Building a resilient society is difficult for any community, but the Albuquerque Cultural Conference is finding ways to make society better.
This year’s theme is “Crisis, Community and Performance: Building a Resilient Society,” and it will be held Sept. 3-6.
Amanda Sutton, one of the event organizers, said people are living in a time of political oppression.

“People are censored and there are drug wars,” she said. “Performance means seeking creative means to improve the world and make a better change.”

Panels start Saturday and feature hot topics such as the Arizona immigration bill, the economy, and education and arts funding, said John Crawford, director of the conference.

“We are trying to show that there are ways to come back from hard times. People can find ways to reconstitute themselves and start over,” he said.

The conference, sponsored by New Mexico Arts, the McCune Foundation and the New Mexico Humanities Council, provides an outlet for people to speak with others who share their social struggles in the form of folk songs and poetry performances.
Crawford said this year’s conference is crucial to the community because of the current economic slump.

“It relates to the American dream,” Crawford said. “The American dream has to do with potential. Everyone has potential. This conference is just a way to encourage it.”
Crawford worked with Sutton to promote books and authors who write multicultural poetry, Sutton said.

“We hope to create a forum where people can connect and learn from one another’s experiences and be active in their communities,” she said.
Sutton said she hopes the conference draws a large crowd for the the community’s sake.
“It’s great to meet so many great people who are active in all the communities,” she said. “It’s great to see how everyone connects. This makes the community a better place to live in depressed times.”