If Bill Passes, Massachusetts May Have Its First State Poet Laureate

December 16, 2014

Massachusetts may appoint its first-ever state poet laureate if a bill passes through the House of Representatives, according to The Boston Globe. The bill, currently under final review in the State House, would allow the governor to appoint a state poet laureate, who would serve a two-year term and be responsible for garnering a greater appreciation of poetry across the state.

“I think if 44 other states have found a way to do this, certainly we can find a way to do this,” said State Representative Sarah K. Peake, the bill’s leading sponsor. “I think we have a richness in the arts here…[and] it’s time for this to happen.”

Local poets say the five-person committee, which would include the Senate president, speaker of the house, and three members appointed by the governor, would have a sizeable pool of strong candidates to choose from. “There are probably more poets per square inch in parts of Massachusetts than anywhere else,” said Lloyd Schwartz, a poet, Pulitzer Prize-winning critic, and professor of English at the University of Massachusetts Boston. “Two national poet laureates live within a block and a half of one another: Robert Pinsky and Louise Glück.”

But despite the excitement, some feel the bill isn’t quite up to par. Charles Coe, program officer at the Cultural Council and author of two books of poetry, lamented the absence of stipends and reimbursements for travel. “Too often poets are expected to give their work away,” Coe said. “I think that’s not the message that we want to send to the poetry community. No one expects their plumber to fix their pipes for free.”

It’s also possible that the bill won’t make even make it through. “There was a time when it couldn’t get out of an important committee because the committee chairman described it as a ‘fluff bill,’” said Denise Provost, who cosponsored the bill. “Which I think is interesting in a state that has an official state doughnut.”


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