7 Mar 2023
Learn about a needs assessment survey funded by the National Endowment for the Humanities and conducted by Sunmount Consulting on behalf of NMHC. Read the report on the cultural impacts of...
New Mexico History Day Contest
Wed, Mar 1, 2023, 12:00am
April 15th, registration opens March 6th (REGISTER) Hosted at the University of New Mexico With the conclusion of the Central Regional Contest on March 3, the state contest for New Mexico History Day is set for Saturday, April 15th, at the University of New Mexico. Please consider judging (we train you and give you lunch!) or supporting our student historians with a special award. Please contact historyday@nmhumanities.org for more information. Judges are needed! Special Award Sponsorships are still available.
October 2022 NMHC Major Grant Awards Recipients:
12 Dec 2022
The New Mexico Humanities Council awards grants to nonprofit organizations that promote humanities in the state through our Major Grants program, with applications accepted and funds traditionally awarded...
NATIONAL HISTORY DAY
1 Dec 2022
New Mexico History Day State Contest Special Award Opportunities Each year, students from around the state of New Mexico conduct primary source research into a wide variety of topics, from World War II to Asian history to labor history, and more and then present that research as the New Mexico History Day contest. At the state contest, a number of organizations and individuals sponsor special awards related to a topic that is important to them, such as the environmental history award from the State Historic Preservation Office, and the Manhattan Project Award from the Los Alamos Historical Society. You, too, can support these student historians. Contact State Coordinator Heather McClenahan, historyday@nmhumanities.org, to find out how.
MANITOS COMMUNITY MEMORY PROJECT: REMEMBER AND REFLECT
1 Dec 2021
Introducing a free resource for classroom teachers, librarians and individuals to reflect on the personal impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, while exploring archival information about the Spanish Flu pandemic and its impacts in northern New Mexico. The deluxe package includes a boxed set of four issues with stickers and a bookmark with prompts for reflection.
Pasa Por Aquí - Open Call for Submissions
27 Jan 2021
The New Mexico Humanities Council is seeking contributors for its new blog! Let us take this opportunity to introduce Pasa Por Aquí – the NM Humanities Council’s...
National Arts and Humanities
A Proclamation on National Arts And Humanities Month, 2022 For centuries, American arts and humanities have been a beacon of light and understanding, recording our history and advancing new ways of thinking. This National Arts and Humanities month, we celebrate our Nation’s visionary artists, scholars, and creators whose work touches and reveals the soul of America. My Administration is committed to making the arts and humanities more accessible to people of every age and background, uplifting more voices, inspiring new generations, and showing the full power of our example as a great Nation. We have invested hundreds of millions of dollars in strengthening the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) and the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH), and our American Rescue Plan allocated over a billion more to help museums, libraries, theaters, concert halls, and other venues recover from the pandemic. This critical support comes on top of a historic Executive Order....
Credit: Huerta at the LBJ Presidential Library in 2019. Jay Godwin (public domain).
Dolores Huerta: A Legacy
Wed, Mar 1, 2023, 10:00am | By Maria Vielma
One of the most insulting insinuations made about women is that we are not meant to lead. As a little girl, I almost bought into this lie after hearing male names of leaders pertaining to my Mexican-American...
Credit: The Magic Circle” by John William Waterhouse, 1886. Retrieved from: File:The magic circle, by John William Waterhouse.jpg - Wikimedia Commons
Witch: From Villain to Victorious
Wed, Mar 1, 2023, 7:00am | By Keelyn Byram
Until quite recently, the archetype of the Witch in Western culture has been the primary representation of the monstrous feminine. However, in the last century this archetype has been transformed from...
Dr. Meta L. Christy Credit: Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine
Healer of the Unseen: Dr. Meta L. Christy
Mon, Jan 30, 2023, 8:56am | By Ina Jane
Although systemic racism in America attempts to ensure the odds remain stacked against African Americans, Dr. Meta L. Christy proceeded to pave the way for many aspiring future Black doctors. As the first...
Ivan B. McClellan, Kortnee Solomon, Hempstead, Texas, n.d., photographic print, 38 x 29 in. Courtesy of Ivan B. McClellan.
The Harwood Museum of Art Presents “Outriders: Legacy of the Black Cowboy” Narrating the Rich History of the Black Cowboy in the American Southwest
Mon, Jan 30, 2023, 12:10am | By Ariana Kramer
African Americans have been an integral part of the history of the Southwest since preCivil War days. However, their stories have largely been expunged from the cultural imagination. The Harwood Museum...
Colonial period chocolate making implements and ingredients. Photo by Nicolasa Chávez.
Chocolate: From Food of the Gods to the Food of Love
Sun, Jan 29, 2023, 11:41pm | By Nicolasa Chávez
This Valentine season stores large and small fill up with festive chocolate items from elegant hand-crafted bonbons to heart-shaped boxes to tiny teardrop-shaped morsels wrapped in pink and red. One often...
Print made by John Simon (1675–1755), Portraits of Four Indian Kings of Canada: Sa Ga Yeath Pieth Tow, King of the Maquas, C. 1755, Mezzotint, third state, Yale Center for British Art, Paul Mellon Collection, B2001.2.1506. https://collections.britishart
What's in the word, savage?
Fri, Dec 30, 2022, 10:51am | By Felicia Bartley
“My grandpa was a savage before savage was in style.” -Snotty Nose Rez Kids, “Savages” I have been hearing the word savage more than I would like to acknowledge. I have noticed...
President Lyndon B. Johnson and Martin Luther King Jr. after signing the Voting Rights Act of 1965 Credit: The LBJ Presidential Library
Now What? Civil Rights & The Post-Pandemic Iconography of King’s Dream
Thu, Dec 15, 2022, 2:01pm | By Cathryn McGill
Now What?Civil Rights & The Post-Pandemic Iconography of King’s Dream How did buying a new mattress become the most prominent symbol in the annual celebration of President’s Day? (The holiday is...
NEW MEXICO HUMANITIES COUNCIL
Who we were
Who we are and
Who we aspire to be
We seek out, fund and conduct quality humanities programs for presentation to public audiences throughout the state. We support a wide variety of programs, projects and organizations-- topics can range anywhere from local history and culture to international affairs. Explore our website to learn how we support public programs in New Mexico communities which inspire inclusive conversations that strengthen our civil society and celebrate diverse human experiences.
Statement on Diversity and Inclusion from the New Mexico Humanities Council
1 Jul 2020
“Seeking to understand who we are, who we were, and who we aspire to be.” This statement is more than a pithy tagline for the New Mexico Humanities Council; we actively seek to provide New Mexicans with opportunities to cultivate mutual understanding and respect through its programming and grants.
Over the past weeks and months, our nation has experienced tremendous upheaval, particularly in response to the persistence of individual, institutional, structural, and systemic racism in our society. In the interest of addressing these social barriers, the New Mexico Humanities Council pledges to continue to develop, nurture, and fund programs and grant partnerships that use the tools of history, ethics, literature, and the examination of the arts to bridge gaps of culture, knowledge, and experience between New Mexicans. Our aim is to help each of us determine who we aspire to be both as individuals and members of larger communities. By helping to build these bridges of understanding and respect, we hope to play our part in working towards a more just society.
In the past year, we partnered with representatives from diverse communities to amplify the many voices and perspectives that make up New Mexican society. Some examples of this collaborative work include:
- 400 Years (1619-2019): Knowing our African American Past and Creating our Future, an art exhibit and discussion program that brought together artists and community members to discuss the resiliency of the African American community in the wake of the 400th anniversary of the arrival of ships carrying enslaved Africans to America (with the New Mexico African American Artists Guild).
- Bright Spaces, Welcome Places, a community-created art exhibit and public programs celebrating lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, nonbinary, and queer resiliency and health (with Fierce Pride).
- A concert and post-performance discussion led by the members of the Pakaraguian Kulintang Ensemble, which preserves the ancient Filipino musical tradition of kulintang (with the Filipino American Community Council).
While we are proud of the work we have done, the current moment demands reflection on what more we can do. In addition to continuing the cultivation of community partnerships alongside our funders and collaborators, the New Mexico Humanities Council is committed to creating and supporting opportunities and spaces for dialogue and expression. Please join us as a donor, partner, scholar, or engaged citizen in the important and meaningful work of building a better New Mexico. Don’t hesitate to contact Brandon Johnson (bjohnson@nmhumanities.org; 505-633-7376) to talk about how you’d like to be involved. We look forward to hearing from you!
