NM Legislative recap Feb. 14: ‘Our song rises when we all rise together’

For seven generations, Dr. Karissa Culbreath’s family has called New Mexico home and their dinner table reflects their uniquely Black New Mexican history.

“We are people who have biscuits and tortillas,” she told a joint session of the New Mexico House of Representatives and Senate on Friday. “We have collard greens and posole. We have pinto beans and black-eyed peas.”

Throughout her speech, Culbreath honored Black New Mexicans who changed history, including Estevan the Moor and the Buffalo Soldiers.

It was the 25th anniversary of African American Day at the Legislature, said Rev. N.D. Smith. 

“Twenty-five years later, we’re able to celebrate the long suffering and the hard work that others put into making this day a very special day,” Smith said.

Culbreath talked about the hope and determination of the Black experience in New Mexico.

“The story of New Mexico has always been a multicultural story and, in that story, the contributions of the Black community have always been present,” Culbreath said.

Earlier on Friday, Black organizations from across the state tabled in the Rotunda, including the New Mexico Black Student Alliance, the Public Education Department’s Black Education Advisory Council, the Office of African American Affairs and the New Mexico Martin Luther King, Jr. Commission.

Culbreath is the daughter of two Albuquerque educators, an assistant professor of pathology at the University of New Mexico School of Medicine and a Rio Rancho city councilor.

“We too, sing New Mexico,” Culbreath said, adapting a poem by Langston Hughes, the Black poet, novelist, essayist and playwright. “It is not just the song of my family that makes up this story. The song of the African American experience in New Mexico is as varied as the jazz music our people created. It is complex and beautiful.”

The joint session closed with a performance of “Goodness of God” by Kendra and Tasha Crawford, students at Cochiti Elementary School.

“Our song is an orchestra that is richer and more vibrant when each instrument plays its chord,” Culbreath said. “This has always been our strength: Our song rises when we all rise together.”

Honoring MLK ‘no matter what happens’

Constance Williams, a licensed clinical social worker from Clovis, New Mexico, is a new vice chair for the New Mexico Martin Luther King Jr. Commission. She also participated on the local commission in Clovis, which first started operating in 1991. The local commission includes artistic, speech contests based on themes from King’s work, and works to award two $1,000 scholarships for graduating seniors based on an essay. The following interview has been edited for clarity and concision.

Source NM: For people unfamiliar, what is the New Mexico Martin Luther King Jr. Commission?

Constance Williams: The state supports local commissions in making sure that local communities have information, access to and an ability to help promote Dr. King’s legacy. 

What does that look like?

On the eastern side, in our local commission, we have an essay and speech contest that happens every year. We have district contests where all the schools submit their top projects, and then we pick winners from that.

This year, our local theme was based on Dr. King’s second principle which is: nonviolence seeks to win friendship and understanding. 

How have the recent federal announcements to remove MLK’s birthday from celebrated holidays and federal denouement of diversity equity and inclusion impacted your work?

It is worrisome; there is basically a regression. No matter what happens, I think we’ll continue to honor Dr. King’s legacy and what he means. All the issues that he spoke about are issues that we’re still dealing with in this time, and we really have to educate people. 

Bill watch

In a 5-4 party-line vote Friday morning, the Senate Education Committee advanced a bill that would make comprehensive sexual education available to every student in New Mexico, as a way of preventing teen pregnancies, sexually transmitted disease, sexual violence, bullying and sexual harassment.

Republicans on the committee tried to table Senate Bill 258 but the Democratic majority outvoted them.

Sen. Natalie Figueroa (D-Albuquerque) tried to amend the bill so students could complete sex ed either in middle school or high school. The sponsors agreed to the amendment, but Sen. Martin Hickey (D-Albuquerque) joined committee Republicans to block it.

In the afternoon, the Senate passed a trio of bills known as the behavioral health package. All three bills still need to go through the committee process on the House side, and a floor vote in the House of Representatives before they go to Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham’s desk.

The House Government, Elections and Indian Affairs Committee backed two bills they hope will reform the New Mexico Children, Youth and Families Department.

On Thursday, the Senate Indian, Rural and Cultural Affairs Committee passed a bill to designate tortillas as the state’s official bread.