Daniel Levin met Lawrence “Larry” Ray met for the first time at Starbucks. At the time he was in a very vulnerable place halfway through college and beginning to wonder what his life was going to look like.
Daniel told Bomb Magazine, “I wanted to make my first forays into “real life” by moving into the city for the summer, but it was impossible to get an apartment. I was in my first serious relationship, and I didn’t understand why it was beginning to feel bad.”
In addition, Daniel was also questioning his sexuality; privately for a long time. He said, “I had been feeling uncomfortable in my body and in my brain: why couldn’t anything fix the profound sense of being fundamentally alone that seemed to follow me everywhere? I was genuinely unsure who I was or who I was going to be—all lines of inquiry, I think, you are supposed to be pursuing at that age.”
So, he discussed his life with Larry. Daniel said, “I didn’t have anyone to ask these amorphous questions to who I felt wouldn’t judge me. Larry made himself that person.”
Meet Daniel Levin, Sarah Lawrence Alumni & Larry Ray Cult Survivor
In the months that followed their first encounter, Sarah Lawrence University student Daniel Levin also regarded Ray to have had a beneficial impact on his life. Daniel thought Ray was attempting to help him understand his life, but as he was verbally reprimanded for the smallest errors, the truth hit him.
Furthermore, Ray persuaded Daniel that he had reportedly planned to harm him, which drove Daniel wild with remorse. We made the decision to look into the specifics and learn where Daniel is right now, even though he eventually managed to escape Ray’s control and start a life of his own.
Daniel made friends with Talia Ray and a few other people who moved into Slonim Woods 9, a cooperative housing complex on the Sarah Lawrence campus, when he started his classes there. After a while, in 2010, Talia’s father, Lawrence Ray, moved in with them and frequently entertained them with steak meals and tales from his past. Ray’s strange stories about his background originally intrigued Daniel and further cemented his impression of an amazing person.
Daniel was only 19 at the time, so it was only natural that he was having difficulties adjusting to adulthood. Surprisingly, Ray seemed to comprehend his issues and even assist him in solving them, which gave Daniel a sense of importance. Eventually, in 2011, Ray relocated to New York City and extended an open invitation to Talia and six of her friends, including Daniel, to live with him there without paying rent.
At first, everything appeared to be going as usual, but Ray quickly revealed his true colors and, on one occasion, scolded Daniel severely for so much as scratching a frying pan
Daniel was also trained by the man he had once respected, in addition to seeing Ray torment and manipulate the residents of the same flat. Ray claimed that all he wanted to do was show Daniel how to please ladies, but in truth, he promoted a group sex culture and frequently forced Daniel to please Isabella Pollock, another female who lived in the same apartment. Unfortunately, it was difficult to escape Ray’s hold since he persuaded Daniel that the boy had intentionally hurt him and Talia.
Even though the accusations were untrue, Daniel first accepted them and made an effort to make things right. The torture quickly changed from mental to physical, though, as Ray tormented Daniel with a self-made instrument and occasionally forced a sex object into his body. In 2013, Daniel was finally able to stop speaking to Ray and went back to the university campus to finish the rest of his degree.
Where Is Daniel Levin Today?
Daniel Levin is currently based in Los Angeles, California. He is an author Slonim Woods, which according to him saved his life and his brain. Early on, he said that Larry got him to admit that he was suicidal. He said, “Larry claimed that our drive to suicide was an uncontrollable impulse that lay dormant in us, and without his help, we might randomly give in to it. It was beyond our control, therefore ceding that control to him was a matter of life and death.”
He then added, “Writing this book didn’t save my life, not exactly. But when I was hiding from what had happened to me, it was as if I was living someone else’s life, someone else’s story—someone who hadn’t gone through any of this. I was always one step to the side of myself.”
In the 2021 interview, if there was anything he would change, Daniel said, “I would make it that this man hadn’t shown up to our college campus. I would make it so that he hadn’t gone through whatever made him who he was when I met him. I would make it so that no one was hurt and didn’t have to live with those wounds the rest of their lives however they can.
He added, “I would make the world one where it was easier to be open about who you are: a more compassionate world. A world with less shame. It’s easy to say, “Well, they should have known.” I hope the book refutes that possibility.”
Daniel holds a bachelor’s degree from Sarah Lawrence College and an MFA in poetry from the University of California, Irvine. He is the winner of the Stanley and Evelyn Lipkin Prize for Poetry and the Lynn Garnier Memorial Award and is the recipient of fellowships from the Frost Place, Tent: Creative Writing, the Sarah Lawrence Summer Seminar for Writers, and the Community of Writers at Squaw Valley.
His writing has appeared in Provincetown Arts, Bat City Review, Sarah Lawrence Review, The Westchester Review, The Offbeat, The Fourth River, and Bennington Review.
Daniel Levin Age
As of February 2023, Daniel Levin is 31 years old.
Is Daniel Levin Married?
From what we can tell from his social media, no, Daniel Levin isn’t married yet. He has very limited posts on his social media and doesn’t have anything on his Instagram.
Is Daniel Levin On Instagram And Facebook?
Yes, Daniel Levin is on Instagram (@danielbarbanlevin) and Twitter (@DanBarbanLevin).
Related FAQs
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When Is Daniel Levin Birthday?
Daniel Levin celebrates his birthday in June.
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Where Is Daniel Levin From?
Daniel Levin is currently based in Los Angeles, California. But, he has also lived in Littleton, New Hampshire, and Bronx, New York.
