santa fe

Beyond 400 passing the baton

A p r oj e c t o f t h e s A n tA f e 4 0 0 t h co m m i t e e
 Someone you know
is hungry.
Over 17,000 peoople in Santa Fe
County go hungry each day.
Honor World Food Day
2011 and support our food drive
to benefit the Food Depot

Or check our website

www.aworldfeast.com

Put a dent in hunger.

See you in 2011

A WORLD FEAST™ Global Compassion through Local Action

 We go where you go.
And we fit in your pocket.

Our new free mobile banking app makes it easy to bank fast and
on-the-go. At Century Bank, you can manage your accounts your
way and that will never change.

To set up an account or to discuss your banking needs, call 505.995.1200.

877.424.2828 u centurynetbank.com

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BEYOND400 3
 GET A HEAD START FOR YOUR KIDS
IN SANTA FE COUNTY
For information or to apply
CALL Alejandra at (505)954-4601
EARLY HEAD START 0-3 years of age
HEAD START 3-5 years of age

Our high quality early childhood education

www.pms‐inc.org 1‐800‐477‐7633 and support services are available at no
cost. Families must meet income eligibility
guidelines and live in Santa Fe County.

TEEN HEALTH CENTERS SANTA FE COMMUNITY GUIDANCE CENTER

CALL (505) 467-1081 CALL (505) 986-9633
Offering comprehensive therapy and
COMPREHENSIVE MEDICAL AND
community support services for children,
BEHAVIORAL HEALTH SERVICES ARE AVAILABLE TO
adolescents, adults and families.
STUDENTS AT SANTA FE AND CAPITAL HIGH SCHOOLS.
In addition to private pay, we accept most
insurance and Medicaid. We can sign up We accept Medicaid, Medicare, commercial
families for Medicaid if needed. Sliding fees insurance and private pay on a sliding scale
are set based upon the total household based on income. We are also a New
income and size of family, according to proof Mexico Salud! Provider.
of income.

4 BEYOND400
 400
S A N TA F E

BEYOND PA S S I N G T H E B ATO N
COVER PHOTO PUBLISHED NOVEMBER 19, 2010
Kitty Leaken

Table of Contents
EDITOR AND PUBLISHER
Robin Martin

ASSOCIATE PUBLISHER
Ginny Sohn
The Future Starts Today Mayor David Coss.............................................................6
MANAGING EDITOR
Rob Dean Alex Wirth Master of Ceremonies ....................................................................................8
EDITORS Audri M. Roybal Master of Ceremonies.....................................................................10
Sandra Baltazar Martínez
Ana Pacheco From Roots to Fruits Tim McLaughlin .....................................................................12
Ana Trujillo

MAGAZINE DESIGN
Mud & Memory Estevan Rael-Galvez ........................................................................14
Linda Johnson
What's the Tweet? Lazaro Cardenas..........................................................................16
CONTRIBUTORS
Lazaro Cardenas, Nicolasa M. Chavez, Sustaining the Tapestry Alvin H. Warren..............................................................18
David Coss, Marielle Dent,
Marzia Dessi ,Yujie Ding, In Step with Harambe Noel Lopez ............................................................................20
Tunté (Sunshine) Eaton, Eliot Fisher,
Vaughn Fortier-Shultz, Carmen Gallegos, Re-Cognition Kaelyn Ramsden & Shana Rappaport .......................................22
Emma Hamming-Green, Noel Lopez,
Valerie Martinez, Tim McLaughlin, Musings of an Ex-Teen Nicolasa M. Chavez ..........................................................24
Kate Medley, New Mexico Youth Forum
Estevan Rael-Galvez, Kaelyn Ramsden, Pueblo Life & Traditions Tunté (Sunshine) Eaton ..............................................26
Shana Rappaport, Audri Marie Roybal,
David Salazar, Charlotte Small, The Power of Print Emma Hamming, Green & David Salazar ..................28
Austin Tyra, Tori Velarde, Alvin H. Warren,
Dasha Wilson, Alex Wirth Stories to Tell Eliot Fisher..................................................................................................30
ADVERTISING Changing the Norm Carmen Gallegos .....................................................................32
Advertising Director Joe Vigil, 986-3007
Marketing and Design Department One Circus at a Time Kate Medley ...............................................................................34
Manager David Del Mauro
Advertising Layout Christine Huffman Across Generations Valerie Martinez .......................................................................36
DESIGNERS New Mexico Youth Forum New Mexico Youth Forum ....................................38
Elspeth Hilbert, Scott Fowler,
Dale Deforest, Bill Jacobi, Santa Fe in 100 Years Alex Wirth ................................................................................40
Enrique Figueredo

RETAIL ADVERTISING SALES

In the Future Charlotte Smart ........................................................................................41
Michael Brendel, Gary Brouse
Cristina Iverson, Alex J. Martinez,
Imagining the Future of Technology Austin Tyra & Dasha Wilson ......42
Jan Montoya, Vincent Torres, Art Trujillo,
Rick Wiegers, David Wilkinson
Hola Davíd, ¿cómo te ha ido? David Salazar.......................................................43
ADDRESS Seasons of Change Emma Hamming-Green........................................................44
Office: 202 E. Marcy St.
Hours: 8 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday-Friday A Hundred Years from Now Marielle Dent ............................................................45
Advertising information: 505-986-3082
Delivery: 505-984-0363, 800-873-3372 The Language of Tomorrow Marzia Dessi ............................................................46
For copies of the magazine:
505-490-0316 Spanish Links Tori Velarde...............................................................................................47
Santa Fe's Health-Conscious Future Vaughn Fortier-Shultz.......................48
The Future of Politics Yujie Ding..................................................................................49

BEYOND400 5
 LETTER FROM MAYOR DAVID COSS

The Future Starts Today

In his 1961 inaugural address, President Kennedy said, “I do not believe
that any of us would exchange places with any other people or any other
generation. The energy, the faith, the devotion which we bring to this
endeavor will light our country and all who serve it — and the glow from
that fire can truly light the world.” These words are still true for young
people in Santa Fe.

S
urely, the energy, faith and devotion of the new generations inheriting Santa
Fe will be worthy of our history. This year we have commemorated our mul-
tinational and multicultural heritage for which we can all be proud. Going
forward, young people of all faiths, cultures and races will have a hand in making
Santa Fe a special place, a light to the world.
So to the young people of Santa Fe, you will continue the work of building
community in this beautiful but dry land. You will make sure our rivers and forests,
plains and deserts remain the magical and inspiring places the Pueblo people first
encountered.
You will develop an economy that works for all, based on art, culture, science and
technology. Make sure you get the education you will need to thrive as a leader in
Going forward, young this economy. You will find your economy will be most stable if it is locally lead and
centered but is also connected with people around the world who are working for
economic and environmental justice.The Santa Fe Trail to St. Louis, the Spanish Trail to
people of all faiths, California and the Camino Real to Mexico City still signify opportunity for Santa Fe.
As always, your family and your community are the most important assets
you have. Remember our history as Santa Feans and do not define your family
cultures, and races or your community narrowly. Robert Kennedy addressed young people in South
Africa on this topic almost 50 years ago: “Everywhere new technology and com-

will have a hand in munications bring men and nations closer together, the concerns of one inevitably
becoming the concerns of all. And our new closeness is stripping away the false
masks, the illusion of difference which is at the root of injustice and hate and war.
making Santa Fe Only earthbound man still clings to the dark and poisoning superstition that his
world is bounded by the nearest hill, his universe ended at river shore, his common
humanity enclosed in the tight circle of those who share his town and views and
a special place, the color of his skin. It is your job, the task of the young people of this world, to
strip the last remnants of that ancient, cruel belief from the civilization of man.”

a light to the world. I am excited and hopeful about Santa Fe as it completes its 401st year. I am con-
fident that Santa Fe's young people and coming generations will build a city and a
community we and our predecessors would have been proud to have built. Their
energy, faith, and devotion will light our community of Santa Fe, far into the future.

6 BEYOND400
I am Prep
Current Student. Future Leader. Senior Class President
Jorge Martinez cares about his community. Whether he’s guiding
his peers through difficult decisions, collaborating in the school
play, playing defense for the soccer team, or soaring to the top of
his academics, Jorge challenges himself and his peers. “I give my
best in everything I do. I owe this determination and my love of
learning to the teachers I’ve had at Prep and the environment I’ve
grown with there since 7th grade.” Join Jorge at Prep.
You can be a leader too! If you missed Open House, it’s not too
late to see what Prep’s all about. Call Talia today for a tour at
982.1829 ext. 1211.

Santa Fe Preparatory School

1101 Camino de la Cruz Blanca
Santa Fe, NM 87505-0396
Tel. 505 982 1829 www.sfprep.org

BEYOND400 7
 ALEX WIRTH

Master of Ceremonies
I am a seventh-generation New Mexican and native Santa Fean. My mom is
Carol Romero-Wirth and her side of my family originated in Mora, New Mexico,
where my grandmother Martha Romero grew up. My dad is Peter Wirth (yeah,
the State Senator) and my grandfather John Wirth was born is Dawson, New
Mexico — now a ghost town. My great grandfather John Gaw Meem came
to Santa Fe to seek treatment for tuberculosis in 1920 and ended up stay-
ing and developing the famous New Mexican Territorial Architectural style.

I
graduated from Wood Gormley Elementary School in 2005
and am a product of Wood Gormley legacies Ms. Scarborough,
Ms. Medrano, and Ms. Christensen. I am currently a Senior at
Santa Fe Prep and enjoy studying history. I have made honor roll
every semester I have been at Prep and recently was recognized by
the College Board as a National Hispanic Scholar.
I get great enjoyment from my involvement outside of the
classroom. I have always known that I love politics and govern-
ment and have pursued my interests in this area. I am currently
the president of the Santa Fe Prep Student Council having served
for six years and held the positions of vice president and secretary.
Through the student council, I have worked on and lead a series of
fundraisers that have raised over $10,000 for both local and inter-
national nonprofits.
Besides the student council, in my freshman year I joined the
Model United Nations team and have stuck with it through senior
year. One of my best friends, Jorge Martinez, and I lead our team of
freshmen and sophomores in 2008 to a Best Delegation of the Year
Award. The following year Kelsey Leonard and I received honorable
mention for best Security Council delegation.
In my freshman year, I also applied to serve as a reporter for The
Santa Fe New Mexican’s Teen Newspaper Generation Next. Besides
writing numerous articles on everything from youth shelters to
how detention is given in schools, I worked on Generation Next’s
special high school dropout report. I interviewed the superinten-
dent, Senator Bingaman, and Colin Powell — all interviews that I
got just by e-mailing their offices. I am currently one of the student
editors for Generation Next.
The last thing I got involved in my freshman year was the
Mayor’s Youth Advisory Board, which has been on of the most
personally rewarding activities for me. Through the board, I have
advocated for a new teen center, fee reductions for youth at the
Genoveva Chavez Community Center, programs to reduce youth
violence, and the effort that made the city transit system free for
youth. With the help of Caitlin Smith and Kamon Tari we have com-
pleted our second annual “What Can You Do in 21 Days” citywide
food drive this year that raised 4,000 pounds of food for the Food
Depot. I currently serve as the chair of the board.
In my 10th grade year, I wanted to start a debate team at
Santa Fe Prep so that I could argue with people. I didn’t have any
sort of clue that debate entailed competing with over 300 kids
from all across the state. I have fallen in love with the activity
and have medaled in every tournament that I have entered in.
Some of the highlights include making semi-finals at the national
championships in congressional debate, taking second place at
the state championships and making the top 32 out of 154 teams
at the Yale Invitational debate tournament with my debate part-
ner Lauren Buchanan.
In 11th grade, I started to get involved in promoting youth
service and youth opinions at a national level. I was selected out
of 300 students for one 15 spots on DoSomething.org's National
Youth Advisory Council. DoSomething.org is a national youth ser-
vice organization that is on track to motivate 1.2 million youth to
get involved in their communities this year.
It has always been a dream of mine to serve on a Presidential
Youth Advisory Council and so when I heard there was talk of
starting one, I jumped on board. Over the past year, I have been
the leading youth advocate working with the Forum for Youth
Investment to call for the creation of a National Youth Council.
We are currently working with the White House to make this
council a reality.
During my senior year, I applied and was selected to serve on
the Youth Service America’s Youth Advisory Council. I am currently
the only youth in the country simultaneously advising the nation’s
two largest youth service organizations. I have also recently been
accepted to State Farm’s Youth Advisory Board to work with a
group of 30 youth from across the country to develop and imple-
ment a $5 million a year grants program.
Yes, I do sleep at least six hours every night (usually more like
seven or eight) and I do have free time. In my free time, I enjoy
hanging with my friends Brian Lewis, Bronwyn Barnwell, Lindsay
Demay, Derek Nunner, Allegra Haines, and Justin Haas. I am also an
avid outdoorsman and enjoy skiing roadrunner at the basin, hiking
in Hyde Park, or running along the Santa Fe River.
If I had written my bio during my freshman year, I couldn’t have
written 75 percent of this because I didn’t even know these activi-
ties existed. I recommend that teens follow their passions and
pursue every opportunity that they come across. You never know
where life can take you.

8 BEYOND400
BEYOND400 9
 AUDRI MARIE ROYBAL

Master of Ceremonies
Audri Marie Roybal is the daughter of Richard and Mary Ellen Lopez and grand-
daughter to Gary and Carol Roybal of Santa Fe, New Mexico. She is a graduate of
Santa Fe High School and now is pursuing a degree in medicine with a minor in
fine arts at the University of New Mexico, Albuquerque campus. In 2007 she was
chosen to represent the state at an eight-week international leadership camp in
Rhinebeck, N.Y. Since being involved in this leadership camp, Audri has taken on
leadership roles both in the community and through school.

I
n her senior year she was elected to serve as the director of
activities of Santa Fe High’s Student Government. She has
coordinated many school and community wide events; she
was a confirmation and religious education teacher for younger
high school students at Santa Maria De La Paz Catholic Church,
she also served on the Mayor’s Youth Advisory Board, and par-
ticipated in internships during legislative sessions working right
alongside state representatives and senators. Audri has spoken
on behalf of her peers on the issue of domestic violence for the
National Foundation for Women Legislators and was also runner
up in the Miss Santa Fe pageant in 2010.
“As I watch the younger generations grow I can see a significant change
in the people and students our world is creating. I can only hope that
with these changes comes great success for these younger generations.”
dancer she has traveled to dance with Alonzo King LINES Ballet
and has danced with few master teachers in Granada, Spain.
All of these opportunities could not be possible without the
love and support of her family and more importantly, her mother.
As a then 15-year-old sophomore parent at Capital High School,
Mary Ellen knew that a better life was well worth striving for in
order to ensure hers and daughter Audri's well-being. Mary Ellen
set the example for Audri by graduating high school and acquiring
a master’s degree as Certified Family Nurse Practitioner from UNM.
Audri attributes her own success to her mother’s positive
example. Audri plans to become a physician, specializing in emer-
gency medicine and taking her medical
degree with her to the Peace Corps. With
high hopes for the future, Audri is just
embarking on the next chapter of her life.
With many years of school ahead her future
looks bright and success is inevitable for
this young woman.

Since graduating from Santa Fe High, Audri has become Audri Marie Roybal is a native of Santa Fe. She is a graduate of Santa
involved with many organizations at the university level. She is Fe High School and now a student at the University of New Mexico.
one of 20 young people to be accepted into a Healthcare Careers
Audri is the Master of Ceremony for the 2010 Youth Symposium.
Living and Learning Community, She is part of the Emerging
Lobo Leaders program that directly feeds into the Student In her words: “In the future there are many aspects of society and
Government at UNM and volunteers with Community Experience the world I would like to change. As I watch the younger generations
and participates in many school activities with Lobo Spirit and grow I can see a significant change in the people and students our
Student Special Events. As if all this is not enough, she is also a world is creating. I can only hope that with these changes comes
new member of Pi Beta Phi sorority Alpha chapter at UNM. Audri
great success for younger generations. With the help and wisdom of
is an enthusiastic young leader who enjoys being involved in her
past generations, I have learned a great deal about myself, and I look
community, offering anything and all she has to give as an indi-
vidual and as a member of the many groups she is involved in. forward to being an example for future generations. Anyone can be
In her spare time Audri has also found time to join Poetry Slam successful with the right amount of effort and willpower to do so.”
groups across the state, has written for the Generation Next section
of The Santa Fe New Mexican and stayed committed as a modern
and flamenco dancer with Moving People Dance Theater. As a

10 BEYOND400
BEYOND400 11
 TIMOTHY P. McLAUGHLIN

From the Roots

to the Fruits
When I first visited the Santa Fe Indian School (SFIS) campus eight
years ago as a teacher candidate, Director of Instruction Felisa Gulibert
mentioned that the school had successfully hosted a poetry slam the
previous year. I felt a strong intuition that this type of work would be
the next step in my journey as a teacher and a writer.

T We are the voices of your ancestors surrounding you.

he burgeoning art form of performance poetry was intrigu-
ing to me. I had taught creative writing classes at Red Cloud
Indian School on the Pine Ridge Reservation and found the
students’ expressions to be poetic and important. There, I invited
my students to speak their written words mostly just in the class-
room, never publicly. It made perfect sense, though, especially with
Native youth who come from a legacy of storytelling, to bring the
writing back to the origin of language, to sound.
For centuries, our people told stories,
our spiritual offering to the world through language,
wrapped in the breath of elders
who hold our creation, our history, on their tongues.
Only years after founding the SFIS Spoken Word Program have I come
to appreciate the significance of the total process. The young SFIS poets
craft their deepest truths on the page and refine the work until it shines
as their highest expression of language. In performance, they send their
stories outward through their breath (infusing them with their spirit)
and create meaningful vibrations received and processed by audience
members mentally, emotionally, spiritually, and even cellularly.
I’ve witnessed it time and again. People certainly love the con-
tent of our stories, but they love the experience of receiving them
even more. Something special happens in their hearts and in their
cells. And I believe our audience extends beyond humans to include
the land, the animals and plants, the elements. So, we go outside to
rehearse our poems for trees and flowers! And we continually remind
ourselves that we are merely channels for the messages that pass
through us. As Billy Collins so beautifully articulates in “Directions,”
“the voices of light enter the body and begin to recite their stories.”
To practice this consciously, intentionally, and lovingly requires much
discipline. So we work hard, every day.
Look about your world and you will find us.
We are underneath the rocks,
on the highest cliffs,
deep inside the darkest caves,
within the roots of plants.
We swim through the air you breathe,
we flow through the rivers of your mind,
we are reflected in the eyes of the person beside you.
It has been an incredible eight years. From our first humble event in
the SFIS Canteen to an international tour in the Baltic countries of
Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania, performances in major venues such
as The Chicago Theater and The National Museum of the American
Indian, and appearances in The New York Times, on The PBS News
Hour, and on HBO. Most recently, we completed a poetry CD enti-
tled Moccasins and Microphones: Modern Native Storytelling through
Performance Poetry. It includes the finest poems in our repertoire
and is a compelling portrait of Native youth today. The stories on
the disc articulate indigenous philosophies and explore modern
reservation realities, addressing cultural and socio-political issues
through an artistic lens.
We are currently building a full theater production centered on
the Moccasins and Microphones poems to be presented live at the
Lensic Performing Arts Center in Santa Fe on April 3rd, 2011. This
is our most artistically ambitious endeavor to date and reflects the
directions in which we are now moving and growing, incorporating
more dance, song, and theater into our poetry performances.

We are currently building a full theater production centered on the Moccasins and Microphones poems to be presented live at the
LENSIC PERFORMING ARTS CENTER IN SANTA FE ON APRIL 3RD, 2011.

12 BEYOND400
 We youth spin modern truth to rhythms.
We speak to know who we are.
We write to remember who we were.
At this moment, our program is more vibrant than ever. Spoken
Word is now an official academic course at SFIS and part of our reg-
ular curriculum. This has brought great new energy to our poetry
circle. Three times per week, we meet to breathe, pray, sing, write,
and dance together. It’s pure magic. Sometimes, I can hardly believe
I’m in a classroom. And yet, it’s what education should be. All the
“multiple intelligences” identified by Howard Gardner are engaged
and therefore developed in the students.
Perhaps the most important element of our educational model
is its family-like environment. The team members include youth
aged thirteen to eighteen, ranging from seasoned veterans who have
been with the program five years to fresh recruits authoring their
first poems. A natural mentorship environment exists that empow-
ers the senior members to teach what they know and emboldens the
youngest ones to give it a go.
The current captains of the team are Santana Shorty (Diné), Clara
Natonabah (Diné), and Ariel Antone (Tohono O’odham). SFIS Spoken
Word graduate Nolan Eskeets (Diné) is the trusted apprentice coach
and a solid role model for the whole group. Singer and songwriter
Madi Sato serves as the assistant coach (and team mother). She brings
expertise in music, dance, and theater that excellently complements
my writing background and significantly expands the possibilities of
our work.
My child, at your feet, I give you soil.
In your mind, I give you infinity.
In your left hand, I give you a seed.
In your right hand, I give you a rain cloud.
I bless you with beauty to create beauty.
We are delighted to continue our relationship with Santa Fe 400th at
the Beyond 400 Youth Symposium. We were honored to perform for
both the Santa Fe 400th opening ceremonies at Fort Marcy Park and
the commemorative event on the downtown plaza. The SFIS Spoken
Word Team is one of the many unique artistic voices of our Santa Fe
community that make this city such a place of beauty and connection.
Let us honor that beauty and celebrate our connections.

The Santa Fe Indian School Spoken Word Team, photo by Brian Valinski. Seated: Autumn Billie, Clara Natonabah,
Santana Shorty, Ariel Antone Standing: Timothy McLaughlin, Jonisha Juanico, Johnny Cammarata, Peshawn Bread,
Chad Brown, Savannah Quam, Marty Fragua, Athena Morning-Star, Colin White, Nolan Eskeets, Madi Sato
Not Pictured: Chris Quotskuyva, Dakota Cournoyer

Timothy P. McLaughlin is a teacher and a poet. He is the founding director of the SFIS Spoken Word Program. He compiled a manuscript of writing by
Lakota students at Red Cloud Indian School titled Is This Good? scheduled to be published by Abrams Books in April 2012. To order a copy of Moccasins
and Microphones or to learn more about the Spoken Word program, please visit: www.sfisspokenword.org. Poetry lines in the article are excerpted from
“Blessing” and “Evolution”, two group poems written by members of the SFIS Spoken Word Team.

BEYOND400 13

Being a part of the effort
to foster a dynamic
environment where
culture, creativity,
consciousness and
community are sustained
in order to illuminate,
inform and inspire is
precisely our legacy and
our continuing responsibility
today and into the future.
14 BEYOND400
DR. ESTEVAN RAEL-GÁLVEZ,
Executive Director, National Hispanic Cultural Center
Man Made of
Mud & Memory
Autobiographical Sketches Youth Symposium,
Santa Fe: Beyond 400
W
here I come from, before you even speak, before you tell a story, it is
not only respectful, but also necessary to introduce yourself. I was
born at the edge of a very particular time, in the midst of a civil rights
movement, where the tenacious march of men and women, thirsting for justice,
could only be matched by someone walking on the moon.
I was born in La Jara, named for the abundance of willows that once grew
along the upper Rio Grande. I was raised in two places in northern New Mexico,
the first with my parents on their farm at the base of the Costilla river and within
the shadow of Ute Mountain, which stands as a vigilant reminder of both an
absence as well as the inherited-presence of a people now displaced. I was also
raised up along the Kiowa Trail, in the century old home of my grandparents in
Questa, a village formerly named, but remembered still as San Antonio del Rio
Colorado, a village that sits like refuge, surrounded by mountain peaks, save the
one shaved off by a decades of the mining of molybdenum.
I was also born into people and their stories — “I was there,” tio Arcenio said of
my father’s birth, “he was born with irrigation boots on,” playfully referring to the
fact that my father had spent his entire life, shovel in hand, moving waters. Here, I
learned about the value of labor and learned to appreciate the responsibility of stew-
ardship-caring for land and animals alike and yet he always encouraged me to find
words and stories as a way out. As a compliment, my mother, who spent decades,
schooling children in her own village, taught me how to use stories as a way in.
Raising me was a shared responsibility, however. I had the good fortune of
being raised by my grandmother as well, a woman born in the late 19th century,
who most inspired imagination and encouraged my life long hunger for memory.
We used to sit in her porch, a resolana, where she delicately wove stories of the
past with her words, instilling in me how critically important history and mem-
ory were. These weavings were the connection between past, present and future
and were especially important in a world that was quickly changing.
This setting seems nearly romantic and picturesque; however, like many rural
communities, ours was beset with the challenges of unemployment, isolation and
the gradually increasing ravages of poverty, drugs and despair. The odds were
against the children growing up in these villages, but even in this setting, I learned
from my elders that we still have choices. I was not drawn, as those who preceded
me were, to farming, but mine was a hunger for learning. I wanted to learn from the
world and nourished with the core values of my upbringing, I eventually decided to
journey into it.
 I attended and eventually graduated from the University of California,
Berkeley. While my studies were concentrated in literature and ethnic studies,
my education in a larger community was also just beginning. I was hired initially
as an intern in my work at Instituto Laboral de la Raza, an organization support-
Our youth have always
ing the working poor Latinos in the Mission district of San Francisco, California.
My work consisted of advocating for workers and their wages. While the initial
been the promise
impetus was pre-law training, the immersion in this urban community was per-
sonally and professionally transformative in connecting me to a life-long com- of continuing to
mitment to the work of social justice, a commitment I have carried ever since.
I went on to complete an M.A. and Ph.D at the University of Michigan’s make history and
interdisciplinary American Cultures Program with my training grounded espe-
cially in cultural anthropology, history and literature. From my grandmother
I had also learned early on that stories are gifts, but gifts always carry a great
to imagine our future.
responsibility of holding them, carrying them and recognizing that balance is
knowing when they can be used to sustain community and when they can be
used to raise its consciousness. From her
and another great grandmother, I learned
about how much Indian slavery had
shaped New Mexico’s social landscape, a
subject that would move from personal
stories to a professional dissertation proj-
ect, Identifying Captivity and Capturing
Identity: Narratives of American Indian
Slavery in New Mexico and Colorado 1776-
1934, a focus on the meanings of American
Indian slavery and a unique legacy and
identity in northern New Mexico and
southern Colorado.
Although I was interested and deeply
committed to merging critical think-
ing with critical practice, I had always
assumed that I would do this as a fac-
ulty member within a university setting.
Although extended the opportunity of
tenure track positions in various uni-
versities, I chose instead to return home and ground my theoretical work in This was the house of Juan de Jesus Bernal and
the communities I belong to and write about. Toward that end, in 2001, I was Jacintita Romero, great grandparents of
Estevan Rael-Gálvez in Costilla, New Mexico
named the state historian of New Mexico, a tremendous honor and a position
I served in for eight years, initiating among many project, the New Mexico
Digital History Project, a Scholars fellowship program and an vibrant educa- Dr. Estevan Rael-Gálvez is Executive Director of the
tional outreach program that included an internship program. National Hispanic Cultural Center in Albuquerque,
In 2009 I left this position and assumed the honor of serving in the position New Mexico. As the New Mexican State Historian
of executive director of the National Hispanic Cultural Center. When I think of from 2001-2009, he initiated several innovative pro-
what is possible at this relatively young institution, I think of a creativity stimu- grams. Rael-Gálvez also served as Chairman of the
lus, where arts and ideas are especially important to the health of our communi- Cultural Properties Review Committee, the policy-
making/advisory board for historic preservation in
ties. I also think of the words of the Uruguayan writer Eduardo Galeano, who
New Mexico. He received his B.A. at the University
cogently observed: “when it is truly alive, memory does not complicate history, it
of California at Berkeley in Literature and Ethnic
invites us to make it.” Being a part of the effort to foster a dynamic environment
Studies, and an M.A. and Ph.D. in American Culture
where culture, creativity, consciousness and community are sustained in order to at the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor. His dis-
illuminate, inform and inspire is precisely our legacy and our continuing respon- sertation examined the narrative of Native American
sibility today and into the future. Our youth have always been the promise of slavery and their implications for identity. He is cur-
continuing to make history and to imagine our future. rently working on a book, The Silence of Slavery.

BEYOND400 15

The famous Will Rogers once said, “It
takes a lifetime to build a good reputa-
tion, but you can lose it in a minute.” The
advance in technology and especially
social networking sites in the past four
years has erupted a boom of social con-
nectivity. From Myspace, Twitter, and
Facebook these social networking sites
are the tools to connect a web of inter-
personal communication. It seems that
everyone today has a Facebook account.
For example, my grandmother who is 70
years old and my little cousin who is 8
both have an account. Furthermore, more
and more young people are using these
social networking sites. Although, these
networking sites seem rather innocuous
it is important for young people to under-
stand the possible social ramifications.
For instance, you may be in danger when
you put a status update or your reputation
may be tarnished from a single picture. A
mistake on these social networking sites
is a mistake seen by your world. Here is
some advice to being responsible and not
trip up while navigating through these
social networking sites.
16 BEYOND400
LAZARO CARDENAS
What the Tweet?
I
am the student body president at the University of New Mexico. I was born
and raised in the small northern town of Taos, New Mexico. When I was
in high school I remember Myspace was the fad. All of my friends had an
account which prompted me to create one as well. After a week I had created a
page, had my favorite songs on the page, and was proud that I had my own little
space in the social world. I would upload pictures on that page and would check
it frequently throughout the day. I had that page until I entered college and then
switched to Facebook. I never thought that a status update like “I am so wasted”
or “Drinking last night was fun” could have been that harmful. I mean it was just
my friends who could see my profile. Well I was wrong because people who were
not my friends could see my status updates, my pictures, and all other activity that
I had been doing. Now just think how this sounds when my grandmother or my
little cousin reads a status update like this. You lose credibility from friends and
you can also lose them from potential employers. I learned from my mistakes and
understood that what you put on the internet is for everyone to see.
Have you ever thought that when you put a status update such as “going for
a run at school” you may not understand that you may be in danger? The reason
for this is because you give your location and what you will be doing. It is like
saying to a predator I will be wearing a target on my back; please know who I am.
However harmless a post may be, think twice before what you are putting. Here is
what I ask myself when I put up an update. Who is going to read this? What am I
saying? How will people respond to what I put? Think before you act.
This same advice goes for when you post pictures. I once had a person apply
for a position with the Associated Students of the University of New Mexico
student government (ASUNM) who posted some promiscuous pictures after a
weekend of going out. That same week she had an interview for the position.
UNM students online.
 Who is going
to read this?

What am I saying?

I went on Facebook and looked at her profile and saw the pictures posted.
How will people
Because of those pictures the person did not get the position. I did not want to
associate ASUNM with someone who did not represent the organization in a respond to
proper manner. Along with this story I have heard numerous stories of employ-
ers looking at their employee’s page and reprimanding or even firing their
employees for the pictures posted. Universities across the nation are also look-
what I put?
ing at pages for applicants. If your dream was to get into a certain university,
you work hard in school, do well in your SAT, and volunteer; one photo could
ruin your chances.

Put security restrictions on your social networking sites. This will prevent random
people from looking at your information and only limit it to your friends or select
people.
AVOID ALL OF
Think before you act. For example, before you put embarrassing photos up of
THESE DISASTERS yourself or someone else think what are the possible ramifications. The same can
be said for when you write something on the internet.
BY FOLLOWING Accept friends that you know. Most of the time people accept requests from
random people to increase the amount of “friends” that is shown. This may be
SOME SIMPLE STEPS problem because what if that request you accepted is not really the person they
say they are. If you follow these three steps, then you can enjoy social networking
safe and effectively.

When we are young we make mistakes. Those mistakes that we make provide
us with the knowledge to learn. In order to become the great leaders of Santa Fe
and New Mexico it is important to learn from your mistakes. Social networks
are an extension to our public life. Think of it this way: You would think twice
before saying something vulgar in a classroom filled with your peers, teachers,
Think before
and family. So the next time you say something vulgar or post pictures on a
social network just think of it being in a classroom filled with the above. you act.
As was quoted in the beginning it is easy to destroy a reputation. It is hard
to gain one and preserve it. To obtain the dreams and goals that you have estab-
lished for yourself, understand that being responsible is an inherited trait.
Making a mistake on a social networking site could potentially hold major ram- Lazaro Cardenas is a native New Mexican born and
ifications. As a student I know how easy it is to not think things through. Just raised in Taos, New Mexico. Currently he is the ASUNM
remember to follow those three steps to avoid any problems. You are the change President and is in the Navy ROTC. After graduation he
and face that will lead Santa Fe and New Mexico to a brighter future. will receive a commission into the United States Navy.

BEYOND400 17

Our great diversity of languages, cultures,
and traditions distinguishes New Mexico
from anywhere else in the world — and
every New Mexican is richer for it. It is a
testament to the strength and resiliency
of the people of the 22 tribes, nations
and pueblos in New Mexico that in 2010
every tribe continues to speak its unique
indigenous language and maintain com-
plex, land-based cultures that we have
been endowed with since time immemo-
rial. We have survived three waves of col-
onization, outright religious persecution,
and ill-conceived governmental policies
and institutions focused on annihilat-
ing Native cultures and languages. All
New Mexicans should be proud that our
state laws and policies now support the
teaching of indigenous languages and
that our state celebrates Native American
cultures. Yet our greatest challenges lie
ahead. Historical trauma combined with
an omnipresent mainstream media cul-
ture are quickly eroding the number of
Native languages being learned by chil-
dren. Whether New Mexico’s indigenous
languages and traditions continue to
thrive in 2410 as they do now depends on
what we do individually and collectively
starting right now.
18 BEYOND400
ALVIN H. WARREN
Sustaining
the Tapestry
O
f the 300-500 indigenous languages spoken in North America prior to
European contact more than 200 are still spoken, according to an 2006
article entitled “Reclaiming the Gift” by Mary Eunice Romero-Little
and Ofelia Zepeda. In New Mexico, these include Keres, Tiwa, Diné, Tewa,
Zuni, Towa, and Apache. However, only 34 of those 200 are still being naturally
acquired as a first language by children.
I’m very familiar with this challenge. Like many children whose families
were affected by the Bureau of Indian Affairs boarding school policies of Native
language prohibition, I was not raised as a fluent speaker of our Tewa language.
I have tremendous respect for the many individuals who have had the for-
tune to be raised strongly in their languages and traditions and, as a teenager,
came to realize the importance of doing my part to learn our language. When
I approached my late-grandmother Louisita Baca Warren to teach me, she was
reluctant at first because of her experience of being punished as a young woman
for speaking her language in boarding school. I persisted and, ultimately, she
decided to teach me, not just the translations of the words but the deeper mean-
ings within them. Those who dismiss the decline of global linguistic diversity
fail to realize that each language contains a vast universe of distinct values,
experiences and knowledge that — once lost — is impossible to recreate.
Little did I know that learning Tewa would later enable me to assist with
regaining significant portions of our ancestral homelands and to serve eight
terms as a tribal official for our Pueblo, including two terms as lieutenant gov-
ernor and two terms as tribal interpreter (a position held by my great-grandfa-
Parents and grandparents, we need to take the time to teach
our children their language and culture, and young people
need to express an interest in their traditions, seeking out family
and community members who are willing to teach them.
ther Pedro Baca at the turn of the 19th century). And particularly because of the
experience and relationships developed during my time as lieutenant governor
I have had the privilege of serving as New Mexico’s cabinet secretary of Indian
affairs for almost three years. I am very thankful to my grandmother, and to the
many relatives and elders who have continued to teach me since she passed away
in 1989. While I still have much to learn, I now have the ability to convey to my
children something that I did not have when I was their age.
I share this personal story in the hope that it might encourage both the
many young Native men and women who are striving to become fluent in their
languages as well as the many parents and grandparents who are interested in
teaching their children and grandchildren. We certainly should applaud the
many effective Native language programs that exist in tribal communities across
Those who dismiss the decline of
our state and that fact that the New Mexico Indian Education Act supports the global linguistic diversity fail to
teaching of Native languages in our schools. At the same time, we must focus on
our crucial role as parents and grandparents and youth. Many of us continue to
realize that each language contains
experience the aftermath of the boarding school era, which hampers the teach- a vast universe of distinct values,
ing of our languages. We need to confront this historical trauma and move
beyond it.
experiences and knowledge that —
Though we have fought to bring modern infrastructure into our tribal com- once lost — is impossible to recreate.
munities we are now confronted with a global media and internet culture that
incorporates other cultures as voraciously as it
supplants them. This requires that we proac-
tively mitigate the homogenizing influence that
the internet and television can have on our cul-
tures. While there are certainly opportunities to
use technology to assist with maintaining our
languages, the strongest tools that we have are
those that have been handed down from gener-
ation to generation: parents and grandparents,
we need to take the time to teach our children
their language and culture, and young people
need to express an interest in their traditions,
seeking out family and community members
who are willing to teach them.
This is equally true for all New Mexicans.
We are blessed to have cultures, languages
and traditions as diverse and beautiful as our
mountain forests, verdant valleys and desert
plains. We should all take pride in the fact
that this tremendous diversity forms a single
tapestry that is our state’s culture and iden-
tity. This is the enchantment that brings visi-
tors from around the world to New Mexico.
Collectively we must continue to develop pol-
icies and devote resources that support insti-
tutions and efforts that promote the vitality
of our languages and traditions. Individually
we must embody and convey the core values
that make our families and communities
unique. If we do this I am confident that we
will sustain what makes us New Mexicans
over the next 400 years and beyond.

Alvin H. Warren is a member of Santa Clara Pueblo

and has served as the cabinet secretary of the New
Mexico Indian Affairs Department since 2008. He
attended Santa Fe public schools and graduated
from Dartmouth College with a bachelor’s degree in
history with high honors. A dedicated farmer, Alvin
lives in Santa Clara Pueblo with his wife and children.

BEYOND400 19

Growing up, I didn’t have much.
I was raised in an unfortunate
environment with limited
resources, but I was able
to overcome the obstacles
and make my dreams a reality.
The advice I would give the
youth is to aim for high
goals and stay focused –
the road ahead is long but
the end result is rewarding.
20 BEYOND400
NOEL LOPEZ
In Step with Harambe
M
y name is Noel Lopez, otherwise known as B-Boy Pyro Tek. I was intro-
duced to the hip hop culture when I was 11 years old. I had heard and
seen b-boying on TV and thought it was amazing but at that time I
didn't think it would become my passion and career. I was inspired by young danc-
ers around the community. I had heard through people that there was a class that
taught cultural hip hop and I decided to go see what it was all about. After that
experience, I started b-boying (break dancing) as a fun activity in and
out of school (at 11 years old). B-boying in school was a chal-
lenge within itself because we would get rep-
rimanded. The penalty for dancing in school
was in-school suspension the first two times
and the third time I'd get caught I would get
expelled: That would be too much of a penalty
for me so I had to be sneaky and creative on how
and where I practiced during school. When I wasn't in
school, I would practice at friends’ houses, community
centers and local dance studios — luckily for me, I didn’t
have to hide my passion nor be sneaky about it.
I started taking it seriously when I was introduced to Harambe,
a dance company that helped and supported me. Months later, I helped the com-
pany by doing shows around New Mexico to promote the company and help keep
it open. As I started to get more experience, people started to see the potential I
had and I was offered a gymnastic scholarship at the age of 12 but was unable to
take it because I couldn't afford the commute across town. Disappointment was
the first thing in my mind but I always tried to look at things in a positive way. Not
being able to take the scholarship was not going to be the end of the world so I con-
tinued to pursue different avenues. I took capoeira classes, ballroom dance classes
and some stretching classes to get more variety and experience. Taking these
classes helped me develop my own style, techniques and character. By this time,
I was already traveling around the state, going to different events and competing.
I started traveling nationally, at the age of 14. I would hear about B-boy events
from flyers, and word of mouth so I'd gather up as much clothes, money, and
ambition-at least as much a 14-year-old could and leave.
I continued to work with Harambe for about six years. Unfortunately, the
location closed down and Harambe no longer exists. Fortunately, the experi-
ence I gained in the partnership opened up many opportunities. I learned how
to network and collaborate with other young artists which helped me articulate
my creativity and gain momentum. Collaborating with other artists opened up
the doors to experiences such as mentoring the next generation and establishing
myself within the culture.
Working with Harambe, competing around the state, and seeing the structure
of creating a hip hop event motivated me to begin my own movement. I started
the Harambe Movement to inspire the youth and create a location where artist can
express themselves freely. One of the many people I have to be grateful for is John
Santos, aka, Furious. He has helped and supported the Harambe Movement since
it started. He has been my right hand man being that he is one of the co-founders
and his expertise comes in handy. I believe that the hip hop culture enriches the
community and engages the youth in an active and productive way. By providing
this art form, where the youth can be actively engaged, we are helping the youth
stay away from negative and harmful habits. This also provides opportunities for
interested youth to work with a professional co-promotion team that works toward
building a formal apprenticeship program.
I have worked with local organizations such as Santa Fe 400th Festival, Museum
of International Folk Art, and Santa Fe Boys and Girls Club. With these organi-
zations I did things such as hosting events, teaching classes, volunteering among
other. I have also worked with worldwide companies such as Lions-Gate, Red Bull,
and, most recently, Tribal Gear. I filmed with Lions-Gate in movies and TV shows.
Red Bull helped me by sponsoring Style Warz B-Boy event. Tribal Gear has helped
me sponsor my event (Into the Prime). Now, I mass produce clothes, DVD’s, I’m
part of a group that produces music, and I am the founder of Harambe movement.
Among that, I also host and judge hip hop events, and continue to be an active b- When I wasn’t in school, I would practice
boy, competing around the nation. Recently, on November 6, 2010, I achieved one
of my greatest accomplishments: I promoted and hosted Into the Prime, at friends’ houses, community
a Four Element Hip Hop Show (Four Element represents B-boying, centers and local dance studios –
DJ-ing, MC-ing, and Graffiti art). After this event I would like to
continue to expand and evolve and sponsor the next generation of luckily for me, I didn’t have to hide my
talented kids. passion nor be sneaky about it.
Growing up, I didn’t have much. I was raised in an unfor-
tunate environment with limited resources but I was able to
overcome the obstacles and make my dreams a reality. The
advice I would give the youth is to aim for high goals
and stay focused — the road ahead is long
but the end result is rewarding. My biggest
inspiration is my struggle, pain, family,
friends and my culture. The struggles
I have overcome throughout my
25 years of life are what make
me the person I am
today.

BEYOND400 21

Top: raised in southeast England, Kaelyn Ramsden
moved to Santa Fe to work with Bioneers as the youth
program coordinator. As an outdoor explorer, her
dedication to environmental justice is rooted in her
love for the natural world. You can reach her at krams-
den@bioneers.org
Bottom: Shana Rappaport, originally from Berkeley,
California, recently joined Bioneers as their educa-
tion program manager. She believes that education
is the most powerful tool we have for actualizing our
visions of a just and sustainable future for all. You
can reach her at srappaport@bioneers.org.
22 BEYOND400
KAELYN RAMSDEN & SHANA RAPPAPORT
Re-Cognition
What happens when the life of what you love most is threatened?
The instinct to protect ignites a fire to act.
T
he fire was lit in 16-year-old Erica Fernandez upon discovering the proposal
of a liquefied natural gas facility in her low-income, Oxnard, California, com-
munity. Aware of the immeasurable negative consequences this imposed, she
would not let the rights of her community be trampled by the corporate power of
BHP Billiton.
Mobilizing the youth and Latino voice to stand up against this injustice,
Fernandez garnered the support of stakeholders, young and old, to successfully
prevent the facility's construction.
Two voices are certainly louder than one. A community of unified voices, Fernandez
learned, is more powerful than money. Recognizing young people as fully capable of
leading those voices is more imperative than ever at this moment in history.
What’s being called upon us now is a paradigm shift in the way we live on this
planet, and the youth will lead this movement. Recognizing this in us, as the leaders
of tomorrow, will make this shift as revolutionary as it needs to be.
As recent members of the New Mexican community, we offer the following out
of deep love for our generation, this planet, and the future of both. We’re not here
to offer a prescription, rather to share what we see as the fundamental issues to be
addressed in this global conversation.
The debate is over when it comes to climate change, the loss of biodiversity, and
our responsibility for it all. And, while it’s easy to feel disempowered by how big and
gloomy it all seems, every revolution starts with one action.
No one expects you single-handedly to restore your local watershed or eliminate
all the trash in your county. But turning off the water while rinsing dishes and refus-
ing single-use plastic bags – those are first steps. The root of every global issue – both
environmental and social – manifests in our communities; so let’s start there.
Let’s look the truth of the injustices around us in the eyes, and ask ourselves,
“What are their roots?” As we unveil these answers, we will discover the permanent
solutions, eliminating justification for the overuse of temporary bandages to heal
such deep wounds.
Let us recognize how every wound in our community is interconnected with
the next. How can we have a conversation about childhood obesity without talking
about food justice? In taking a whole systems approach, we inevitably find that they
are invariably interlaced. So find where your greatest concerns lie, and start there.
Bioneers Co-CEO & Co-founder Nina Simons, in her newest book Moonrise:
The Power of Women Leading From the Heart, writes that, for her, “It’s about notic-
ing where your flame grows brighter and seeing how you connect up what you love
most with what’s most needed out there.” And with so much action needed, now is
certainly the time to be creative in how we call upon this in each of ourselves.
We offer our belief that recognizing the potential of young people as leaders in
every community is a key ingredient in the formula for environmental and social
transformation.
 As someone with a vested interest in this community, what do you care about So, we’re here to ask for your support.
most? Safe schools for your children; the green chile recipe your great-grandmother
ELDERS: We challenge you to share with us
passed on; celebrating the rich cultural traditions of your ancestors. Consider how
your knowledge: your recipes, your crafts, and
much longer these treasures will live on if part of responding to that flame inside
yourself includes sharing your love of it with us. how your ancestors lived from the land.
The future of what you love is in our hands. So share your stories with us — TEACHERS: We challenge you to be creative in
because hearing someone care deeply for something breeds compassion. And out of your teaching practices, remember that we all
compassion, an innate desire to protect is born. learn differently, and encourage us to turn off
It’s true—sometimes we may roll our eyes, or seem unwilling to listen. But let our TV’s and pick up a paintbrush.
these words be a reminder that your dedication to us does not go unappreciated. The
reality is, we’re often consumed by other concerns. BUSINESS COMMUNITY: We challenge you to
For some of us, our minds are fixed on the danger we face walking home at night, volunteer your time to teach us about investing,
or even the domestic violence awaiting us once we get there. For others, we are over- entrepreneurship and how to run a sustainable
whelmed by our parent's unrelenting expectations, or the drama and bullying we business.
experience at school each day. FAITH-BASED COMMUNITY: We challenge
We may be distracted, but we are listening. you to manifest the core principles of community
Just as each individual differs from the next, so too do the struggles young people service and compassion not only in your pro-
encounter daily. From gang violence and teen pregnancy, to our growing awareness grams, but throughout your neighborhoods, too.
of how the current systems in place are setting us up for failure—every pain is legiti-
mate, and from them we grow. YOUTH: Let us be active receivers of this wis-
Don’t underestimate the potential in each of us to leverage power from our dom, ask questions, and demand recognition
struggles. The challenges and hardships we face – so often used as reasons for our when we don’t feel we’re getting it.
lack of leadership—are, in fact, the very experiences that best equip us to face the Show us that we matter. And please
challenges ahead. remember: we are listening.

The vitality and creative potential

of young people is the most
abundant and untapped resource
available in every community.
So tap into it. Treasure it.
For if you do, we will be unstoppable.

BEYOND400 23

Our youth have the opportunity
to be a part of living tradition
and take an active part in the now.
They possess the power to
create each day through their
own stories, their own images,
their own memories of living
in and being inspired by Santa Fe.
Nicolasa Chávez, a 14th-generation New Mexican,
is the curator of Latino/Hispano/Spanish Colonial
Collections at the Museum of International Folk Art
in Santa Fe, New Mexico. She received B.A.s in his-
tory and Spanish and an M.A. in history (2001) with
a concentration in modern European/Iberian stud-
ies at The University of New Mexico. She is currently
researching the history and culture of Spanish fla-
menco as well as trade commodities and cuisine in
the New World.
24 BEYOND400
NICOLASA CHÁVEZ
The Musings of an
Ex-teenager in Santa Fe
A
s the curator of Latino/Hispano/Spanish Colonial Collections at the
Museum of International Folk Art in Santa Fe, I am often asked, “What
does one study to get that job?”
A curious question with not a straight answer one may study history, anthro-
pology, art history, archaeology, and a growing discipline called museum stud-
ies. My personal experience includes a BA in Spanish and in History, an MA in
History, a passion for Latin dance and music, flamenco and Argentine tango
in particular, and simply growing up in culturally rich New Mexico. All of the
above fed and fueled my desire to choose a career in art and culture.
As a child I felt a natural attraction to art. I believe we all do. From the time
of our births art is in our blood, permeating every day existence. We are artists
from that very moment when we are drawn to one specific color over another
and have a strong identification. That color becomes a signifier of who we are as
an individual. In the same way a favorite song or movie becomes a signifier of
who we are. As we grow and change so does the art that we carry with us.
Art is never static. It is ever changing. Many wonder how traditional art forms
can survive in this day of technological advances? How do we keep art and cul-
ture alive for future generations? Especially when the “generation now” is con-
stantly bombarded with “that which is new?” I believe in everything new there is
a little trace of historical/cultural precedent. It is with this viewpoint that I delve
into the world of pop culture as inspiration for artistic education. Pop culture is
viewed as a rebellion from the refined but pop culture is also a vehicle for art.
Many young kids get their first glimpse of fine art through the medium of pop
music, literature and film. This was also true for me as a young “tween” during
the era of MTV, when MTV was still about the music.
Music videos and lyrics can introduce art and cultural traditions via col-
laborations between artists and musicians. An article on Lady Gaga written
by Lisa Robinson in the September 2010 issue of Vanity Fair article illustrates
this point. In the article Lady Gaga's artistic partner, the designer and DJ Matt
Williams tells Robinson, “If some 12-year-old kid knows that Gaga collabo-
rated with [artist] Terence Koh, and he googles him and finds his gallery –
it opens up a whole world to an art scene that that kid may have never found.”
This quote brought a memory of my own personal rediscovery of the tradi-
tional Catholic art of New Mexico.
I use the word rediscovery since, as I have mentioned before, I did not grow
up in a cultural void but in this wonderful richly artistic land. However by high
school I desired to learn something different than the local art of Santa Fe. I had
grown up going to Spanish Market, had relatives in market and even performed
flamenco for market. I was sick and tired of seeing santos. I did not really appre-
ciate the art we had here until an inspired encounter with Madonna’s music video
for her song “Like a Prayer.” Full of intensely dramatic Catholic Iconography that
video garnered in me a new appreciation for local religious iconography. Both
of which are completely different but have a shared historical inspiration. This
video could not have been dreamt up or created without the precedent of Catholic
religious iconography. This same iconography and the unique way in which it is
created is part of what makes Santa Fe a special place. Now when I think of that
video it brings a smile to my face and I am reminded that we can find an appre-
ciation of our own cultures in the most unexpected places. I am also conscious of Art is never static.
the fact that what was once old becomes new again.
Like Madonna before her Lady Gaga is considered new, fresh, and all about It is ever changing.
youthful rebellion. Madonna was the icon of ’80s fashion, Lady Gaga and icon
of retro fashion. One does not need to look at the fashion of rock and pop stars I believe in everything
to see that what is new is old and that our contemporary clothing takes inspi-
ration from history. Currently the everyday clothing of the teen population new there is a little trace
of historical/ cultural precedent.
shows a revival of the sharp shoulders, ruf-
f les, gathered and puff sleeves of the ’80s.
Upon viewing these I recall a fabulous exhi-
bition during my youth at the Palace of the
Governors titled, New Mexico in the Guilded
Age. It remains one of my favorite exhibits
and inspired me to want to work in museums.
I viewed the amazing Victorian costumes of
this exhibition and realized these were the
very inspiration for the “Valley Girl” look
of the 1980s. Much more than a passing fad,
19th c. design elements live in the fiesta
dresses, mariachi and flamenco costumes of
present day New Mexico.
Here in New Mexico art, culture and his-
tory are extremely strong descriptors of our
state and often permeate everyday existence.
New Mexican style is seen as unique but it
is also a part of a larger whole. This style
may go in and out but the fact that it returns
every couple of years show it is timeless. Our
heritage continues to get discovered by new
people, whether via the pages of a magazine,
on-line, or a music video or Hollywood movie.
Our youth have the opportunity to be a part
of living tradition and take an active part
in the now. They possess the power to create
each day through their own stories, their own
images, their own memories of living in and
being inspired by Santa Fe. Each day we con-
tribute to what will be our cultural heritage
La Virgen de Guadalupe Haircomb by Maya Dean of US and Yucatean heritage, ca. 2004.
tomorrow. Once today is over it is the past and
This image is a contemporary design by an Hispanic artist living today. The haircomb or
peineta has been a popular fixture of Spanish style since at least the 17th c. or earlier. becomes a part of the collective history and
It is still emblematic of Hispano/Latino style in New Mexico today. culture of Santa Fe.

BEYOND400 25
 TUNTE EATON

Pueblo Life & Traditions

W
henever my family goes into Santa Fe from Tesuque Pueblo we refer
to it as going into “town.” My grandparents also used this term going
into “town” back in the early 1900s, but when they went into town
they were riding in a wagon. Santa Fe’s history has been apart of my life and my
ancestors since the inception of Santa Fe 400 years ago. As a Tesuque Pueblo tribal
member, I celebrate in this occasion because I consider Santa Fe our suburb, since
Tesuque Pueblo has been here since time immemorial.
My Tewa people’s creation story told us how to conduct our lives in what is
now Tesuque Pueblo. Our Creator told us to take these values with us to the new
world, which included all the living beings such as animal, plants, water, air, and
all the surroundings of our environment. Our Creator told us to remember we are
Tewa people and that we need to continue talking our Tewa language, singing our
Tewa songs, and practicing our Tewa ceremonies. The Creator also told us to con-
tinue our core ways of life by loving, caring, and respecting all living beings.
I am from the Pueblo of Tesuque and I was told this story since I was very
little. My family, community, and culture, are the sources of my strengths. I am the
mother of SunnyRose and Sunshine, wife of Chad, sister of Travis and Phoenix,

The youth of Santa Fe today have GREAT OPPORTUNITIES to give back to their
COMMUNITY in any way they think is possible. If we all LOVE, CARE, AND RESPECT
one another, we will all be SUCCESSFUL in the beautiful“town”of Santa Fe.
auntie of Lauren and Alicianna, daughter of Gil and Camille Vigil, and grand-
daughter of Jesse and Viola Clairmont and Marcus and Priscilla Vigil. The Pueblo
of Tesuque is where I grew up and still live at today. I have a deep appreciation
Tunté (Sunshine) Eaton is an up-and-coming vision-
for my traditional ways of life in both my Pueblo and Lakota cultures. My grand-
ary Native American leader who grew up on the
Tesuque Pueblo. Tunté is passionate about tribal pol-
mother Priscilla Vigil (Saya) instilled both traditional and contemporary values in
itics and education. Because of her passion’s, she has me by teaching me Tewa songs, traditional dances, and how to cook traditional
her eyes set on two careers. First, she would like to be Pueblo foods; and, she encouraged me to get an education, so that I could return
the first Native American woman superintendent of to my community to help my people.
the Santa Fe Indian School; second, she wants to be I took these words of encouragement to push me in my educational endeavors.
the first Pueblo woman to serve in the New Mexico I started out small by obtaining an associate’s degree in teaching at the Santa Fe
State Legislature. She plans on achieving these goals Community College because I wanted to return to my alma mater, the Santa Fe
by tailoring a distinct background, which includes Indian School (SFIS), to teach Native American history. I graduated with a bache-
recently graduating from Harvard Kennedy School of lor’s degree in secondary education from the College of Santa Fe, and I made it my
Government with a master’s degree in public admin- mission to be a mentor and role model to the youth while teaching at SFIS. And I
istration. She is also candidate for a juris doctorate did just what my Saya envisioned me to do, which was to give back to my commu-
from The University of New Mexico School of Law in nity and people.
2012. These two degrees will help her continue on an My passions are education and politics, and I have my eyes set on two careers.
unstoppable path. First, I would like to be the superintendent of SFIS; and second, I want to serve

26 BEYOND400
on the New Mexico State Legislature. I plan
on obtaining these goals by tailoring a distinct
background, which includes recently graduating
from Harvard Kennedy School of Government
with a master’s degree in public administration,
and I am also a candidate for a juris doctorate
from the University of New Mexico School of
Law in 2012. These two degrees will help me
become a leader on behalf of my community,
which I think comes from a long line of leader-
ship history.
I grew up with my father telling me the story
of the Pueblo Revolt of 1680. The Pueblo peo-
ple decided to take action into their own hands
because if they did not, it would be the death
of their way of life as Pueblo people. When the
Spaniards were exploring for gold, they found
the Pueblo lands and decided to settle in our
home area. Not only did they decide to settle
here, but they also decided to infringe on the
lives of the Pueblo people. They made slaves out
of the Pueblo people by having them cultivate
crops for the Spanish people, they converted Jerome Samuel of
the Pueblo people into a foreign religion of Tesuque Pueblo,
Catholicism, and they forced the Pueblo people leads a group in the
from not continuing their own traditional ways Snowbird Dance.

of life by ceasing the traditional ceremonies. LAUREN CLIFTON

Tunté Sunshine Eaton performing the Buffalo Dance.
On August 10, 1680, the Pueblo leaders decided that they were going to force
all Spanish people out of their Pueblos and surrounding lands. The Pueblo people
succeeded by chasing the Spaniards back down to Mexico. It was not until 12 years
later that the Spanish wanted to come back into Pueblo lands. The Pueblo peo-
ple knew if the Spaniards were to come back into Pueblo territory that they could
possibly put them in the same terrible circumstances as they did 12 years prior.
But, the Pueblo people knew that they were placed on this earth to love, care, and
respect all living beings and their environment. With these values, they accepted
the Spanish back into their land. It is our story that the Spaniards could only re-
entry New Mexico if they left the Pueblo people alone, to live their life as before
the Spanish came.
Today, all Pueblos respect the Spanish people and their culture by honoring
a Catholic Saint, and having a Pueblo Feast day in that saint’s honor. My Pueblo
honors annually Saint Diego on November 12. We hold a traditional Pueblo Feast
day showing respect for both cultures and traditions. This is a true understanding
of loving, caring, and respecting one another, which will help our communities to
continue to have a quality life for our youth.
Growing up in Tesuque Pueblo, I was taught the values of loving, caring, and
respecting one another. These values have helped me shape who I am today by
always remembering where I come from, whom I represent, and why the creator
has put me on this earth. Santa Fe has always been a significant part of my life in
my education and my dreams. The youth of Santa Fe today have great opportuni-
ties to give back to their community in any way they think is possible. If we all
love, care, and respect one another, we will all be successful in the beautiful “town”
of Santa Fe.

BEYOND400 27
 EMMA HAMMING-GREEN

PRESENTER

I
am currently a senior at the Academy for Technology and the Classics, where
I have advanced through all my school years since the seventh grade. My
favorite classes have always been English and French and I hope to continue
on the track of language study throughout college. Although I haven’t figured out
where I will be next year, I’m hoping to go to college in the Northwest or to study
abroad in the Netherlands for a year. My mother is Dutch and her side of the fam-
ily is living in Holland so I’ve been familiar with the country my whole life, but I
would like to become fluent in the language and culture. The only way I can really
imagine achieving that goal is to spend an extended amount of time there.
As almost everyone does, I love to travel and want to see the world. I would
love to go to South and Central America. My parents met in Guatemala, where
they were both working for a peace organization, Peace Brigades International.

( THE POWER
They then moved up to Bellingham, Washington, where they got married.

My mother misses her

family and native country, but recently told me that she doesn’t regret her choices
in the least.
I have an older brother who is living in Albuquerque and attending UNM. He
writes for The Daily Lobo and is always introducing me to new music. He is the
one who taught me how to skateboard and hacky sack, although I am pretty bad at
both of those activities. I lack the necessary coordination. We grew up in El Paso,
Texas, and moved to Santa Fe nine years ago, when I was in the fourth grade. I
have greatly romanticized the city where I spent the first decade of my life, and
would like to visit again to see what it is really like there. Although I do think
Santa Fe is a great place, filled with wonderful people I have a great desire to leave
the Southwest. I’d like to be surrounded by a little more green.
I work at Baskin Robbins and write articles for Generation Next. Both of these
jobs have been good experiences so far. I have always been interested in creative
writing but have learned to write journalistically through both a journalism
course at my high school and my time with Generation Next. I like it more than I
thought would be possible and I have overcome my timidity through interviews.
When I see my byline in the paper I get a thrill.
During my free time I spend time with the people who are important to me.
I try to be with my friends as much as I can because I know that soon we will be
going our own ways, spread out across the country, attending different colleges. In
all honesty, I have no idea what I want to do with the rest of my life and get slightly
anxious when I am asked that question. I do know that things will be changing

28 BEYOND400
 DAVID SALAZAR

PRESENTER
M
y name is David. I’m unemployed and I live with my parents.
Actually, I’m not unemployed. I work for Silver Rain Bird, Inc., a
retailer/wholesaler of semiprecious and precious stones on the
weekends. But I do live with my parents, although it’s pretty much assumed
that a 17-year-old would. I've lived in Santa Fe my entire life on land that my
parents bought from my aunt.
I suppose you could say I’m close to my family, although that’s mostly
because a good third of my mom’s family live within 1,000 feet of me and
despite a lack of privacy, I wouldn’t want it any other way. My dad’s family is
from Springer, New Mexico, a small town I love to hate, but whose inhabitants I
value beyond words. Being born and raised in Santa Fe, I can say with absolute
conviction that I love it here, and that Santa Fe and New Mexico are where my

PRINT (
heart is (pardon the cliché).

OF Now, the city I love, the city of my birth, the city of Holy Faith turns 400, I
have a chance to be a part of history and to share my own history with a town
whose history is so rich and so varied that mine could never stack up.
It takes a long time to warm up to Santa Fe – and New Mexico in general.
Most people dislike it here because it’s all they’ve ever known, because they
think their parents should have settled elsewhere, or because they feel they
wronged somebody in a past life. But the fact of the matter is that there isn’t
anywhere more unique, more surrounded by fascinating history than Santa Fe.
Which is why I’m going to have a hard time saying good-bye to it.
For the past four years, I’ve wanted to avoid going to UNM, which we all
know stands for University Near Mom. Needless to say, I plan on applying
almost exclusively to out-of-state schools for college. What’s unfortunate about
this situation is that it comes at a time when I’m beginning to fully understand
how awesome Santa Fe and most things about it are. On top of all this, when I
graduate high school, I’m moving with my family to Las Vegas, Nevada. Overall
Santa Fe didn’t choose a very good time for its merits to dawn on me. But I’ll
always value the time that I've lived here.
I have a lot of time left in Santa Fe, and I’ve been lucky to live here through
some of the most historic years in the city’s and my lifetime. I’ve been present
for only 17 years of Santa Fe’s 400, but have been afforded the great opportunity
to be a part of the celebration marking those 400 years and to share in the fes-
tivities. Additionally, there is nothing better than how inherent my being raised
in Santa Fe is to my personality and my consciousness.

BEYOND400 29
 ELIOT FISHER

STORIES TO TELL:
Empowered Students &
Youth Media Project
R
eturning home to Santa Fe after attending a small liberal arts college in
the East, I was excited to become more deeply rooted in the community
in which I grew up. Toward this end, I have actively tried to involve myself
in a range of local organizations and institutions, most recently volunteering the
past year for Youth Media Project as an AmeriCorps VISTA.
Originally part of the War on Poverty, the VISTA program (Volunteers in
Service to America) has been around for more than four decades, and its admin-
YMP YOUTH MEDIA PROJECT

istrators take pride in claiming it today as the only federal program whose explicit
goal is to fight poverty. VISTAs are assigned to sustainably build the capacity
of organizations that serve communities in poverty. So what exactly was Youth
Media Project (YMP), I wondered as I started my work, and how exactly did it
directly serve poor communities in Santa Fe and the surrounding region?
YMP's mission is to “teach and practice the
craft of digital storytelling for a socially respon- Youth Media Project
sibly world.” But what does this really mean?
It’s becoming increasingly apparent today that serves as a laboratory for
a great degree of power lies in the control of
information. So, working in a variety of set-
everyone involved to
tings with partner organizations in education, experiment with different
youth leadership, and civic engagement, YMP
provides the tools necessary for young people ways of linking the
to understand how to navigate and participate
in our rapidly changing technology landscape:
education of young
to listen deeply, think critically, and be an people more directly
active part of the conversation.
Within my first months of work, I was to the knowledge,
impressed to see how our participants empow-
ered themselves to take the production of
cultures, and stories of
media into their own hands. In the process, their own communities.
they redefined “media” for themselves, seeing
in a new light the kind of stories can and should reach our communities. YMP
participants are encouraged to identify and tell the stories that are personally
important to them, as opposed to the focus of the corporate media, which dic-
tates the value of certain stories based on commercial interests.
And the stories young people tell, when they have an opportunity to speak
into that microphone: A high school dropout from Chimayó shares the terrify-

30 BEYOND400
ing moment when he learned he was going to be a father, an event that inspired
him to go back and get his GED. A Navajo student at Santa Fe Indian School tells
of the personal family tragedy that Washington lawmakers created by enacting
a law that led to the deportation of her Mexican stepfather. A Palestinian from
United World College describes how meeting Jewish students here and sharing a
meal made him realize how peace could be possible. Listening to their stories is as
powerful as seeing how the process transforms the tellers.
Having completed my year of service, I look at the work Youth Media Project
does with a deeper understanding of what it means to fight poverty with educa-
tion. The program serves as a laboratory for everyone involved to experiment with
different ways of linking the education of young people more directly to the knowl-
edge, cultures, and stories of their own communities. And it provides a valuable
supplement to our current educational system, which unfortunately often serves to
alienate rather than engage our younger generations. I am more inspired each day
by the network of organizations in our region doing this vital work.
Victor Castillo, a member of Youth Media Project.

Eliot Fisher is a media producer, writer, composer, and teacher from Santa Fe. He attended Santa Fe Prep and has degrees in film studies from Wesleyan
University and documentary studies from the Santa Fe University of Art and Design, where he later taught in the Documentary Certificate Program.
Eliot currently teaches digital media production at Santa Fe Prep.
He says: “I was especially interested in exploring larger questions about independent media arts production: How do we all navigate the quickly
changing new-media landscape, as conventional roles between producer and consumer transform? And how do we take advantage of these changes
while not losing sight of useful, time-tested traditions of communication and storytelling?”

BEYOND400 31

If a student’s YMP EXPERIENCE can be anything near as VALUABLE as it has
been for me, they are in for AN ADVENTURE that will take them both out
into the world and even DEEPER INTO THEMSELVES and their own communities.
Carmen Gallegos was born in Zacatecas, Mexico, and
immigrated to the United States as a young child.
She has been involved with Youth Media Project since
she was a freshman in high school, working first as a
young participant, then an AmeriCorps VISTA volun-
teer, and now as a mentor and outreach coordinator.
She has hosted many Audio Revolution! shows and
created radio narratives about her heritage and iden-
tity, some of which were picked up by national radio
programs and prompted invitations to report on the
Global Youth Leadership Institute and the Parliament
of the World’s Religions in Melbourne, Australia, as a
youth radio producer. In October 2010, Carmen was
awarded a scholarship to attend the Third Coast
International Audio Festival in Chicago, Illinois.
32 BEYOND400
CARMEN GALLEGOS
Changing the Norm
G
rowing up in Santa Fe, the biggest challenge I saw at school was keeping
us students interested in education. The city’s dropout rate was high when
I attended Capital High School, as it is today. But now, more than ever, it’s
vital for our youth to find alternative ways to engage in their education and get job
training. Youth Media Project, a non-profit organization serving Northern New
Mexico, is experimenting with providing these kinds of opportunities.
I began working with YMP as a student participant when I was 14, and now
I serve as a mentor and Outreach Coordinator. When I started six years ago, it
was only a radio class offered at the Santa Fe Community College, a small group
of high school students learning how to tell stories better and create radio pieces.
At the end of the course, we presented our finished products to the group. At
the time, I didn’t realize how the work I was doing with YMP was shaping the
course of my life. Mostly, I showed up because I had nothing better to do, and
also because for the first time, I felt empowered. I felt that my story, which was
unfortunately a very common one for youth in Santa Fe, mattered. When one of
my radio pieces– expressing confusion about my identity as a Mexican immigrant
in the United States– got picked up by National Public Radio and aired around the
country, it hit me: not only had I learned to tell stories and communicate ideas that
were important to me, but they were important to other people, too. As the years
went on, I continued practicing the art I was learning at YMP, took pride in getting
better and better at it, and grew as a person so much. And as I grew, so did YMP.
Today, YMP is an organization with an extensive network of partners in
Northern New Mexico, from public schools and colleges to youth advocacy
groups and others seeking training and professional development in media liter-
acy, media production, leadership and broadcasting. In addition to working with
teachers to bring our media production education into schools and non-profit
organizations, YMP runs an after-school program itself during the school year,
where students learn scripting, hosting skills, recording in the field or studio, and
editing. Now, instead of presenting our stories to a small audience of friends in
a living room, as we did in the early days, student work produced in YMP’s pro-
grams is distributed as Audio Revolution!, an hour-long youth radio show that
airs every other week (on KSFR, Santa Fe’s public radio station), and is repack-
aged for other stations and internet distribution. The spirit of our living room
presentations remains in “listening parties”
open to those involved in the show to take it in
and reflect on it as it goes out live.
Not only do we provide hundreds of teen-
agers with opportunities to learn valuable
artistic, technical and life skills, we’re working
to create the kinds of jobs here in our commu-
nity for them to actually use those skills. And
I love being an early example of that. Helping
our Audio Revolution! production team put
together their show week after week, I continue
seeing myself in my students. And I am so
excited for them. If their YMP experience can
be anything near as valuable as it has been for
me, they are in for an adventure that will take
them both out into the world and even deeper
into themselves and their own communities.

right: Esmerelda Gonzales-Muñoz and Marzia Dessi

of Youth Media Project.
below: Carmen Gallegos interviews an aboriginal
elder, “Uncle” Bob Randall at the Parliament of
the World’s Religions. The group was the only youth
media group to attend the conference, which was held
in December.

BEYOND400 33

When Katy joined Wise Fool as Managing Director
in February 2008, she brought along her values of
practicality and persistence, a passion for the pursuit of
a just society, and a deep belief in the profound ability
of the arts to inspire and change lives.
Communities are joined together
through shared experiences.
As people sit beside each other
at Wise Fool performances, see each
other at our community events,
and take our classes together,
they connect with one another
across perceived social barriers,
and they build a sense of community.
As managing director, Katy Medley helps the organi-
zation to create and sustain healthy administrative,
fundraising, and financial systems and structures
that support our mission and programs. Katy has
been a non-profit arts professional since 2000, with
experience in program management and evaluation,
creation and leadership of fundraising initiatives, RFP
and grants administration, and fiscal management
for a variety of organizations including museums,
galleries, and technical assistance organizations.
She holds a master’s of non-profit arts management
from Heinz College at Carnegie Mellon University.
34 BEYOND400
KATY MEDLEY
WISE FOOL NEW MEXICO:
Changing Lives
One Circus at a Time
W
ise Fool New Mexico is an award-winning, women-run, arts and
social justice organization based in Santa Fe and Peñasco. Founded
in 2000, Wise Fool uses performances and hands-on experiences in
circus arts and puppetry to ignite imagination, build community and promote
social justice.
We are often asked to explain the connection between circus, puppetry and
social justice. Wise Fool operates on the belief that circus and puppetry are inher-
ently revolutionary art forms that empower individuals and enrich lives. Circus
and puppetry mix visual and performing arts through colorful costumes and set-
tings, graceful skills and storytelling. This unique combination draws in audience
members of all ages and walks of life. Add a powerful social message to these
performances, and you have a perfect recipe to spark both wonder and dialogue
in the members of your audience. Over the past 10 years, Wise Fool has created
shows about social issues such as literacy, water rights and land use, immigration
and borders, and domestic violence.
In addition to our performances, Wise Fool works frequently with youth and
teens across New Mexico. Wise Fool works with youth not to create professional
artists or circus performers, but to help youth and teens develop self confidence,
practice teamwork and mutual respect, develop trust in themselves and others,
and explore their unique self-expression.
Wise Fool runs three two-week summer camps, two winter camps, and four
sessions of afterschool each year. Youth return to our camps and afterschool year
after year. Some of the youth who started out in our camps as young children
have now grown up to be teenage CITs, helping to guide the younger campers. A
group of girls from Peñasco who have taken Wise Fool classes for years together,
have performed in Wise Fool’s flagship performance, Circus Luminous, on the
Lensic stage! We also bring stiltwalking, puppet- and mask-making, and theatre
workshops into public, pueblo, and charter schools across the state, serving hun-
dreds of school-age youth each year.
Wise Fool believes that all people should have access to high-quality arts expe-
riences regardless of their ability to pay. Therefore, we offer need-based scholar-
ships to all camps and workshops; sliding-scale, low-cost, and free performances;
and heavily subsidized programs in underserved communities. In 2000 Wise Fool
established programming at the Peñasco Theatre in order to support the rural
Peñasco community by providing consistent, positive activities for youth in a
familiar environment. These programs engage youth in the arts while teaching
life skills. At Peñasco Circus and Arts Summer
Camp, youth have built a community vegeta-
ble garden, learned about water conservation
and decorated catchment systems, and created
performances about nutrition and nurturing,
permaculture, and negotiating generational
differences.
Wise Fool’s teaching artists are residents
of Santa Fe, Peñasco, Taos, and surrounding
communities. From formally trained to self-
studied, all Wise Fool teaching artists possess
experience working with diverse youth in a
variety of community settings, nationally and
internationally, and are accomplished profes-
sional working artists committed to their dis-
ciplines and eager to pass on the traditions and
skills of visual and performance art.
Wise Fool’s programming has an impact
on New Mexicans that is significant and tan-
gible. Wise Fool’s work has been honored with
a prestigious Piñon award from the Santa Fe
Community Foundation (2008), and by the Santa Fe Mayor’s Award for Excellence
in the Arts (2005). Wise Fool has been voted “Best Local Theatre Group” in the
Santa Fe Reporter’s Best Of Poll for three years running (2008, 2009, 2010).
However, the real proof of our success lies not in these awards, or rising
demand for our services, or repeat funding. We know that our programs change
lives and strengthen communities because people tell us so. “Nothing has boosted
(my daughter’s) self-confidence the way her three days at Wise Fool did,” says
one parent of a Wise Fool student. A woman who takes classes with Wise Fool
recently told us, “I grew up as the last kid picked for any gym team and experi-
enced physical activity as something I could not do. Through Wise Fool I discov-
Over the past 10 years, Wise Fool has created shows
about social issues such as literacy, water rights and land
use, immigration and borders, and domestic violence.
ered that I could derive great joy from using my body and that anything I can’t
do is something I can learn and train myself to do. This change has empowered
me in all areas of my life.” These results mirror 90 percent of feedback we receive
from parents and students each year.
Wise Fool has partnered with over 40 local organizations over the past 10
years ranging from Warehouse 21, Santa Fe’s award-winning teen center, to New
Mexico State Behavioral Health Services Native Substance Abuse Prevention team,
Santa Fe Public Schools, The Lensic Performing Arts Center in Santa Fe, regional
Boys and Girls Clubs, El Museo Cultural in Santa Fe, the International Folk Art
Museum, Esperanza Women’s Shelter, and the Institute for American Indian
Arts. We have developed programming for adults with developmental disabilities
through work with Challenge New Mexico and have offered workshops and per-
formances in juvenile detention centers and prisons through collaboration with
Outside In. We recently hosted free giant puppet builds and an outdoor event in
collaboration with twelve organizations, including Santa Fe Tibetan Association,
El Centro Communitario, Tewa Women United, EarthCare International, and
Capital High School’s Gear Up Project, creating giant puppets and performances
that highlight their causes and struggles.
Communities are joined together through shared experiences. As people sit
beside each other at Wise Fool performances, see each other at our community
events, and take our classes together, they connect with one another across per-
ceived social barriers, and they build a sense of community. Each year Wise Fool
serves over 9,000 individuals through performances and workshops. All of Wise
Fool’s programs focus on creative process, collaboration and dialogue as the well-
proven means by which our projects educate, strengthen and build community,
cross dividing lines, and boost understanding, personal pride and self determina-
tion. We encourage participants to become active in creating the positive change
they seek.
For additional information about Wise Fool, please visit our website at
www.wisefoolnewmexico.org.
BEYOND400 35

REACHING ACROSS
THE GENERATIONS:
Hand-to-Hand, Heart-to-Heart
Eighty-eight-year-old Agnes “dances”
across the stage with 15-year-old Brenda
and 30-year-old Linne. Five-year-old
Suzette forms a “human wall” by interlock-
ing arms and legs with her mother Lilia,
brother Emilio, and the rest of the ensem-
ble. In 2007, Littleglobe presented the
world premiere of Memorylines Santa Fe:
Voces de Nuestras Jornadas at the Lensic
Performing Arts Center. This “new opera”
was created and performed by 24 Santa Fe
residents, ages 5-88, including grandmoth-
ers, children, and grandchildren.
Valerie Martínez is a poet, essayist, librettist, play-
wright, teacher and collaborative artist. She is the
author of six books of poetry. For over 15 years, she
has also worked with children, youth, adults, teach-
ers, and seniors in a wide range of community pro-
grams. Valerie is executive director and core artist
with Littleglobe and was the poet laureate for the
city of Santa Fe from March 2008 to March 2010.
36 BEYOND400
VALERIE MARTÍNEZ,
Executive Director, Littleglobe
L
ast March, after a year and a half of working together, three generations of
the Quintana Gallegos family finished a quilt begun by their mother/grand-
mother/great- and great-great-grandmother who made the first stitch the day
the astronauts landed on the moon in 1969. Three generations of the Akers Covelli
Hunt Family (including 16-year-old Delaney) created life-size photos of themselves
and their beloved “Mary Louise” (who passed away at 104) and collaged them with
their “favorite things.” And in 2008, over 100 residents from the villages and town of
Torreon, Ojo Encino and Cuba, ages 5-85, created and produced a festival of original
films, music, spoken word, poetry, and performance after six months of creative col-
laboration.
These and other Littleglobe intergenerational projects have shown the power
and significance of New Mexico families working together. Littleglobe believes that
New Mexico 's wealth lies in the richness and diversity of its multi-ethnic, economi-
cally-diverse, and multi-generational communities. In a time when the media tends
to focus on New Mexico’s lower national rankings and challenges, Littleglobe is see-
ing the enormous capacity that is generated when youth work creatively with their
parents, when parents create with grandparents, when grandparents collaborate with
grandchildren.
How does this work? Littleglobe’s Common Ground projects start with an invita-
tion to Littleglobe by members of a community. This is usually a result of challenges
and/or divisions that are preventing residents from working together effectively and
moving forward. Community members are looking for ways to connect and coop-
erate—restoring healthier relationships (within and between families) and/or cre-
ating new ones that might lead to a brighter future for everyone. Littleglobe then
spends time getting to know as many people, schools and organizations as possible.
Eventually, we set up once or twice weekly gatherings, inviting any and all mem-
bers of the community to join us for food, fellowship and creative engagement. We
emphasize that all members of the community are welcome, including families, and
we schedule meetings outside of traditional school and work hours to encourage
children, teens, young adults, adults and elders to attend.
Over a period of months, community members collaborate with a Littleglobe
team of artists in different creative disciplines-music, dance, film, poetry, writ-
ing, visual art, and others. Together, we might
create human sculptures with our bodies, use
vocal percussion to compose original works of
choral “music,” create poetry that we perform
as a group. Children might use cameras to cap-
ture the faces and movements of their parents
or grandparents; grandparents lead the rest of
the group in prayers, traditional songs or art-
making. Many of these and other activities
require the active listening and witnessing of
each participant’s idea or contribution, no mat-
ter his or her age. And there is always plenty of
food and fellowship.
Littleglobe creative sessions ask each and
every participant to make space for differ-
ent physical capabilities as well as perspectives
unlike their own. A father listens to the poem
of his teenage son; a grandmother teaches her
grandson the patience necessary to do beadwork;
a granddaughter helps her grandmother steady a
camera. This kind of collaboration emphasizes
listening, tolerance, individual gifts and compas-
sion. And because each project involves the cre-
ation of a performance/installation/work of art,
youth, adults and elders develop the skills they
need to “build” something meaningful and sig-
Members of Littleglobe sharing their lives with each other.
nificant together. It’s also important to mention that this kind of creative work is full
of laughter, joy, and FUN.
Intergenerational collaboration, outside of work in family businesses, is becoming
more and more rare these days. We might gather together for occasional family din-
ners or celebrations, but we do this without necessarily “building” something more
than a meal together. Busy schedules, hours surfing the net, video games, non-stop
texting, and the natural tendency to gather with those who are like us in age or per-
spective segregates us from each other, within our families, and certainly from those
who might be different from us. This is an unfortunate reality of contemporary life.
Intergenerational collaboration, at its core, draws on the individual capabili-
ties and talents of each family member and “weaves” them into a unified whole.
Youth have a very special role in this. They live in worlds that are different from
their parents’ and remarkably different than their grandparents’. They have skills
and strengths their parents lack. They are often feisty and opinionated. And they
are very often yearning to be “heard.” Littleglobe creative sessions provide a safe
and encouraging space for young people to express themselves, be witnessed and
be heard by their elders. At the same time, youth learn new things about their
elders by interacting with them in creative ways.
When youth and elders come together again and again in a joyful, creative space
that allows for the sharing of talents, perspectives and capabilities, magical things
happen. We discover and re-discover each other; we learn to cooperate across the
years that once seemed to divide us, and we deepen our connections, making lasting
memories and future collaborative projects all the more possible. Inter-generational
collaboration shows us the future of New Mexico, rising up and out of strong, lov-
ing, connected families that build stronger communities—hand to hand and heart
to heart.
Littleglobe is a Santa
Fe-based 501(c)3
organization that
exists to create
collaborative art,
nurture community
capacity, and
foster life-affirming
connections across
the boundaries
that divide us.
Learn more about us
and our projects at
www.littleglobe.org.
BEYOND400 37
NEW MEXICO

YOUTH FORUM The New Mexico Youth Alliance is a statewide advisory board composed of youth
representatives, one from each legislative district, up to 112 members from 14 to
24 years old. It is a project of the lieutenant governor’s office housed under the
New Mexico Forum for Youth in Community, a nonprofit organization striving to
promote positive youth development. The NMYA was established in 2003 by the
Youth Council Act, which enables state lawmakers to create policies with youth
recommendations. Each member has local support from an adult partner who
provides mentoring to Youth Alliance members throughout and beyond their
experience in the New Mexico Youth Alliance.

WHY DO WE NEED A YOUTH ALLIANCE?

The Youth Alliance is essential for ensuring youth all around New Mexico have a
meaningful voice in our state’s political process. Youth Alliance members engage in:

SERVING FOR UP TO TWO YEARS AT A GLANCE, COMMUNITY IMPACT

Developing and administering a statewide annual survey
to youth, and prioritized a legislative policy platform of
youth issues.
Meet on a statewide level four times a year to discuss
youth issues and present their platform and youth policy
recommendations to the governor, lieutenant governor,
New Mexico Children’s Cabinet, and legislators.
Developing community impact projects to mobilize
local youth networks in their communities in order to
make positive changes in their communities. Examples
of project areas: Health care access, educational equity,
immigration as a civil rights Issue, teenage pregnancy
prevention, teenage dating violence, alcohol prevention,
juvenile justice, youth rights, suicide prevention, and
youth leadership, organization and mobilization.
PROJECTS INCLUDE:
Prevention and intervention initiatives, particularly
working to prevent suicide prevention. Recently, young
people developed a community impact project with the
support of their adult partner, Irene Ortiz, by hosting a suc-
cessful conference with over 100 middle and high school
students. Student participants went to youth- and adult-
led workshops to learn about suicide prevention, nutrition
and fitness, teenage dating violence, and alcohol preven-
tion. The goal of the conference was to provide youth par-
ticipants the opportunity to take information back to their
communities and train their peers.
Organizing youth engagement. The youth alliance
has been part of a process that is youth leadership. The
process includes two days during which young people
throughout the state connect, create, and discuss issues
that affect their community. Through youth engagement
and partnership with many community groups, the project
connects with youth individually, based on the belief that

38 BEYOND400
young people can change the world. We understood the
responsibility of support for others and the importance of
helping each other. As youth, we stand as the experts in
our creation but most importantly are developing ways to
share that knowledge. We share what we create because
we understand what we do serves’ a specific group, com-
munity, or issue. The way we present and educate our
ideas to others is by giving youth, as well as adults, is the
“walls” to creating a specific plan or idea to the one who
listens. We are unique, “driven”, but most importantly striv-
ing to get our ideas out and share them with the world.
The creation of organization youth engagement stands for
the opportunity to be loud enough to get one’s attention.
What we do as supports, we help with the next step and
that’s to stand up and present what young people want
in their communities. Leadership is something one needs
to grow into, but there is still tons of growth from us youth
to reach that level. We believe that we are youth helping
other youth. We consider ourselves youth who lead with
other youth; youth leading together.
Moneka Stevens-Cordova, director of the New Mexico Youth Alliance,
received her B.A. from The University of New Mexico with a focus on
quality youth programming and will complete her masters’ degree in
community regional planning from UNM with a focus in youth planning
and youth policy in 2011. She has over 10 years of experience promoting
positive youth development through youth organizing and youth advo-
cacy. As director of the alliance, she connects and works with the young
people in our state as they are driven to staying engaged in their com-
munities to make positive changes. This engagement ensures youth are
not only engage in their local communities, but are engaged in con-
necting with elected officials to refine policies in order to benefit young
people and their communities.
BEYOND400 39
ALEX WIRTH, Generation Next
Santa Fe in 100 Years
P
eople often cringe when I introduce
myself as a senior at Santa Fe Prep. They
give me the look—you’re a preppie going
to that privileged school up on the hill. That look
is just one of the many that appear on the faces
of Santa Feans as they are introduced to people
of different backgrounds in our community.
To put it simply—Santa Fe is too divided. I
sometimes feel that we are two or three different
cities mashed together into one. There are the
foothills, Las Campanas and Eldorado. There
is the central part of the town with many old-
time Santa Feans who have been here for gen-
erations. And there is the south side of town
where a large part of our immigrant community
resides. Each of these different areas of town has
its own reputation where judgments can fuel an
underlying division.
As Santa Feans, we all come from differ-
ent backgrounds and pride ourselves on being
multi-cultural and diverse. And yet, do we really
embrace our diversity? I would say we don’t.
Diversity should be different people coming
together and engaging in dialogue that respects
others. Diversity isn’t assuming that Prep is full
of rich white kids who do drugs, just as it isn’t
assuming that kids who go to Capital High
School are involved in gangs and have no future.
Both of these assumptions are completely false,
yet ones I have commonly heard throughout my
17 years in this town.
In the next 100 years, it would be my hope
that these stigmas didn’t exist. I would hope that
citizens from the southern part of town would
feel just as comfortable on the Plaza as someone
from the east side hanging out at The Santa Fe
Place. I would hope that people would look at
each other with respect and would reserve judg-
ment until they actually knew what they were
talking about. Now, I realize that what I am sug-
gesting is both grand and sensitive. Something
that won't happen overnight, but we have 100
years here.
40 BEYOND400
500
Santa Fe has overcome challenges
that make the ones we face today
look pitiful. Four hundred years ago
we were concerned about hostile
neighbors, not the group of skate-
boarders in the back alley. During
the Great Depression we lacked
an economy all together instead of
tight budgets for our city govern-
ment and local nonprofits. We are
a grand city that has conquered
grand challenges in the past —
we must never forget that.
What we need is simply more community collaboration and events that
encourage people to interact and listen to each other. Encourage people to listen
to the story of the 41-year-old homeless man spending the night at the Interfaith
Community Shelter, because a house is too expensive in Santa Fe. Listen to the 74-
year-old couple who moved to Santa Fe to retire from New York, but who are con-
cerned about their savings lasting as long as their lives. Listen to the 28-year-old
single mom who can’t afford to take the city bus to get her toddler to the emergency
room. Or maybe try and listen to the 17-year-old Prep student who is hearing all of
these stories across Santa Fe and wanting to see change.
There is no doubt about it. We are a city made up of diverse people. Our prob-
lem is that we don’t embrace our diversity — we cringe at it. Some people don’t feel
comfortable in a room of kids with baby blue St. Mike’s shirts or walking through
the portals of the Academy for Technology and the Classics. Some dislike spending
time at the Rodeo Grounds or the Railyard because they don’t feel they are wel-
come. We read about the shooting in the paper and are thankful that it wasn’t in our
neighborhood, but don’t really empathize with the families that were affected just a
20-minute drive away or the police officers who had to respond to the call.
In the coming 100 years, it would be my hope that this will all change. That stu-
dents and community members will look at each other with genuine respect and
understanding. Something that can only happen by people stopping a moment,
listening, and getting involved with people outside of their comfort zone. Because,
really, we are not preppies, we are not gangsters, we are not southsiders, we are not
rich, we are not poor, we are not immigrants, we are not troublemakers, we are not
homeless, we are not afraid—we are Santa Feans.
Alex Wirth is a seventh-generation New Mexican and native Santa Fean. He graduated from
Wood Gormley Elementary and is now a senior and the Student Council president at Santa
Fe Prep. Alex also serves as the chair of the Santa Fe Mayor's Youth Advisory Board and is a
student editor for Generation Next.
CHARLOTTE SMART, Generation Next
In the Future
N
ext to Dublin, Ireland, Santa Fe, New
Mexico, has the most writers per
capita. For the first half of the 20th
century, writers such as Willa Cather and D. H.
Lawrence came to Santa Fe, in search for inspi-
ration and enthralled by its alluring beauty,
history, and culture. In the later half of the cen-
tury, a plethora of writers, including Cormac
McCarthy, N. Scott Momaday, Tony Hillerman,
Robert Bradford and John Nichols claimed New
Mexico as their homes. Emerging on the scene
is a new breed of writers, writers not drawn
to the Land of Enchantment, but born here.
Rudolfo Anaya, Jimmy Santiago Baca, and Luci
Topahonso encompass the “New Mexico expe-
rience” in its entirety, and give New Mexico a
voice in the future of classic literature.
In the future, there will be more homegrown
authors similar to the ones already born here.
Jimmy Santiago Baca is a New Mexican
writer of Indio-Mexican descent. In his lifetime,
he has published novels, volumes of poetry,
short stories and a memoir. His award-win-
ning memoir, A Place to Stand, parallels that
of a character of a classic novel. His riveting
tale could easily belong to Holden Caulfield,
Tom Sawyer or David Copperfield. He recalls
his early childhood, when raised by his grand-
mother, before being sent to an orphanage. At
an early age, Baca found himself behind bars in
a maximum-security prison. Unlike the other
prisoners, however, prison became a time of
enlightenment for Baca. Out of this experience
grew an avid love for poetry. In fact, he incor-
porates much of the poetry written in jail into
the memoir. A Place to Stand soon won the
Pushcart Prize, The American Book Award,
International Hispanic Heritage Award, and the
International Award. His controversial tale and
universal themes include injustice, education,
community, and love, guarantee Baca a place to
stand alongside classic writers.
Rudolfo Anaya, was born in rural New
Mexico to farmers and sheepherders. This
majestic landscape grew to inspire his
novel Bless Me, Ultima. The story discusses
a time, not too long ago, and an “enchanted”
place. The novel’s hero, Antonio, a pre-teen
Hispanic boy living in post-World War
II New Mexico, is given a choice between
following his family’s rigid religious ways
or embracing the supernatural world of
Ultima. The issues of poverty, war, religion,
and good and evil dominate the text. Similar
to Baca, Anaya is renowned of plays, short
stories, and poetry. As an educator, he has published a series of non-fiction works
around his state’s history and culture. Anaya illustrates tales passed down by mul-
tiple generations, but his master storytelling skills weave a tapestry unique to any
other. His themes transcend time throughout the ages, earning Anaya a position as
a future classic writer.
Luci Topahonso has gained international recognition in the past 20 years as a
poet. Born on a Navajo reservation, Topahonso learned English as a second lan-
guage. All of her poetry is originally written in her native Diné language for tribal
and spiritual purposes, and then translated into English. As a result, her English
poetry possesses a unique rhythm. Many of her poems tell stories similar to a bal-
lad. Topahonso’s poetry is accessible and relatable to all ages. She not only writes
about the Navajo experience (“Daané’é Diné”) but also every day subjects (“A
Birthday Poem”). Topahonso is best known for her anthology Saánii Dahataal or
The Women are Singing. This anthology was crucial to Topahonso’s writing career
because the poems were published side by side in Dine and English. A few years
subsequent to this anthology, she published Blue Horses Rush In, the poems of
which focus on Navajo daily life. Her voice and tone are similar to those of Maya
Angelou. Her themes are universal and will reach out to readers far into the future.
These writers’ works will not pass as swiftly as an October wind, nor will they
gather dust in libraries. When considering literary writers of the past, it becomes
evident that these three authors possess the mandatory elements required to gain
status as “classics.” In 100 years, they will be the voice of New Mexico.
In the next 100 years, perhaps some of the youth of Santa Fe will be the voice of
New Mexico.
Charlotte Smart is a junior at Santa Fe Secondary School. You can reach her at charchar@
cybermesa.com.
BEYOND400 41
AUSTIN TYRA & DASHA WILSON, Generation Next

Imagining the Future of Technology

W
hat do you think will happen in
the next 100 years with technol-
ogy? Will it become more of a part
of life for human kind? Or will it become more
“green,” so to speak, and be less energy consum-
ing? Think about it — most people do every
day. Could humans even survive without the
help and assistance of technology? They did in
the past. But once you learn how to use it, which
I must say is not easy, it is almost impossible to
live without it.
Could technology potentially (maybe even-
tually) destroy what we know without it? I imag-
ine the asking of questions about this subject we
call technology, or tech for short. Should people
start to, or rather continue, to shelter their chil-
dren from the unbelievably rapid spreading and
growing subject?
Back in the day, someone who
knew a lot about technology
used to sometimes be referred
to as a geek, but now most
people know endless little tricks,
even creating cheat sheets,
and games on these gadgets.
Financially, most people cannot keep up
with technology these days. And the possibil-
ity of becoming hooked on technology for life
becomes part of the concern. Many people see
others spending hours everyday in front of the
computer screen. Whether it is part of your job
or a way to communicate with friends, we all
do have to agree that at one point the world,
especially the United States, is slowly becoming
rather obsessed with just having these things. Many adults wonder what happened to
the world and often find themselves lost and handing an electronic device to some-
one as young as five years of age. Back in the day, someone who knew a lot about
technology used to sometimes be referred to as a geek, but now most people know
endless little tricks — even creating cheat sheets — and games on these gadgets.
In the future, we will continue to have all the traditional technology that we’ve
grown accustomed to — such as lights in houses and on the street or iPads and
cell phones.
It’s a pretty popular subject, but we personally hope that technology becomes
more traditional and original, I think it would be kind of like bringing back some
old-school flavor, but hopefully not too much.
A hundred years in the future is rather unimaginable, but it might include
phones that will become even more like a computer. In Santa Fe, laptops might flat
out disappear. Television will most likely be holographic. Everything visual will be
three dimensional. Everything will involve voice activation. You could possibly drive
without touching the steering wheel. Social networking will begin to become even
more personal, and pictures and videos will be easier to upload on Twitter. It will be
easier to use technology. Classical music will be long gone except ultimate classics
like Beethoven and Mozart. Live music will be much more colorful and interactive.
In closing, people should expect to see massive improvements in technology
quicker than they already do. People will become more technologically savvy than
they already are. A demand for technology will be required for most, if not, all jobs.
Austin Tyra is a freshman at St. Michael’s High School. You can reach him at wannabe
writer20@yahoo.com. Dasha Wilson is a freshman at the Santa Fe Waldorf School. You can
reach her at dwfreshman2@gmail.com.

42 BEYOND400
DAVID SALAZAR, Generation Next
Hola David
Hola Davíd, ¿cómo te ha ido?
W
hy do I feel like this is a quiz? Why
can’t I talk to my uncle when he
addresses me in Spanish, the lan-
guage most of my family has grown up speaking?
In years when I took Spanish at school, I
spoke it in class, but nowhere else unless in an
extreme situation where a smattering of Spanish
and a crude ability to conjugate came in handy.
Otherwise, I never spoke Spanish. Now that I’m
not taking a Spanish class, my knowledge dissi-
pates as my brain fills up with calculus deriva-
tives, Sigmund Freud and federalism. This
simple occurrence, my brain doing away with
its Spanish as it makes room for everything it
deems more important, is indicative of a bigger
issue that faces the Hispanic culture and stands
as a barrier to one’s ability to bridge generations.
There’s a reason several Native American
tribes have an oral history and a lot of it has to
do with the thought that one’s elders are wiser
than they are and that the older members of
society have taken on the burden of educating
the younger ones about their origins. And it
can be argued that the biggest thing contribut-
ing to the oral tradition is the language. Native
Americans have used their history as a way to
preserve their language, their culture, and in
so doing have bridged a gap between genera-
tions, a gap that only seems to be widening in
Hispanic culture as the knowledge of the lan-
guage deteriorates.
Now, a language does not an entire culture
make. Because a person doesn’t speak the lan-
guage of his culture doesn’t mean that he can-
not carry on family traditions, but it acts as a
barrier between generations. Speaking Spanish
doesn’t have any affect how good your red chile
tastes, nor does it have any bearing on knowl-
edge of history, but being unable to speak to
those who not only remember history,
but lived it, affects how well a person can
bridge a generation gap. And this gap
exists because people, my generation
specifically, have no use for the people
we should value the most.
Our elders carry with them knowl-
edge of the town that they grew up
in, that their parents grew up in
and that their offspring and their
offspring’s offspring have grown up
in. They carry with them stories about
the 400 years that our city has existed;
stories they learned form their elders.
Four hundred years of culture in
our city has featured destruction of
villages, pueblos and lives. But those
400 years have also seen a new culture
take root in the Santa Fe soil and grow
from the dust that Don Juan de Oñate
rode over in 1610, dust that pueblo
messengers ran over in 1680 and dust that Don Diego de
Vargas Zapata Luján Ponce de León y Contreras carried La
Conquistadora over in 1692, with the goal of a bloodless reconquest.
All of the events that have taken place over our city’s 400 years have shaped
the culture of our town, and the myths and legends and histories that have passed
from generation to generation have closed the gap between those living in the
here and now and those who are dead and gone. The next 100 should not be
absent of that bridge.
In the age of technology, history struggles to stay relevant to my generation,
language struggles to stay relevant to my generation, and those who are some-
what long in the tooth struggle to stay relevant, and struggle to convey that they
have significant things to say. They know the old legends of curanderas and
La Llorona. They know what this town looked like before the roads were paved
and before a nickel was a useless hunk of metal, but they also know what defines
their culture: language, tradition, food, and a knowledge of a shared history, a his-
tory that affects everyone.
David Salazar is a senior at Santa Fe High School. You can reach him at davidjsalazar@
gmail.com.
BEYOND400 43
EMMA HAMMING-GREEN, Generation Next

Seasons of Change
T
here are some things, like the changing everybody, regardless of economic status. I envision more than this family, but a
of the seasons, that always stay the same. slew of people who in today’s system would avoid seeking medical attention for any
For the entirety of our city’s existence, number of ailments because of the high cost, seeking medical help. In present times,
and for the next hundred years and beyond, many of these people continue to sicken unnecessarily because of the high medical
winter will warm to spring, which will lead to costs. In the future this will not happen. There will be good primary and preventa-
the heat of summer, which will fade into a cool tive care, which means fewer people would be getting sick in the first place.
autumn. My absolute favorite thing about Santa In the future health care is available and accessible to all. With this system, the
Fe is the gorgeous fall we see each year. people of our city will become healthier as a whole. In the future of Santa Fe, as peo-
For a few weeks, Hyde Park becomes a beau- ple celebrate the beautiful autumn by taking a hike, no one will be pondering ways
tiful sea of yellow. Even seen from afar, one can to pay their recent, extravagant hospital bill. Instead, there will be one less burden
tell that it is an amazing sight to behold. During on our shoulders and we will be able to walk without the extra weight.
that time, hundreds of people drive up the
mountain, stopping at various trails or going all
the way up to the ski lift to get a closer look at
the rare spectacle of thousands of yellow, orange
and red leaves decorating Mount Baldy.
For as long as the seasons shift and the aspens
change their colors, people will flock to witness
the magnificent view. A hundred years from
now, imagine a family of four, parents taking
their young girl and boy for a hike on one of
the Hyde Park trails. The children run up and
down the trail, occasionally hiding behind trees,
jumping out at their parents when they stroll by.
This simple pleasure is one of the few this fam-
ily is able to enjoy, as they are of modest means.
The mother and father work part-time, mini-
mum wage jobs, in their free time caring for
their children. The rare hours all four of them
spend together are precious.
When the little boy is running toward his par-
ents, he trips and falls, rolling down the trail
and breaking his ankle. His father lifts him into
his arms and the four of them rush back to their
car, driving straight to the hospital.
What would happen to this family in this sce-
nario, set a hundred years from now? They
would not have to worry about the bill being
too much for them to pay. That is something no
one needs to stress over anymore in 100 years, Emma Hamming-Green is a senior at The Academy for Technology and the Classics. You can
because I see quality health care to be given to reach her at happycamper156@hotmail.com.

44 BEYOND400
MARIELLE DENT, Generation Next
A Hundred Years from Now
A
lice woke up later than she should
have one brisk Tuesday morning and
immediately wished it was Friday. In
her opinion, Friday was the best day of the week
because after school she would go to the Friday
Evening Concert. The Concert, as it was called
by locals, had begun 20 years ago, five years
before Alice was born, and had become exceed-
ingly popular. Tourists especially loved to listen
to the music while sitting on the famous Santa
Fe Plaza as the sun set overhead.
Rolling out of bed, she appreciated that her
room was warm because her house was built to
rely on its own generated heat. This meant that
even in winter they didn't need a heating system
which was an especially good heating method in
New Mexico. During the winter in Santa Fe the
sun beat down on the city so at night her house
had enough retained heat to stay warm.
After hurriedly getting dressed in jeans and
a sweater she grabbed her precious laptop com-
puter and left the house. Everyone had a laptop,
especially students; it was the only way to get any-
thing done since paper no longer existed. About
50 years ago the manufacturing of paper had
been decreased until it was non-existent in order
to save the trees. The amount of trees on earth
had reached a critical point because they weren't
growing back fast enough in relation to how fast
we cut them down. Stopping paper manufactur-
ing has begun to help our planet settle back into
its normal and healthy state. Because of this deci-
sion rainforests, especially the Amazon, have
begun to thrive once more. Alice thought about
what she had learned in history class.
Finally Alice arrived at school via the city
hydro-bus, and hurried to her first period class,
history. Even though her favorite subject was
English, history was definitely second runner
up. As she walked to class she took notice of
the everyday surroundings of her school and
remembered what she had learned about its his-
tory. Academy for Technology and the Classics
had begun as a small school
and hadn’t even gotten a
school building until 2007.
It had struggled to grow and
add new buildings, clubs
and sports, and live up to
its name. Since that time
ATC had built a science and
technology lab, a stage and
an immense garden. The
list of new additions went
on and on. They had a vari-
ety of classical subjects like Latin, philosophy and debate; and students who gradu-
ated from ATC where known to have received a complete and full education. Hers
was a school students scrambled to get into.
Alice had been thinking about history a lot lately because this year was the 500th
anniversary of Santa Fe being a city. She knew that in the past one hundred years
not only had humans become more environmentally friendly but the world had
also advanced a lot technologically. Extensive wind energy farms had been set up
all over the world including some in New Mexico and near Santa Fe. America had
built the first colony on Mars which was beginning to grow now. The space shuttles
used for this operation and for expeditions before and after it had been launched in
New Mexico. All cars ran on water and plastics had been replaced by biodegradable
materials. Santa Fe had become more “green” as people probably would have put it
a hundred years ago. They had large parks for people to hold gatherings in or just
enjoy. The public buses ran on water and most of the population of Santa Fe rode
them on a regular basis. Santa Fe had also remained a small city instead of grow-
ing upward or outward in order to reduce pollution and the resources that would
be needed to build unnecessary buildings. Residents of Santa Fe understood and
appreciated why it is good to only have one of something if only one is needed.
When Alice got home she began and finished her homework and then began
writing on her blog. She aspired to be a journalist when she grew up and had
begun a blog about the local events happening in Santa Fe. All newspapers includ-
ing papers like The New York Times or The Washington Post and Santa Fe’s own
The New Mexican where now online and could be read electronically. However,
many journalists also had blogs or podcasts in addition to or instead of working
for newspapers. Books were also no longer printed and were instead only available
electronically. As Alice wrote she realized how incredible her reality was. To people
living a hundred years ago it would seem impossible, and yet it wasn’t. Alice felt
lucky to be living in and experiencing her time period.
Marielle Dent is a sophomore at Academy for Technology and the Classics. You can contact
her at onyx-13@hotmail.com.
BEYOND400 45
MARZIA DESSI, Generation Next
The Language of Tomorrow
“There is no right proper justifiable way to go about this,” he informed me. I nodded.
I understood, but I thought of the future as a reality yet to be explored.
M
y view of the future was different
than his, because he was of the past
while I was of the present. I could
see the future because it would be my future
and I was closer to it then he, making my solu-
tion the better I thought. After all, who has the
right to judge the future better than those of
the future?
I smiled. Yes, I would live to be 100. I would
live to see the future of the city of Santa Fe. I
would live to see the language and its many
changes. I would live to see the language trans-
form into the language of that day. Yes, I would
be the one amongst the two of us to see Santa
Fe’s 500th anniversary. This is the future I see:
The language changes greatly. I do not see us
speaking the same speech we speak on this day
amongst ourselves. There are many paths the
language might take. For one, it might turn into
a speech of the alien races which are soon to pay
us a visit. For another, we might never live to see
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that day due to the serious issues of global warming. For another, it might trans-
form into a Spanish since we are already well equipped to do so. It might also trans-
form into an English, or it might become what we call Spanglish. Yes, the language
of Santa Fe could become many things.
Placing my opinion into words is difficult to do, for I am a lover of classical nov-
els. Watching the language of Dante, Darwin and Shakespeare die does, to me, not
sound as all such a pleasant thing. If it dies I shall kill myself to save it from perish-
ing for I care for it greatly, however difficult it is to understand. Seeing it transform
into cyber-gibberish is not my dream and I highly doubt my father’s. But he, unlike
I, does not have to gaze in the face of it, for he shall not live to see 150 unless they
succeeded in brain transplant. But then there is as great a chance that the world
might explode or aliens shall invade.
By any means, the language I hope to see within the future is that of Shakespeare –
a language filled with symbolism, filled with the sweet aroma of words which we
take such great pleasure drinking in.
“We all have a different opinion of language,” he says. Yes, indeed we do and I
am willing to stand and defend my opinion on that which the future will be. For I
have beliefs that our language can either transform into cyber-gibberish (which has
its uses) or into the poetical, yet extensively difficult, language of Shakespeare.
By any means, the language I hope to see WITHIN THE FUTURE
is that of SHAKESPEARE – a language filled with symbolism,
filled with the SWEET AROMA OF WORDS which we take such great
pleasure drinking in.
What judgment have we to make of the future that is a million years away? But
in the end, a hundred years is but the passing of three generations. If you come
across the young people who will be part of those generations, help them, for they
are to determine what the world is like within a hundred years. They are the ones
who will bear children and teach them all they will learn. Help them, for the future
lies in there hands.
Please help, for I do not wish to stand beside my volumes and weep for their
sweet language has died and they are no longer immortal as I thought them to be.
Marzia Dessi is a sophomore at Espanola Valley High School. You may contact her at
azulamarz@rocketmail.com.
TORI VELARDE, Generation Next
Spanish Links
I
t’s October 3, 2110. I’m sitting in Spanish
class, trying to stay focused on the com-
puter giving a lecture in front of me and
not let my mind wander. It’s no use. Today my
mind is somewhere else. I’m 9-years old again,
and we’re going to visit my great-grandmother
for her birthday. She lived with my great-
grandfather on the other side of town in a
little old house with cracked adobe walls and
real wood on the floors. To be honest, I always
liked their home much more than mine. It
was cluttered and creaky but it had “charac-
ter” like mom used to say.
I remember on the way, watching the sky
fade from grey to blue, and smiling when
I saw the elm trees and crab grass that had
sprouted out of the ground. The ride there
only took a few minutes, so it wasn’t long
before we were walking up the friendly brick
path to great-grandma and grandpa’s front
door. Their doorbell never went off automati-
cally like ours does when someone stops by,
but there was a button that had to be pushed
from the outside. I remember that day I was
the one who got to ring the bell.
When the door opened my great-grandma
CeCe popped out with a big grin on her face.
“CeCe” — that was my great-grandmother's
name. It was short for Cecelia, a name that
sounded old when she was a kid.
“Come in, come in!” Grandma CeCe said
with a laugh as she ushered us all inside. She
greeted each one of us with a hug and a small
kiss on the cheek, followed by the traditional,
“¿Cómo estás?”
I remember the first thing my little brother
did was shove the picture he printed out right
in front of great-grandma CeCe’s face. He
printed it special for her birthday that morn-
ing, and hadn’t let it out of his sight since. He
When I was small, my GRANDMA
CECE used to sit down with
me and help me PRACTICE
MY SPANISH. It was so
important to her that her
family KNEW THE LANGUAGE.
She would justify herself
by saying that if we DIDN’T
PRESERVE OUR LANGUAGE, we
were sure to LOSE OUR CULTURE.
Amalia Sanchez Fiesta Queen, 1927
was so proud of that picture. I remember how my grandma CeCe rushed to put
in her contacts so she could get a good look at Owen’s masterpiece before she
told him how much she loved it. “This is beautiful, mijito,” she said graciously.
When I was small, my Grandma CeCe used to sit down with me and help
me practice my Spanish. It was so important to her that her family knew the
language. She would justify herself by saying that if we didn’t preserve our
language, we were sure to lose our culture, and tell us how her mother always
regretted never learning Spanish. At the time, I didn’t understand why it was
such a big deal, but she was right.
Sometimes I would spend whole afternoons looking through Grandma CeCe’s
old photo albums. She had copies of copies of old black-and-white photographs
that she loved to pull out and show to us. Supposedly, the people in the pictures
were somehow related to me, but I was never able to relate to any of them. My great-
grandmother inspired me to find a way to connect to my family’s past, and for
me, Spanish has become a way of doing just that. Spanish helps me to understand
where I came from. Living in Santa Fe, going to Fiestas, baking biscochitos —
it’s not enough. Maybe it's just me, but when I order an enchilada, I want to pro-
nounce it right.
Tori Velarde is a senior at Santa Fe High School. You can reach her at tori@velardenm.com .
BEYOND400 47
VAUGHN FORTIER-SHULTZ, Generation Next
Santa Fe’s
Health Conscious Future
“The present is a result of the past,” a teacher of mine
told me once. He was correct.
L
iving in times as prosperous as these
raises questions as to how a utopia like
Santa Fe, the one I call home, was cre-
ated; and, as is often the case, the past was not
as pretty as the present.
I don’t know when exactly the trend of being
overweight began, but about a hundred years
ago, in the first quarter of the 21st century, it
reached its terrifying peak. In Santa Fe, over 90
percent of the population was so overweight
that the city health administrators decided to
raise the standard for obesity to accommodate
them. Even those who loved overeating the
most realized that the way things were going,
heart attacks would soon be the only natural
cause of death.
Concern spread through the city rapidly
as hospitals and doctor’s offices became full
beyond capacity with patients whose health
problems stemmed from their weight. The
motivation to change their habits didn’t come
naturally to many, but others had more inclina-
tion to get in shape; they began taking strolls
around their neighborhoods and exercising,
and a few stopped driving altogether in favor of
walking or biking to school or to work.
The precedent of actually working to
become healthy again was enough to inspire
countless others, set on changing their life-
styles to better suit themselves and their fami-
lies and friends. The number of cars on the
streets decreased day by day, and eventually the
city had to construct sidewalks on top of exist-
ing streets because the people on foot greatly
outnumbered the people in vehicles. The ratio
between pedestrians and motorists became so
48 BEYOND400
highly in favor of those on foot
that the people who continued
to drive cars felt guilty because
of the fossil fuel they burned
and became aware that their cars
seemed to mock the bikers and
joggers. That is how it came to
be that non-commercial vehicles were rendered entirely obsolete.
I’ve never tasted “fast food.” I grew up without it, and no one is old enough
to remember the days when it was popular. From what I’ve learned, people really
liked it once, but once the cars were gone, the primary method of obtaining “fast
food,” through “drive-through” lanes, disappeared as well. How could you drive
through a “drive-through” lane if you aren’t driving? Now that the people of Santa
Fe were walking, they didn’t even have time for “fast food” anymore; they had to
plan their days differently and wound up making most of their own meals, or set-
ting aside plenty of time to eat at a real restaurant. “Fast food” locations closed one
after the other until none were left.
Around then, the collective cholesterol had noticeably gone down. The obe-
sity epidemic, as it is now called, was over. People didn’t stop there though. Now
that they had gotten healthy, they wanted to stay that way. Smoking was banned in
Santa Fe, and nobody put up a fight. They were glad to see cigarettes go. The air was
crisper without acrid smoke permeating it and the streets were cleaner without dis-
carded taco wrappers and greasy paper bags blowing in the wind. Parks were well
taken care of because nearly all residents visited them frequently. Santa Feans felt
healthier, and the city reflected that in each flower and every blade of grass.
Planting trees became a hobby for many, and gardening as a way of life became
popular. The families that grew enough food to feed themselves often ended up with
enough food to share with those less fortunate than themselves, so the community
as a whole thrived. I’ve never tasted meat since it has to be brought in from outside
the city. I’m very happy eating the vegetables my family grows in the backyard.
When I look outside my house, I see neighbors and strangers walking past,
smiling, whistling, some singing along with the many birds which now brighten
the sky with their colorful feathers. After a violent period, Santa Fe is truly peace-
ful. I wouldn’t have it any other way.
Vaughn Fortier-Shultz is a junior at Santa Fe High School next year. You can reach him at
moosemanxl@gmail.com.
YUJIE DING, Generation Next
The Future of Politics
F
ive hundred years in the future, where
cars hover and food is in pill form, poli-
tics have turned for the worse. A new
page of politics has begun and the governor of
New Mexico, Matthew Graham, has tried time
and time again to whip our state government
into shape. Controversial issues such as abortion
have become meaningless in the United States’
eyes and Americans, in a nationwide depres-
sion, are rebounding by the start of World War
III. The Americas have teamed up with China,
now an economic giant, France and England to
help fight the “good cause.” This created many
jobs in New Mexico as well as many other states
around the U.S. The Los 2235 (formerly Los
Alamos National Labs) due to a nuclear reactor
explosion and fallout, reopened and relocated
to Las Vegas, New Mexico, where federal grants
funded research for a new nuclear weapon. This
brought many new jobs to New Mexico helped
jump-start the economy. Los Alamos National
Labs shut down in 2111.
©Kim Kurian
Governor Graham placed economy top on his agenda, but there were other press-
ing issues. New Mexico has become the largest populated state in the Southwest.
Around 2150, Americans got sick of dense, tight, polluted cities and sought out a
land where blue skies and wide open spaces were plenty. New Mexico was a perfect
pick and within 100 years, New Mexico had the population of New York in 2010.
Unfortunately, alternative energy has backfired and soon hybrid hover cars became
carbon spewing, polluting machines. Governor Graham has seen his state turn
from a beautiful blue skied to a smoggy place with orange tints in the light blue sky.
To make matters worse, a new disease that
affected the lungs called, “smog poisoning”
has spread throughout New Mexico. Smog
We, as a people, must
poisoning is reminiscent of asbestos poison- TAKE THE REINS, and drive
ing. Smog would enter through a humans lungs
and attack at the air sacks, poking holes. This this state into a BETTER,
would eventually kill an average male human
in about three months within initial poisoning. CLEANER, richer New Mexico.
Governor Graham is currently juggling World
War III, New Mexico’s recovery from depression and this fast-acting lethal disease.
The House of Representatives is continually fighting the political fight for a way
out of this economical slump. The gap between the poor and the rich had widened
over time. Governor Graham was the stitches that held these two things together.
He has continually created organizations so New Mexicans could find work
and a stable income. The House of Representatives has made an effort to help
but now are as corrupted as the U.S. Senate itself. The constant news of prostitu-
tion, bribes, blackmailing, and scandals flash across the news as families watch
their Holo-vision (television with holograms). This is a gray and grim time and
although the technology is quite astounding compared to 500 years ago, it is not
much use when the economy is in a deep hole.
For the future, the governor and the government of New Mexico hope that
World War III will bring the economy up and hope Los 2235 will find a way to
create a nuke, thus making the state money. Federal medical units are creating a
way to protect our lungs from smog poisoning. In these grim times, the people of
New Mexico hoped to restore the state to its original greatness. The government
was a complete mess and became so tumultuous that New Mexico became the
most corrupted state government in the United States. We, as a people, must take
the reins, and drive this state into a better, cleaner, richer New Mexico. Governor
Graham is trying very hard to lead a state without falling into scandals and bribes
to earn extra cash in this tough economy. Five hundred years from 2010 is not a
pretty place. Only we can change the future of our state. Help keep New Mexico
and Santa Fe clean outside as well as in our government.
Yujie Ding is a student at Santa Fe High School. You can reach him at gnrocks2846@gmail.com.
BEYOND400 49
 The generous support of the following businesses and individuals is greatly appreciated.
Hotel Santa Fe Christus St. Vincent’s Martin Aguilar Mayor
Courtyard by Marriott Hilton Hotel Stuart Ashman David Coss
La Fonda PNM Adrian Bustamante
The Lodge Whole Foods Charles Carrillo Santa Fe City Council
St. Francis Hotel National Distributing Pawan Dhinsda District 1
Plaza Real Michael Trujillo Ventures Rudy Fernandez Councilor Patti Bushee
Las Palomas Southwest Asset Management José Garcia Councilor Chris Calvert
Inn on the Paseo Southwest Seminars Gerald Gonzales District 2
Bishop’s Lodge Dr. Gregory and Angie Schaaf Jennifer Hobson Councilor Rosemary Romero
Maurice and Diana Bonal Chief Barbara Salas Jeff Jinnett Councilor Rebecca Wurzburger
Gerald and Katie Peters Santa Fe Fire Department Herman Lovato District 3
Rancho de San Juan Barbara Lopez Eric Lujan Councilor Miguel Chavez
Wells Fargo Bank City of SF Parks Leslie Lujan Councilor Carmichael Dominguez
1st National Bank and Rec Division Paul Margetson District 4
Century Bank Albert “Gabby” Montoya Councilor Matthew E. Ortiz
First Community Bank Santa Fe 400th Anniversary Peter Pacheco Councilor Ronald S. Trujillo
Los Alamos National Bank Board Members: Andres Romero
Kardas, Abeyta and Weiner PC Maruice Bonal, President Gilbert Romero City Manager
Santa Fe New Mexican Tony Lopez, Vice President Connie Tsosie Gaussoin Robert Romero
Encantado Jessica C de Baca, Treasurer City Liaison
Darlene Griego

www.SantaFe400th.com
Phone: (505) 986-1610

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