October – December 2023 / Octubre – Diciembre 2023
NM CAFe Accountability Session Recap / Sesión de Responsabilidad de NM CAFe
With the regular local election for the city of Las Cruces and results now finalized, as a community saw a small rise in voter turnout for 2023. Voter turnout for the 2023 Regular Local Election in Doña Ana County was approximately 18.3%, or 22,389 voters. This is higher than the turnout for the last municipal election in 2021, which had approximately 11.8%, or 14,440 voters. (This information is per the Doña Ana County Clerk, Amanda López Askin)
While CAFe was not able to do more outreach for the 2023 municipal elections, we did hold an accountability session which featured candidates for: mayor, city council districts 1,2, and 4, as well as candidates for school board districts 1, 4, and 5.
Our process invited leaders to come up with questions for the candidates, to which they responded yes or no, and were allowed to expand on one question of their choosing. While this is a different format than what the community is used to, it provided the space for community members to hear what our candidates were committing to doing for the city of Las Cruces.
For this accountability session, we had 76 people from the community in attendance. At the end of this session, community members were able to meet with candidates to ask more questions and learn more about their platforms.
Rising Youth New Mexico Political Leads Training in Washington D.C. / Creciente de jóvenes de líderes políticos en Washington D.C.
Our community organizer Allyssa Wright and Rising Youth leader Analisa headed off to D.C. for Faith in Action’s political leads training. This was an opportunity for these two, as well as other members of the national Rising Youth program to learn about data and voting being that the 2024 election cycle is going to be crucial for voter participation.
Opportunities like this for youth are rare to experience – becoming politically active, educated, and informed should be happening at all levels regardless of age. With education and information, this requires an active investment & involvement in the youth and young adults of today.
For more information about Rising Youth organizing, please contact Allyssa at: allyssaw@organizenm.org
Geneva Trip with the Southern Border Communities Coalition (SBCC) / Viaje a Ginebra con la Coalición de Comunidades de la Frontera Sur (SBCC)
Being that NM CAFe is an anchor organization for the Southern Border Communities Coalition (SBCC) in Las Cruces, NM, we were invited to join of the Dignity Delegation in Geneva to be at the United Nations Human Rights Committee to share stories about racial discrimination and excessive force by U.S. law enforcement.
Many leaders for different organizations shared their testimonies in front of the U.N. Human Rights commission. Stories included experiences of violence and militarization at the hands of border patrol from leaders that live in the borderlands. This delegation and their advocacy received national attention for conducting an action in which they participated in a silent protest and turned their backs on the U.S. government, as their responses were insufficient to leaders and activists human rights concerns.
The delegation continues to call on the United States to protect dignity and human rights by changing the use of force standard for law enforcement to be necessary and proportionate.
To watch our Executive Director interview on Univision, you can find it here: https://www.instagram.com/reel/Cy6qT78v-0M/?igshid=MTc4MmM1YmI2Ng%3D%3D
Faith in Action 50th Anniversary Celebration / Fe en Acción Celebración del 50 Aniversario
Faith in Action celebrated 50 years as a network in Washington D.C. this November. Faith in Action honored 4 organizers across the country who are putting their faith into action to create a future of love, dignity, and liberation for all.
Our very own community organizer, Allyssa Wright was honored for the Rising Youth award for her leadership in Las Cruces, NM. As an organization, we had the privilege of going to D.C. to support her. Allyssa has worked hard over the last year in collaboration with national staff of the Rising Youth program to bring this organizing cohort to fruition.
With its official kick off in June of 2023, we can’t wait to see what organizing plans the Rising Youth cohort begin in the community of Las Cruces as we head into 2024. The future is bright and we are looking forward to seeing what comes next for these young people in carrying the torch for the future of organizing.
