kenny's father was tommy romero, a puerto rican boy born in east harlem, a different kind of ghetto that produced some successes. before he was 10, the romero family took flight to the williams burg section of brooklyn because of the numbered streets such as south 6th and south 7th which carried their direction. in time, the south street became puerto rican, displacing the italians, who moved deeper into brooklyn. the north streets were remained polish extending into green point. his parents purchased a house cheaply and over the years created a home that was a welcome place for their children and grandchildren. this haven was of such serenity that kenny often felt the same respect and awe that he experienced when entering the fragrant solitude of the catholic church, fleeing went the irish seeking refuge from the advancing harlems, the dark skin of the people making unrecognizable the prejudices they had endured when they arrived in america. the defect of memory driving them forward to separate themselves from the shadows that follow all immigrants. fleeing went the puerto ricans, escaping the same blackness, but impeled by the fear of blood, both physical and hereditary, f