The past 100 years

From The Santa Fe New Mexican:

Sept. 7, 1917: “Have you filled one?”

This is the question asked on a placard displayed in the Art Shop, west side of the Plaza, conducted by Mrs. Hobart Smith. By “one” is meant a Navy League Christmas Cheer Bag, to be sent to the boys serving Uncle Sam on the water.

Sept. 7, 1961: OJO SARCO — Acting on a petition from 37 families the New Mexico State Telephone Co. will build an exchange in Ojo Sarco to serve Ojo Sarco, Las Trampas and El Valle. It will be the first telephone service into this area which lies in the foothills of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains east of the Espanola Valley.

Sept. 7, 1992: The Rev. Michael Baca grew up in Santa Fe thinking that Fiesta was a celebration of Hispanic domination of Indians in Northern New Mexico. To him, it represented the successful re-conquest of the area by Spaniards in 1693. The Santa Fe Fiesta “had very much to do with a celebration of fighting the rebellious Indians,” Baca, 65, said recently.

There wasn’t much soul searching going on about Fiesta then. Few people, if any believed that it should be more inclusive of other cultures, that it offended the Indians.

… But after years of helping Indians in Central and Latin America, of doing missionary work around the world, and of serving as a priest in New Mexico, Baca’s vision of Fiesta has changed.

“More inclusive, more benevolent, more conciliatory, more a building of unity, that’s what Fiesta is about,” Baca said. “That’s what it should be about.”

… Changes in the largely Hispanic-organized event have been brewing for years, as criticism by nearby pueblo residents and others have escalated. This year is being pitched as a turning point.

After years of pressure from Indians, Archbishop Robert Sanchez this year gave the small antique statue of the Virgin Mary, called La Conquistadora, an additional name, Nuestra Señora de la Paz, or Our Lady of Peace. Don Diego de Vargas carried the statue with him during the re-conquest of Santa Fe. It has been used in religious ceremonies since.