2018 poetry contest judge — luis javier rodriguez

We are excited to announce Luis Javier Rodriguez as the judge of our 2018 Jeff Marks Memorial Poetry Prize. Los Angeles Poet Laureate from 2014-16, Luis is an award-winning poet, novelist, journalist, critic, columnist, and social activist. He is the author of four poetry collections. His memoir Always Running: La Vida Loca, Gang Days in L.A., received the Carl Sandburg Literary Award, and It Calls You Back: An Odyssey Through Love, Addiction, Revolutions, and Healing was a National Book Critics Circle Award finalist. He is the founder of Tía Chucha Press and Tía Chucha Cultural Center in San Fernando.