for the Arts fellowship in 1982 ˚Achievement Award for International Reporting from the National Association of Black Journalists in 1984 ˚the Lila Wallace Reader's Digest Writers Award from 1995 to 1998

Awards ˚Ground Breakers- Dream Makers Award from The Woman's Foundation in ˚Who's Who in America from 1984 until her death ˚the Chancellor's Distinguished Lectureship from UC Berkeley and the PEN Center USA West Freedom to Write Award in 1991

Honors She was loved by her students. They honored her so much that they named a conference room after her in UC Berkeley’s Eshleman Hall which is by he students of the University of California.

Death Jordan died of breast cancer at her home in Berkeley, California, aged 65. After her death the School for Equity in San Francisco was named after her by the founding group of students,who through a democratic process of research, debate, and voting, chose her over Philip Vera Cruz and Cesar Chavez. They renamed it the June Jordan School for Equinty.