Wor ng tow Fiesta of peace
It is encouraging to learn that civic and religious leaders, and other people of goodwill, continue the discussions aimed at creating an inclusive and peaceful Fiesta de Santa Fe. Although there are disagreements as to historical events and their meaning, we can all agree that while Santa Fe's his-tory is fraught with slavery, bloodshed and oppression, struggles to overcome the complexities and moral failings of the past have produced one of the world's most culturally diverse and sophisticated cities, in a spectacularly beautiful set-ting. Resolution will occur once we first acknowledge, rather than ignore, those failings. Then, recognizing that nobody is responsible for the actions of their ances-tors, and that no group has a monopoly on virtue or vice, we can construct an event in which nobody is forced to par-ticipate and which nobody is prevented from celebrating. Consider the events that led to the Pueblo Revolt and the result-ing return of the Span-ish settlers. The Span-ish were not the first to arrive here. If the history of human habitation in this area were reduced to 24 hours, Europeans would have been here only for the last 35 minutes or so. Indigenous people moved as nomads for millennia, then established pueblos here. The Pueblo Indians developed sophisticated agri-cultural and architectural systems, with evidence of trade with other indigenous people as far south as what is now Mexico and as far west as what is now California. They were not always at
peace with each other; warfare and slavery punctuated their existence.
By the early 1500s, Spain began a program of exploration and conquest through what is now Mexico and eventually into what is now New Mexico. The motivation included Spain’s interest in expanding its empire and accumulating wealth, and the Catholic Church’s interest in converting the indigenous people. The movement into New Mexico was the result of the legend that there were Seven Cities of Gold. There were no such cities. However, Natives very likely told the invading Spaniards when asked that the cities did exist, a little farther along, in order to encourage the Spanish to leave them alone. The Spanish chased the tales all the way to Kansas and Colorado before giving up and returning to settle New Mexico. Santa Fe was established as the capital of the area in 1610.
All was not peaceful. Spaniards enslaved Indians to provide labor. While some of the Franciscans arrived with religious intentions worthy of their vocations, others mistreated the indigenous people, forcing an end to their religious practices and enslaving them as well. And the Spanish offered some of these slaves, indigenous/Spanish people known as genízaros the opportunity to live in relative freedom in outposts meant to defend settlements against attacks from other Indians. Some genízaros were able to earn their freedom; some then turned around and purchased other slaves.
Resentment against the Spanish grew to the point that the Pueblos rebelled in 1680, led by Po’Pay, who likely was half-Spanish himself. The Spanish were driven south to what is now El Paso/ Juárez. The genízaro defensive settlement at Analco, where the San Miguel Mission now stands, was one of the first casualties. Others included the 21 Franciscan priests and monks whose deaths are remembered by the Cross of the Martyrs.
In 1692, Don Diego de Vargas led a group of Spanish soldiers and indigenous warriors back to retake Santa Fe. The legend is that he prayed for a peaceful “reconquest.” He and his entourage were allowed to re-enter, without bloodshed at that point. This is the event celebrated and re-enacted by the Entrada each year. However, the entire reconquest was not without bloodshed. Many Natives were killed by the Spanish in the following years as the Spanish enforced their conquest. Many more were enslaved, and by 1776, as many as one-third of New Mexicans were genízaro slaves.
Mexico obtained its independence from Spain. New Mexico passed under Mexican rule, and then under Anglo-American governance following the War with Mexico and the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo.
It would be an oversimplification, though not by much, to note that lands taken from the Natives by the Spanish were then taken by the Anglo-Americans. While the term genízaro was abolished, indigenous/Spanish “peons” were required to perform labor for their owners. By the late 1800s, it was estimated that 1 percent of New Mexico families were provided labor by as many as 90 percent of the remaining population. Even the 13th Amendment, outlawing slavery, did not end the peonage system. It took an act of Congress in 1867 to specifically ban the practice in New Mexico. There is evidence it persisted nonetheless into the 20th century.
The result of this history is that many Santa Feans are the descendants of slaves and slave owners. It is shocking to many to learn that well into the 1800s, Plains Indians brought captive Native children into the state to sell them. Only recently have Hispanic Santa Feans begun to learn of the extent of their indigenous roots. It is quite likely that at any demonstration against the Entrada, if we were to freeze the scene and have both the Spanish re-enactors and protestors take DNA tests, we would likely learn that many have roughly the same genetic profile.
Intermarriage with Anglo arrivals added to our unique cultural mix. We have fought together against foreign enemies to maintain our freedom — think of our heroes at Bataan and the Navajo code talkers, for just two quick examples. While it is difficult, for the sake of our city, state and nation, we need to engage in a pattern of forgiveness and understanding.
Don Diego was a skillful soldier who, with the support of some Indians, re-established the Spanish colony that has become modern day Santa Fe. And, he brutalized and subjugated most of the Native Americans he encountered. The Catholic Church established religious, educational and medical institutions that endure, enriching the lives of the people in the New World. And its representatives brutalized and subjugated many of the Native Americans they encountered. The Anglo attorneys, merchants and soldiers who moved into New Mexico helped refine a system of justice based upon English common law, with all of the improvements of American constitutional law. And they used some of these mechanisms to deprive Hispanics and Native Americans of their property rights.
The path will continue to be challenging. It is not pleasant to witness celebrations with which we disagree. Yet the First Amendment guarantees the right to speak and assemble, present ideas and even celebrate historical events in a way that some feel are inaccurate or even offensive. We do not have the First Amendment right, though, to block that speech or prevent the celebration. People have a right to celebrate a religious event on public property because such is protected under the First Amendment’s Free Exercise of Religion provision, even if some disagree with that religion and even if they are offended by the public exercise of it.
By respecting the right to recognize, celebrate and respectfully criticize events of our past, we can respond to the moral and compelling obligation to love one another and to live together in peace.