CHART already gave community a path forward
Over 13 months ago, the Culture, History, Art, Reconciliation and Truth project delivered its final report to the governing body of the city of Santa Fe. As far as we know, none of the 53 CHART recommendations has been implemented.
Every day that goes by is lost, precious time that could be used to engage the residents of Santa Fe in the process of addressing its divisions and working toward resolutions and community healing.
Recent, contentious dialogues regarding the Fiesta Court visiting the Santa Fe Public Schools and the toppling of the Kit Carson monument reveal a desperate need for the implementation of the CHART recommendations. They address, in depth, the historical and cultural factors that led to current controversies and provide steps toward acknowledgment of the problems, public engagement and dialogue, including a path toward reconciliation.
The CHART project engaged hundreds of Santa Feans in a yearlong community process. This process revealed residents are willing and able to engage in a far more complex and nuanced discussion of issues of truth, history, culture, art and reconciliation than we hear in public forums.
Santa Feans also agree the way forward must involve sustained public engagement — encouraging those with opposing views to sit down together, listen to one another and share their perspectives in an atmosphere of safety and respect.
It is the only way forward, and it will not be a quick fix. The issues that divide Santa Feans are hundreds of years in the making, and it will take a sustained and considerable effort to address them.
A recent article in The New
Mexican (“Nearly three years later, Santa Fe officials have no plans for toppled obelisk,” Sept. 4) reported “some councilors are skeptical about reaching a resolution everyone could be happy with.”
Instead, CHART participants, overall, are “largely committed to a process of truth, healing and reconciliation while recognizing that it is difficult and must be ongoing and indefinite. … They affirm that doing this requires the tenacity to stay with difficult conversations about the past, the humility to confront the actions of our ancestors, the courage to accept responsibility for our actions in the present, and the resilience to keep going for the betterment of our community.” (page 109 of the report).
Regarding the Soldiers’ Monument obelisk, the report recommended a continuing public dialogue process be enacted immediately, bringing together all impacted communities to address the two most popular solutions that emerged from the CHART process. Instead, a few councilors proposed their own solution, ignoring the project results. This caused more controversy, and the resolution was withdrawn after public protest.
The city of Santa Fe invested a quarter of a million dollars in a complex CHART process. Hundreds of Santa Feans invested their time and energy and their engagement yielded a robust and comprehensive report with detailed plans of action. The community has spoken, and the city has a responsibility to abide by the recommendations of its residents. Readers can access the report at www.chartsantafe.com.
Jenice Gharib and Valerie Martinez were the co-directors of the CHART project.