Daily Lobo Columnist
As the mayoral election nears, voters are confronted with many faces to choose from — some new and some old. Without getting into personalities and individual achievements, we need to determine the person who can best serve Albuquerque’s needs.
I believe that the only issue of any real immediate importance for Albuquerque is the condition of the youth in our city. As a child support enforcement officer, high school soccer coach and father, I see a drastic chasm between the society I was raised in and the one that the youth of our city have to deal with now.
Economic development, city beautification, crime prevention, water and environmental conservation and Petroglyph protection are all just and good issues to believe in, but if our children are not able to follow in our footsteps and maintain the city we leave them, then how important is any issue?
I am fifth generation New Mexican and the third generation of my family born and raised here Albuquerque. I went to high school at Highland High. I experienced drive by shootings on campus and a lot of violence in my community of the Southeast Heights, but I was given the common sense by my family to avoid these circumstances until I was old enough to know how to handle them.
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I was lucky. I was adopted by a single mother who worked full time all my life, but I had my grandparents and other family members who looked out for my well being. This allowed me to follow their examples and learn from their mistakes, so that when the time came, I knew what was acceptable behavior and what was not. From my experience in social programs during the last decade, I have seen that many children are not afforded the luxury of having anyone look out for their well being. They then follow the example that is set for them.
Youth are expected to make adult decisions at a much earlier age than most of us were.
Since they have not been given the example of how to come to a decision that is the best decision for themselves and those around them, they naturally choose the decision that immediately gives them the most benefit.
The capitalistic nature of our society has created an atmosphere that demands that both parents work all the time. Most native New Mexicans cannot live in this city without two incomes. If you are not married then you have to “shack it up” with someone to be able to pay rent.
A lot of people blame the breaking up of the family on the declining morals within our society. I blame it on the individualistic nature of the capitalistic system that we exist within.
Families used to be able to take care of each other because the cost of living was reasonable. Local companies knew better than to expand too much, which did cause them to employ less people, but the people they employed were paid better and had job security.
With corporations, come competition, expansion, greed and layoffs. This causes lower wages, a lack of job security and the need for both parents to work. I believe that this is what broke up the family and the support that it provided to children.
I understand that it is impossible to go back to how it was in the past, but I think that we need to recognize that the focus on money is the problem and that if we choose to, we can refocus our society and make children our priority.
We need to demand that the wealthier business owners realize that owning a business is not just about making as much money as possible. It is about providing a service to the community and understanding that the individuals they employ are as important to the owners’ future as the money that they make.
Loyalty is more important in life than money. We need to invest in people and their families, this will create a community and the corresponding benefits of belonging to a group that looks out for each other.
We cannot expect public or private schools to make up for the damage that has been done. We cannot expect teachers to raise our children. We choose to have children, they don’t choose to be born.
A new investment in our community has to be made in order for our whole city to advance. The community needs to understand that our children’s success or failure is dependent on the example the community provides for them.
The next mayor that we elect for Albuquerque should have experience dealing with the youth of our city. He should have experience dealing with the infrastructure of our city government, and he should have lived in Albuquerque long enough to know the causal relationships that have interacted to get us to where we are at. He should be able to know right from wrong and he should know who needs the help.
Most importantly, the next mayor shouldn’t believe that the most righteous issue to focus on is a new baseball stadium.
