Poet laureate pick under scrutiny for Facebook posts

CATSKILL―Unexpected uncertainty surrounds the upcoming inauguration of Esther Cohen as the first-ever Greene County poet laureate following calls for her possible removal within the county legislature.

Cohen, appointed by the legislature in January, is scheduled to be formally installed on April 11 in conjunction with National Poetry Month.

She was recommended by the CREATE Council on the Arts after Legislator Sherry True of Cairo suggested instituting the official role, a distinction historically dating back seven centuries.

“We are still going over the nuts and bolts about exactly what the position will entail but we are excited about what this brings to the county,” CREATE Grants Manager Richard Royer had said upon Cohen’s appointment.

“We are very pleased to have Esther as our first poet laureate,” Royer added, noting a panel of writers interviewed a substantial list of candidates.

Cohen’s poet laureate future is unsettled, however, after Legislator Michael Lanuto of Catskill raised questions about posts he said appeared on Cohen’s personal Facebook page.

The issue arose during a County Resources Committee meeting on March 4, attended by CREATE Executive Director Stella Yoon, routinely reporting on the council’s activities and funding realities.

When Yoon ended her report, a resolution was offered related to the poet laureate’s $1,000 yearly stipend which would be drawn from $39,990 already appropriated to CREATE for operations by the legislature.

The resolution was ultimately rejected after Lanuto switched the discussion to a different point of emphasis, asking Yoon, “Before recommending [Cohen] to the board, was there any background check on her?”

Yoon explained the process and Lanuto said, “Lately I’ve been doing some background. What I found on her social media channel is pretty much the antithesis of what I believe this board stands for.”

Lanuto referenced a post Cohen shared to her Facebook page that stated, “Donald Trump will die from bad health… Huge worldwide celebrations in honor of his death,” along with a another post that Lanuto claimed, “looks like the president being assassinated with blood dripping down his back.”

“I can’t support a person like that,” Lanuto said. “I have no problem with the position. I have a problem with the person in that position.”

County Resources Committee Chairman Michael Bulich of Catskill joined the talks, saying of Cohen, “her work, in terms of literature and poetry, may be great.”

“But we have to make sure there are guardrails in place, that everything’s not political and [is about] what we’re doing right in the county, whether it’s about communities or history,” Bulich said.

“When representing Greene County, there shouldn’t be anything political about it in any way, one way or the other. We may look at having Stella look at someone else to do this,” Bulich added.

Addressing Yoon, he said, “You have to figure some things out. Obviously, there has to be more vetting of someone representing the county.”

Yoon, responding to those comments and others in a similar vein voiced by other lawmakers said, “This is the first [poet laureate]. We’re learning through the process, building up the guidelines.”

“I haven’t seen [the Facebook posts] so I have no context. Give me time to look into it. I am hearing [from you] to be asked to speak with [Cohen], which I definitely will,” Yoon said.

In a subsequent phone interview, Legislator Daryl Legg, who represents Halcott, Hunter and Lexington, said, “I’m of the feeling that politics shouldn’t be drug into a county position, even with the legislators.”

“While [Cohen] might be well-qualified for the position, it was disappointing to be informed of the tirade on Facebook. Once you’re in the public light, you have to curb your private enthusiasm,” Legg said.

Marya Warshaw, chairperson of the CREATE Board Of Directors, in a phone interview said, “I have no comment. We have nothing to add at this point.”

Cohen, in a follow-up phone interview said the posts, which she shared but did not write, were put on her Facebook page prior to her appointment as poet laureate and have now been taken down.

“I am extremely upset about this. I hope that it doesn’t affect the Council on the Arts. I realize this is a hard position for [all the legislators] to be in but the idea that I can’t post things on Facebook is weird,” Cohen said.

“My life’s work has been about connecting people. Facebook is a personal page. I think it would be better if they read my poems and my last book, ALL OF US,” she said.

“I love Greene County. We should all be able to say what we think and feel. We live in a country where free speech is the rule and part of the law. We have to figure out a way for all of us to hear each other,” Cohen added.

Cohen has considered speaking to the legislature as a whole but said she will instead be “waiting to see what happens.”

“I don’t know what to say” about the potential for being removed, Cohen said. “If that happens, it could be an even bigger story.”

“I am a Jew who had a lot of loss in the Holocaust. I have always operated out of love. It’s dangerous when I think that I can’t say this and can’t say that. I am hoping there will be a good outcome,” Cohen said.

CREATE, announcing Cohen’s two-year appointment on their website, stated that the Greene County poet laureate “serves to promote the appreciation of poetry in Greene County as well as engage in local literary events as part of their tenure.”

The program, CREATE notes, joins a growing movement across the state to, “recognize poets for their artistic achievements and community impact. This initiative aims to highlight literary activities in the county and ensure that poetry remains a vital part of the county’s cultural landscape.”