Film Prize New Mexico 2023

BLACK IN NEW MEXICO

LOGLINE

A young Black New Mexican woman seeks to uncover “the black experience” for herself and others. Her hope is that by looking to the past and present, She might fully comprehend what it means to be “Black in New Mexico”.

FILMMAKER INTERVIEW

Tell us about the film you entered into the Film Prize Junior competition.

Black in New Mexico follows different stories of black New Mexicans to tell the story of what it’s like being black in New Mexico. We interviewed Dr. Timothy Nelson, and students from Amy Biehl High School.

LOGLINE

A young Black New Mexican woman seeks to uncover “the black experience” for herself and others. Her hope is that by looking to the past and present, She might fully comprehend what it means to be “Black in New Mexico”.

FILMMAKER INTERVIEW

Tell us about the film you entered into the Film Prize Junior competition.

Black in New Mexico follows different stories of black New Mexicans to tell the story of what it’s like being black in New Mexico. We interviewed Dr. Timothy Nelson, and students from Amy Biehl High School.

Tell us about a scene you had an absolute blast filming!

I think my favorite scene to film was probably the interview with Dr. Harold Bailey. He had a great wealth of information and it was so fun getting to interview and looking back on it in editing because he had great advice.

What is your goal in sharing this film with our festival?

I hope I can tell black stories you don’t always hear and that forces New Mexicans themselves to think about hard topics. This film directly challenges the narrative many New Mexicans are told and the black stories in our state matter.

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What obstacles challenged you and your crew the most when completing this film? What did you learn from making this short film?

I think what challenged us the most was probably people quitting the project before it was finished and a health scare from my mentor. For a little bit, I was kind of freaking out and had to calm myself down but we made it work.

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Why are opportunities like Film Prize Junior important to students today?

I think opportunities like this are important because it gives young filmmakers who are just starting out a chance to prove themselves. It is also a great springboard for experience that many don’t get when starting out.

What advice would you give to future participants in Film Prize Junior?

I think my advice would be to find a story you care about because that will give you motivation to see your project through. The second piece of advice I would give is to be organized and be prepared. You never know what can happen during filming, but you can try your best to put your work forward.

There are two interviews. One with Dr. Nelson (youtube) and one with Nikesha Breeze (link to Spotify).

Key players to get “Four Sites of Return: Ritual, Remembrance, Reparation, and Reclamation” out into the public; Jon Eddy of Form & Concept in Santa Fe, Marisa Sage, Earthseed Black Arts Alliance (Vital Spaces fiscal agent), Meow Wolf and Hakim Bellamy (project manager and Black Education Act council member), Taos Center for the Arts, KNCE 93.5 FM, the National Endowment for the Humanities and NMSU Art Museum.

Our organization notes ongoing concerns with lack of acknowledgment and improper use of Dr. Nelson's work by the Taos, Santa Fe, Albuquerque and Roswell "Black" community. Despite attempts by Marissa Roybal to facilitate a dialogue, including proposing a presentation by Dr. Nelson to the council, efforts were rebuffed. Dr. Nelson, a historian and racial justice scholar, encountered direct omission of his contributions, notably at an Albuquerque Museum exhibition which credited Austin Miller, citing Dr. Nelson's work, without recognizing Dr. Nelson himself.

Attempts to address these issues, including a proposed meeting with Vickie Bannerman and Hakim Bellamy, were unproductive. This led Dr. Nelson to resign, refusing to condone the mistreatment and underrepresentation of his work.

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In December, Chelsea Reidy from the Taos Center for the Arts reached out to Dr. Nelson for an interview. Aware of the upcoming NMSU Art Museum installation by Nikesha Breeze in January, Dr. Nelson agreed to the interview, requesting it be scheduled early January and the questions sent in advance, emphasizing his non-association with Breeze's work.

The interview, held on December 13, 2021, during a busy week for Dr. Nelson, lasted 20 minutes. Despite initial discussions, the Taos Center for the Arts combined Dr. Nelson's interview with Breeze's for a January 10th broadcast, focusing on a topic Dr. Nelson had researched. After some resistance, the Center fully credited Dr. Nelson's contribution following further requests and a threatened NEH contact, updating their records on February 9, 2022.

(Click on image to listen to Chelsea Reidy interview with Nikesha.). **The episode credited Dr. Timothy Nelson for his dissertation's contribution to the Blackdom story, though initially omitted mentioning Jacqueline Page’s interview with him about his research and writing. An email later revealed Dr. Nelson's interview was dropped due to insufficient content, marking another peculiar interaction with Nikesha Breeze’s projects. After discussion, the Executive Director of TCA, advised by their PhD board member, consented to edit the acknowledgment to include the interview. Both interviews are available for listening.

Nikesha Breeze was featured in an interview to discuss her art and experiences related to Blackdom, in anticipation of her upcoming NMSU Art Museum installation and the "Indigo" installation at the Albuquerque Museum. The "Where We Meet" project is NEH-funded and has a New Mexico fiscal agent.

The interview with Dr. Nelson was used to provide the needed historical context Nikesha Breeze was ill equipped to provide during her interview.

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August 30, 2021 - NARA Focuses on Expanding Access to Digital Records

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Dr. Richard Edwards haD been diligently working on this matter since 2008. See the link for his article below.

Richard Edwards is a primary leader in the “Homestead Records Project,” a consortium formed to digitize, preserve and make accessible approximately two million original homestead land-entry files.

This unfortunate decision would leave the important homesteading states of Colorado, Montana, Kansas, North Dakota, South Dakota, Oklahoma, Oregon, New Mexico, Washington, and California back in the hard-to-access and costly-to-access paper records regime. I believe NARA’s decision is mistaken, and that it should be a HIGH priority to finish digitizing these records. Richard Edwards, Director, Center for Great Plains Studies, Professor of Economics, August 31, 2018

An interview with Gwenyth Doland.

Passionate about the significance of the Afro-Frontier in American history, Dr. Timothy E. Nelson uncovers the forgotten history of New Mexico’s Blackdom.

New Mexico Black History Black History Month 2020

Entire Academic Article can be purchased @ [Great Plains Quarterly 39 (Winter 2019):11–37] via University of Nebraska-Lincoln Center for Great Plains Studies

by Jacob K. Friefeld, Mikal Brotnov Eckstrom, and Richard Edwards

Abstract: African Americans participated in homesteading in the Great Plains primarily by establishing “colonies” or geographically concentrated homesteading communities. We studied Nicodemus, Kansas; DeWitty, Nebraska; Dearfield, Colorado; Empire, Wyoming; Sully County, South Dakota; and Blackdom, New Mexico, which were the largest and most important Black homesteading communities in their states. Black homesteaders, like their white counterparts, were mostly very poor, struggled to grow crops in a harsh climate, and used the land they gained to build new futures. But because of their previous experiences in the South and racism in some nearby communities, Black homesteaders developed a distinct understanding of their efforts, particularly of schooling and the “success” of their communities.

Jacob K. Friefeld holds a Ph.D. in history from the University of Nebraska–Lincoln. He is currently a postdoctoral researcher at the Center for Great Plains Studies at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln. He is co-author, with Richard Edwards and Rebecca Wingo, of Homesteading the Plains: Toward a New History (2017).

Mikal Brotnov Eckstrom is a postdoctoral researcher at the Center for Great Plains Studies. His written work includes a co-authored chapter with Margaret Jacobs in Why You Can’t Teach US History without American Indians (University of North Carolina Press, 2012) and the Wall Street Journal.

Richard Edwards is director of the Center for Great Plains Studies, professor of economics, and senior vice chancellor (emeritus). Recent books include Atlas of Nebraska with J. Clark Archer and others (2017) and Natives of a Dry Place: Stories of Dakota Before the Oil Boom (2015).

Notes and credits the work of Timothy E. Nelson, Ph.D.

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KUNM | By ty bannerman

Published June 11, 2019, at 9:43 AM MDT

New Mexico has rich African American history and culture beginning with the arrival of Spanish explorers, continuing with the Homestead Act, through the Civil Rights era, and into the present day. In celebration of Juneteenth, we'll hear from folks who are working to preserve and share this legacy here.

We want to hear from you! How do you and your friends and family recognize Juneteenth? Do you have a family or personal history that showcases a unique experience of being black in New Mexico? What questions do you have about the history of black folks here? Email LetsTalk@KUNM.org, tweet us using the hashtag #LetsTalkNM or call in live during the show.

Guests:

• Cathryn McGill, Founder, and Director, New Mexico Black History Organizing Committee

• Rita Powdrell, Executive Director, African American Museum and Cultural Center of New Mexico

• Ebony Isis Booth, Founder, Burque Noir

• Jim Harvey, President, African American Performing Arts Center and Exhibit Hall

• Jon Ghahate, 17:12 Cultural Educator at the Indian Pueblo Cultural Center

  • (NOTICE: Jon Ghahate was not listed as a guest on KUNM link.)