by June Jordan

June Jordan was the only child of parents who emigrated from Jamaica to New York City. Born in Harlem on July 9, 1936, Jordan was raised in a section of Brooklyn called Bedford- Stuyvesant, the majority of whose residents were black. As a young adult, however, she spent several years enrolled in schools populated almost completely by whites. Jordan's parents opposed her desire to become a poet, an obstacle with which she had to come to terms. After publishing some of her poetry, Jordan wrote her first novel, His Own Where, which addresses some of the problems faced by black adolescents. Jordan's story broke new ground in young adult literature, becoming one of the first novels for the audience to portray realistically the life of black youths.

Events in History at the Time of the Novel

Brooklyn ghetto. His Own Where takes place...