Here’s to a safe Fiesta

The 305th commemoration of the return of Spanish colonial settlers to New Mexico after the Pueblo Revolt officially begins today, with an early morning Mass at Rosario Chapel — the place Don Diego de Vargas is believed to have camped outside of Santa Fe.

After that initial Mass, the Pregón de La Fiesta at 6 a.m., the usual activities of Fiesta de Santa Fe will unfold over three days. Civic and community portions of the celebration take center stage, with entertainment, food and other offerings in and around the Santa Fe Plaza. This afternoon, of course, will be the presentation of the Entrada, the historical pageant attempting to show a scant moment of unity between de Vargas and the Pueblo Indians — which, some 300-plus years later, is fueling a disharmony so severe that city officials are concerned about public safety.

That’s right. In the midst of what is supposed to be one of Santa Fe’s most celebratory weekends, news releases have been issued telling people that certain items are being prohibited for safety’s sake. Everything from the obvious — actual weapons — to children’s water guns or balloons, or masks, cannot be brought into the Plaza during the Fiesta. What’s more, the Santa Fe Fiesta Council wrote to city police also asking that members of the public leave bullhorns or amplified sound systems behind.

Last year, protesters against the Entrada spoke with amplification. It’s obvious that organizers of the event want a quieter afternoon. (It’s likely, too, that confiscation of such tools could be reason to stall protesters on the way to the Plaza.) Horses won’t be used this year, either.

Tensions are high. Native groups want an end to a historic portrayal they see as false, and Entrada supporters continue to insist they simply are focusing on that one best moment when all sides did get along. We have said before — and we’ll repeat ourselves — that it is time for members of the Santa Fe Fiesta Council and the Caballeros de Vargas, who together make Fiesta happen, to listen to what protesters are saying.

Find a different way to show pride in your ancestry, whether by making the Entrada private, or even better, by inviting local Indian representatives, historians and others to find a new pageant to present. The Fiesta de Santa Fe is going on its 305th year. The Entrada is much younger, hardly historic in Santa Fe years. It’s time to make new traditions. Until that happens, be careful out there.