A member of the Ohio Arts Council — a state agency that funds the arts — has resigned after making inflammatory comments about the storming of the U.S. Capitol on social media.
Donna S. Collins, executive director of the OAC, says Susan Allan Block resigned following public outcry over a Facebook statement claiming the election was stolen, and calling President-Elect Joe Biden “illegitimate” and Vice President-Elect Kamala Harris a “whore.”
“Agency staff does not comment on the personal opinions of its sitting board members. However, Susan is no longer on the board, so let me now say this,” said Collins in a statement, “Our agency does not condone or endorse these inflammatory opinions in any way, and we will continue to work in alignment with our shared values of diversity, equity, and inclusivity.”
State Rep. Casey Weinstein also called for Block’s removal on Twitter, posting her full (pretty unhinged, all-caps) Facebook statement.
This person was appointed by @GovMikeDeWine to be on the @OhioArtsCouncil …
I’m calling on the Governor to IMMEDIATELY remove her. pic.twitter.com/7b8l8BE9Gf
— Rep. Casey Weinstein (@RepWeinstein) January 8, 2021
His call was echoed by the Greater Columbus Arts Council, who also sent a letter to Gov. DeWine.
And in a letter by the Ohio Senate Democratic Caucus, who wrote, “We, members of the Ohio Senate Minority Caucus, write today to denounce the hate-filled comments shared by Susan Allan Block on social media following the violent insurrection at the U.S. Capitol Wednesday, and call on you to demand her immediate resignation from the Ohio Arts Council board. If she is not willing to resign, you must take appropriate actions to remove her from the board.”
According to the Columbus Dispatch, the governor accepted Block’s resignation on Friday.
Block, of Toledo, was originally appointed to the OAC in 2016 by then-Gov. John Kasich and reappointed by DeWine in 2019.
In a 2016 press release, the OAC wrote of Block: “Originally from Massachusetts, Ms. Block is a graduate of Wagner College with a degree in Economics and studied Art History at Hunter College, both in New York City. After 20 years in corporate America she followed her dream to Paris, where she studied and worked in the culinary arts. In 2014, Ms. Block opened her patisserie, Vendome Pastry, in Toledo.”
The Cincinnati Enquirer also reports: “Block is married to Allan Block, the chairman of Block Communications, which owns the Toledo Blade, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, four TV stations and two cable providers.”
Block has since deleted her social media accounts, but the Enquirer posted another comment (again in all-caps) made by her on Jan. 6: “THIS ELECTION WAS A TOTAL FRAUD!! NO PEACE! NO UNITY! NO LEGITIMACY!! THE BIDEN CRIME FAMILY IS IN BIDEN’S POCKET!!”
This article appears in Jan 1-31, 2021.