Remembering June Jordan.

• Position: Letters to the Editor

Thank you tremendously for the kind and generous tribute to June Jordan in the August issue. June and I are the same age, and we met in San Francisco in 1965 upon my return from Vietnam. She was a beautiful young person who matured into a great artist and humanitarian in all the very best terms.

Gary B. Beckwith South Thomaston, Maine As a new reader of The Progressive, I am upset that the reprint of June Jordan's article ("Requiem for the Champ," August issue) was the first chance I have had to read her words. My favorite author is Richard Wright, whose powerful words shed light on the feelings and conflicts of youths who grow up chained by our society's racial hierarchy. June Jordan's essay not only matched Wright's words, it brought his message into the present and once again uncovered the truth apparent in our society. Every day, children are brought into neighborhoods and communities that are poor and underprivileged. These neighborhoods are the product of society's racism, and they are responsible for creating people who have no way of understanding how great life can be and how great it is to use one's mind. June's words will never be forgotten.

Benjamin DiCicco-Bloom West Windssor, New Jersey I was saddened to learn of June Jordan's death, and surprised that The New York Times obituary did not mention her long association with The Progressive. I heard Professor Jordan speak in the summer of 2000, on...