Santa Fe December 2010 Newsletter

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Santa Fe Branch NAACP ~ December 2010

P.O. Box 15692 ~ Santa Fe, New Mexico 87592-15692 (505) 424-6100President Carol Johnson Secretary Cynthia Geder1st V. President Wanda Ross Padilla Treasurer Christine Johnson2nd V. President Agnes Moses

DDEECCEEMMBBEERR 22001100

Presidents Letter- Carol Johnson

Seasons Greetings! Best wishes to all for a joyful, blessed holiday season and new year.

The current Branch officers were elected by acclamation at the November 9, 2010, General BranchMembership meeting at St. Bedes Episcopal Church. The following individuals will be serving you for the

next two years.

President: Carol Johnson; First Vice President: Wanda Ross Padilla; Second Vice President: Agnes Moses

Secretary: Cynthia Geder; Treasurer: Christine Johnson; Executive Committee Members At-Large: George

Geder, Robert Bob Moses and Cedric Page

Installation of officers will take place at the December 14, 2010 General Branch Membership meeting at

St. Bedes Episcopal Church. This will also be our annual meeting and a potluck supper. Please come,bring your favorite dish and celebrate a successful year and the holiday season.

We will be having a program planning session in January. Any ideas and suggestions for issues, programs

or activities you would like us to pursue would be greatly appreciated. I will also be appointing committeechair for 2011-12. Standing Committees of NAACP Branches include: Armed Services and Veterans AffairsCommunication, Community Coordination, Education, Finance, Freedom Fund, Health, Housing, Labor and

Industry, Legal Redress, Membership, Life Membership, Political Action, Press and Publicity, Religious

Affairs, and Youth Work. If you are interested in chairing or participating on any of these committees,please let me know. The strength of the Branch is in its membership.

The struggle continues. We must be vigilant and continue to work together to ensure equality for all while

celebrating our diversity. Thank you for your dedication to mission of the NAACP. Check the webpage,HTTP:///NAACPSFNM.BLOGSPOT.COM, for meeting topics and activities. I hope to see you soon.


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Tea Party Report

On October 20, 2010, the Institute for Research and Education on Human Rights (IREHR) released a

report documenting specific examples of Tea Party leaders and Tea Party-associated organizationsproviding platforms for anti-Semites, racists and other bigots.The report serves as a reminder: There is avery active presence of racists in America's public political discourse, and there is a very real threat of

moving backward if we do not stand up and speak out. Please take a moment to read more from the

report: http://action.naacp.org/TeaPartyReport

In Memoriam

Wanda Ross Padillas mother, Bernice F. Ross, made her transition peacefully in her sleep at TreasureCoast Hospice in Fort Pierce, Florida on October 31, 2010. She will be missed. Please keep Wanda, Pat an

their families in your thoughts and prayers.


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Black Experience in New Mexico: 1974-1980


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Martin Luther King Birthday Gathering Doris Fields

The NAACP Santa Fe County Branch will conduct its annual birthday observance of Rev. Dr. Martin LutherKing, Jr. Holiday on Monday, January 17, 2011, at noon in the New Mexico State Capitol Rotunda. The

program will include activities that promote the six principles of non-violence and the philosophy of Rev.Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. This years program, as those in the past, is designed to inspire interculturalcollaboration and cooperation among the many cultural groups in New Mexico.

The theme for this years celebration is taken from the NAACP National Convention: One Nation, OneDream. Kimberly Ross Toledo, a nationally recognized leader in the area of intercultural diversity, will bethe keynote speaker. Ms. Ross-Toledo, BA, BS, is the director of the McKinley Community Coalition for

Healthy & Resilient Youth. She is a Navajo/Sioux woman who is a strong advocate for assets-based youthleadership development. She is also a Southwest Anti-Racism Training Institute facilitator and a ProjectTRUST co-Principal Investigator and core working group member. Ms. Ross Toledo will highlight Dr. Kings

vision of one nation, recognizing and celebrating our differences, realizing the dream. She will encourage

communication, inspire collaboration, and urge understanding and compassion, in the spirit of non-violence, in the spirit of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

The Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was committed to the struggle for a unified nation based in unified

communities, and he urged that people be judged by the content of their character. The Santa Fe Branchof NAACP believes that community service builds and demonstrates positive character, that serving our

community is a high honor, and that those serving are deserving of recognition. To that end, the Santa Fe

Branch of the NAACP is sponsoring Community Service Awards for Santa Fe public high school students.

The Branch urges community members, counselors, principals, teachers, and others to nominate students

from the three public high schools in Santa Fe: Capital High School, Santa Fe High School, and SER/Caree

Academy. An announcement of the award call, with specific information on nominating students, is

included in this newsletter.


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SAVE THE DATE: Anti-Racism Day at the State Legislature

The New Mexico Health Equity Working Group is spearheading introduction of the first ever

Anti-Institutional Racism Bill. It will be dropped and an event is being planned for the Rotunda on

Thursday, February 10, 2011. The bill as currently drafted is as follows:

Whereas New Mexico believes in promoting racial and social equity, and;

Whereas New Mexico understands that institutional racism depletes the strength of the whole statethrough the waste of human resources;

This Anti-Institutional Racism Bill is introduced to:

Strengthen the State of New Mexico and to promote racial and social equity.

Therefore, be it resolved that:

Every state-funded entity shall have a policy in place to address institutional racism.

Definition of Institutional Racism:Policies and practices which intentionally or unintentionally structure opportunity based on the social

interpretation of how one looks (race) and unfairly disadvantage some individuals and communitieswhile unfairly advantaging other individuals and communities.

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New Mexico State Conference of NAACP Branches Winter Board Meeting

New Mexico State Conference of NAACP Branches will hold a reception for New Mexico StatLegislators on February 11, 2011 from 5:00-7:00 pm at the Santa Fe Hilton Hotel, 100 Sandoval Street

The reception will be followed by an executive board meeting from 7:00-9:00 pm. On Saturday, Februar

12, 2011 from 8:00 am - noon, there will be a training on NAACP Branch Administration. All are welcomto attend all activities. It is an opportunity to meet NAACP members from through out New Mexico anlearn more about the NAACP.

African American Day at the Legislature

African American Day

9:00am 4:00pm

Santa Fe Roundhouse

February 11, 2011


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Alice Faye Kent Hoppes Legislative Statewide Essay Contest

The purpose of the Alice Faye Kent Hoppes Legislative Statewide Essay Contest is to providerecognition and financial support to those graduating seniors of African American decent who want to

make sure that the work Alice began continues.

Alice served as president of the Albuquerque Branch of the NAACP from 1984-2003. During her tenure,she spearheaded efforts to create an African-American Day at the annual State Fair, organized civil rights

marches to protest unfair practices, and spoke out in a variety of venues about prison reform, biased

media reporting, unfair labor practices, fair housing and equal access and was appointed the first Directorof the Office of African-American Affairs.

Mrs. Hoppes died on October 21, 2003. For her many years of tireless work on behalf of African-American

and others in New Mexico, Governor Richardson decreed that the African-American Pavilion at the NewMexico Expo Fairgrounds be named the Alice F Hoppes African- American Pavilion.

For more information about Alice Faye Kent Hoppes and scholarship contest application, contact JoycelynJackson at 505-881-9429 X 80078. Deadline for application is January 14, 2011. Scholarships will beawarded February 11, 2011 at the African American Day at the Legislature.

NAACP Youth Council

We are reestablishing our youth council. To be a Branch in good standing, we need to have an active

youth council with at least 25 members. For years our youth council was very active and accomplished

many things including awards at the local and national ACT-SO competitions; travel to state, regional andnational NAACP conferences. 2 of our youth council members received Gates Millennium Scholarships in2009. If you know of any young people who might be interested in joining the youth council, please let us

know at [email protected]. Any age birth to 18 (25 if in school) can be a youth member. For the

youth council, we are thinking of focusing on middle and high school students but are willing to considerother suggestions.

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Juneteenth 2011!

The Santa Fe Branch is investigating sponsoring a citywide Juneteenth celebration with a Santa Fes Bes

Barbecue contest possibly at the Santa Fe County Fair Grounds on June 18, 2011. This would be a largeundertaking but would give us exposure in the community and build greater cooperation among all

members of the Santa Fe community. If we want to do this, we need interested individuals with and

without experience planning big events to come forward. If that is you or you know someone, contact usat [email protected].

Cleaning for a Reason Nichoe Lichen

If you know any woman currently undergoing chemo, please pass the word to her that there is a cleaning

service that provides FREE housecleaning 1 time per month for 4 months while she is in treatment. Allshe has to do is sign up and have her doctor fax a note confirming the treatment. Cleaning for a Reason

will have a participating maid service in her zip code area arrange for the service. This organization serves

the entire USA and currently has 547 partners to help these women. Its our job to pass the word and letthem know that there are people out there that care. Be a blessing to someone and pass this information

along. http://www.cleaningforareason.org/


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Wage Theft Holly Beaumont

Wage theft covers a variety of infractions that occur when workers do not receive their legally orcontractually promised wages. Common forms of wage theft are nonpayment of overtime, not giving

workers their last paycheck after a worker leaves a job, not paying for all the hours worked, not paying

minimum wage, stealing tips, not paying the legal prevailing wage on federally funded constructionprojects, misclassifying workers as independent contractors, and even not paying workers at all.

New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson signed a wage enforcement bill to allow underpaid workers to collect

their back wages plus twice that amount in damages. The bill was backed by community groups and laborunions as well as the New Mexico Department of Workforce Solutions. New Mexico is the eighth state tha

allows workers to collect treble damages against employers violating the minimum wage a key deterrento employers to ensure compliance with the minimum wage. For more information, contact NM-

Interfaith Worker Justice at 505-660-5018 or Somos un Pueblo Unido at 505-424-7832.

Remembering Our Past - George Geder

2011 marks the beginning celebration of the Sequicentennial of the American Civil War. Some peopleare putting on a Secession Ball in Charleston, South Carolina. A book, aimed at school-age children, tells

of how blacks joined the Confederate army. A texbook, authorized by the Virginia Board of Education,

comes under fire for asserting that 1,000s blacks volunteered and fought for the Confederacy. These

events, and many more like them, are charged with the mission of altering our memory of the past.

The United States has yet to heal the wound caused by the Civil War. As ugly as that chapter of American

history is, we, as a nation, must acknowledge its reality. We must acknowledge its causes and its effects.

Many died in this war to end slavery. Many died to preserve it. We will never heal if some of our citizenry

insists on distorting our perception of the past. We will never heal if we continue to mis-educate our

children.

As we celebrate the 150th anniversary of the American Civil War which ended slavery lets strive for a

collective and honest remembrance of the past and with the understanding that healing must occur so we

can have a brighter future.


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Santa Fe December 2010 Newsletter