Editor,
Recently, I had the pleasant opportunity of touring the grounds and buildings of the National Hispanic Cultural Center, regarded as “one of the most important new cultural institutions in the United States.” It was on this occasion that I was awestruck and proud of such a wonder of grandeur located in Albuquerque.
As I was transported by a staffer of the center, transfixed to a higher plain of cultural sensitivity, my heart was filled with a deeper sense of love for our fellow brothers and sisters of Hispanic origin. The period of Sept. 15 through Oct. 15 is designated National Hispanic Heritage Month, and we New Mexicans have the privilege of joining with those of kindred spirits in celebrating the foundational principles of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness through strong spiritual frameworks, self-motivation, hard labor, perseverance and the determination to succeed, in spite of cultural barriers and other societal impediments.
Gliding along through those hallowed halls of the NHCC, beholding that glorious receptacle of immense Hispanic history, it became ostensibly clear that a one-page tribute could not capture such a valued trove of American life. So I offer to you a condensed timeline of the developing Hispanic climb toward freedom from Spain, and acceptance into the American human landscape. This chronology offers a protracted view of the eventful travels of Hispanic trailblazers in their quest for national citizenship. Undaunted, they chose the path of the “Old Spanish National Historic Trail,” designated as such by Congress in 2002.
In 1829, Antonio Armijo led the first trade caravan from Abiquiu to Los Angeles, opening the Old Spanish Trail. Following further trading of merchandise and animals, other pioneering factions blazed that same trail.
The Mexican-American War began in 1846 and ended with the Treaty of Guadalupe-Hildago in 1848. The original mode of travel on the Spanish Trail — commonly labeled “the longest, crookedest, most arduous pack-mule route in the history of America” — ceased in 1849 as more direct transportation routes developed.
The achievements of Hispanic-Americans were not easily gained.
Amid ethnic and racial conflicts, denial of certain inalienable rights, and the refusal of some Americans to honor the dignity of all peoples, this group has struggled against the tide of insensitivity and stereotypically ascribed labels of their humanity. They are now nearing the heights of national prosperity, and ascending the mount of much-won recognition as American citizens, who may now celebrate their heritage with thanksgiving and pride.
Mary Woods
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