Louis Jaffe

Louis Jaffe

Louis Jaffe served as the editor of the Virginia Pilot newspaper in Norfolk, Virginia, for over three decades, during which time Jaffe became a progressive influence in state and local politics. He was an early champion for the junior college that is now Norfolk State University and served as a member of Norfolk State University's Board of Visitors. In this capacity, Jaffe played a crucial part in securing St. Vincent Hospital as a location for the expanding organization. He communicated with representatives of St. Vincent de Paul, Governor Colgate Darden, Dr. Foster of Virginia State College, the State Superintendent of Public Instruction, the City Manager of Norfolk, the Commandant of the Naval Base, and representatives of Virginia State College's Norfolk Division.

His fight to defend civil rights, denounce the Ku Klux Klan, and call for state action against lynching earned him national prominence. For "An Unspeakable Act of Savagery," which denounced the 1928 lynching of a 24-year-old Black man named Robert Powell in Houston, Texas, Jaffe received the Pulitzer Prize for Editorial Writing in 1929. Jaffe earned his degree from Trinity College, which is now known as Duke University. He joined the U.S. Army, trained at a camp for first officers, and subsequently served with the American Expeditionary Forces in France from 1918 to 1919. Jaffe also served as the director of the American Red Cross News Service. After serving in the military, Jaffe accepted a position as editor of the Virginian-Pilot in 1919.