Larry Jaffe claims to have been born on a mountaintop in the South Bronx, in the shadow of Yankee Stadium. From the time he could walk, he either was going to play baseball, hoops or be a poet. Sometimes he thought he was the spiritual reincarnation of Davy Crockett. He felt he had that mountaintop thing in common with Crockett and also his folks once bought him a coonskin cap which stimulated this peculiar tangent. In truth, he is the product of his own dreams. And has fond hopes of being classified a world citizen walking in the shadows of Mr. Neruda. As for how he writes, Jaffe was once quoted saying that: "...the air is letters, I breathe them in and simply breathe out poetry." He writes with romance and a satirical tongue pressed firmly to his cheek. But do not take his sense of humor for lack of worldly concern. For his entire professional career Larry Jaffe has been using his art to promote human rights. He is a distinguished poet with a tremendous following who prides himself on his community involvement and care. A former poet-in-residence at the Autry Museum of Western Heritage, Jaffe has been hosting and curating poetry readings while editing Poetix Poetry Magazine (a guide to Southern California Poetry). He is the co-founder of Poets for Peace (now Poets for Human Rights) and spearheaded, along with Rattapalax Publisher Ram Devineni, the United Nations Dialogue Among Civilizations Through Poetry Project which incorporated hundreds of readings in hundreds of cities globally. Jaffe is an official Ambassador for Youth for Human Rights. Recently, he toured the Czech Republic bringing his message of human rights to a variety of venues including the Jewish Museum and the Museum of Literature in Prague. He also continues to read in a variety of bookstores, coffeehouses and bars to keep his roots in tact. Larry's dynamic work integrates a strong sense of humor along with his tough stand on human rights and freedom.
