I would like to know why the governing body of the city of Santa Fe has taken away the First Amendment rights of the citizens of Santa Fe. The attendees of meetings have been instructed that you cannot clap during the meeting. You are instructed to wave if you agree with a resident. What is that, kindergarten? Furthermore, the citizens are not “allowed” to call out an elected official by name. If one should do so, the citizen is called a “bully” and is considered “out of order.”
The council and mayor are disparaging any kind of adult dialogue. It is time to allow the citizens to be treated as responsible adults. Time to end this authoritarianism and return to a democratic form of government. We are not in kindergarten, and we deserve the right to clap and address, with respect, any elected official. No more silencing of the people.
Suzanne Romero
Santa Fe
Women can dunk
Watching the Democratic campaign for president these days, one realizes that the dormant enthusiasm and energy suddenly unleashed had been slowly simmering throughout the years. America was ready for a Black woman taking the presidential oath, but few really thought it would happen this soon. The improbable chain of events that led to the nomination of the Harris-Walz ticket inadvertently accelerated a process that usually takes many years: the making of a presidential candidate. Surely Kamala Harris was likely going to head the ballot one day, but when? Four years from now? Eight? Never?
America started getting ready for a candidate like her since Donald Trump won the election in 2016 and women marched to Washington in record numbers the day after he was inaugurated. Make no mistake, this election is for women to win; they are the protagonists, taking front and center stage at the Democratic National Committee, delivering moving, vigorous speeches about issues that matter most to them and their families. It’s not about being “woke” anymore, it’s clearly about people’s freedom to exercise their rights. Taking a look at the crowd, one could notice the incredible diversity that makes up the Democratic Party — and the country. Women’s empowerment is real and was astonishingly palpable in Chicago.
Fernando Madera
Albuquerque
About immigration
Immigration has become an exaggerated political issue lately, especially considering we or our ancestors all came here as immigrants, including Native Americans, who arrived from Asia long before anybody else. Throughout our history, earlier arrivers have often disliked those who came later because they were “different.” Nevertheless, like many developed countries we have an aging population plus falling birth rates, so our workforce requires immigrants, preferably carefully screened legal ones. “Asylum-seekers” also qualify as legal immigrants under The Convention Against Torture that we and others signed in 1988, if they can prove they risk persecution in their home countries.
The estimated 11 million immigrants who slipped in illegally over decades and remained exceeds the combined populations of Montana, Idaho, Wyoming, North and South Dakota, New Mexico and Utah. Donald Trump, a convicted criminal himself, promises he’ll track down, imprison and then ship all these fellow law-breakers back home. If Trump gets to even try this absurdity, it will wreck our economy, currently the world’s strongest. Last year, Congress worked for months and drafted a strong bipartisan bill to protect our borders. In February, Trump needed a campaign issue more than a solution, so he ordered Republicans to kill the bill. Border arrests now average around 2,000 a day, less than in fiscal year 2019 under Trump and before COVID-19 hit. So what justifies all the fuss?
Jerome Walker
Mesilla
Humming along
I saw ¡Viva Mexico! at Teatro Paraguas, and I had the best time, with dances from the waltz to Afro-Mexican to Go-go. Songs from 15th century to modern day rock. With a screen showing translations or an on-stage interpreter, the poetry and songs (all in Spanish) were both beautiful and understandable. My heart was captured by young Miranda and her mother, Monica, in their duets of poetry and music. The costumes are fantastic, the dances have you bouncing in your seat, and you’ll be humming along with the music.
The Santa Fe New Mexican observes its 175th anniversary with a series highlighting some of the major stories and figures that have appeared in the paper's pages through its history. The collection also includes archival photo galleries.
