KC Counts:
The last time we spoke, I think it was just before the NAACP conference here in Las Cruces.
Dr. Bobbie Green:
Yes.
KC Counts:
And the theme was The Urgency of Now.
Dr. Bobbie Green:
Yes, that is still the same theme.
KC Counts:
Gotcha.
Dr. Bobbie Green:
The theme has not changed. The urgency has not changed either. We, as a people, need to take action. You can see some of that all over the country. People are standing up and speaking out. And it's necessary. It's dangerous, yes, but it is still necessary.
KC Counts:
As we head into Martin Luther King, Jr. Day over the weekend, celebrations, commemorations, how do you view Martin Luther King Jr. Day? As a celebration or a somber event?
Dr. Bobbie Green:
I think it we need to celebrate him as what for what he did he was you know ahead of his time his speeches if you read his some of his speeches which I do frequently at this time of the year he was visionary he had it's like the speeches could be appropriate to today so That I celebrate, but it is also realizing how he, was killed by an assassin. Realizing what we lost and how we lost it is, something that we have to be mindful of. And so it, it's bittersweet.
KC Counts:
Martin Luther King Jr. Day is no longer a day for people to go to a national park for free. And there are certainly others like it.
Dr. Bobbie Green:
Well, there is a lot of changes that I am disturbed by. That is one of them, because those parks and those monuments should have been available to the public. That was the original intent, and it should still be that way. we should not let partisan issues or politics get into the way of people enjoying and being able to go back and celebrate our history in the and the monuments that stand for that history so that you know it makes me it's frustrating and it's sad but we understand that it is part of the sign of the times where we are now that's where we are in this country from.
KC Counts:
Reading those speeches by Dr. King and commenting on how appropriate they are even for today. And we could look back at thinkers from 2,000 years ago and talk about some of the things that are appropriate to this time. Does it mean to you that the words have transcended time, or does it mean that humans haven't quite made the progress that maybe you would hope we had?
Dr. Bobbie Green:
We definitely have not made the progress that I would have hoped that we had. I think if Dr. King were still alive, he would be disappointed at where we are in this country specifically, and he would still be speaking out and probably even more with a louder voice, because now you've got internet, you've got social media, you've got platforms where you can get more, you can reach more people than he could back in the 60s. So I think he'd still be speaking out. He would still be disappointed, but he would still be saying, hey, you know, we can still choose love over hate. We can still do what's right and love our fellow man and try to help those, you know, the least of these among us and all of those things I believe he would still say, but he would just have a bigger audience now.
KC Counts:
So let's talk a little bit about how the NAACP will be marking Martin Luther King Jr. Day.
Dr. Bobbie Green:
In Doña Ana County, we have two events. We have a conversations event. It is open to the public. And we're going to talk about the, well, the upcoming legislative session is just right upon us. And what are we taking to Santa Fe and in terms of what we'd like to see changed, where we want the money to be allocated, we want to put some money towards education, obviously. We want to put some money towards sensible police reform. We want to put some money towards dealing with the homeless issue, maybe social workers and social outreach and things like that. So where are we, what are our priorities and are there actual legislative pieces that we can support or that we can not support if they don't go along with what we think is prudent? And we need to be aware of what is going to happen in this session. It's a short session. It's a 30-day session, and not a lot gets done. But we hope that we can make a little headway.
KC Counts:
Do you have some names of panelists that have committed to the event?
Dr. Bobbie Green:
We do. I have-- well, the mayor has committed, and Councilor Bencomo has committed. Senator Jeff Steinborn has committed. The county clerk, Amanda Lopez Askin, has committed. And so we have some, you know, people that are both candidates and people who are in those positions already that we'll get to talk to, ask questions of. Voting rights is certainly an issue that we will talk about with Amanda since she's our county clerk and she's a candidate for Secretary of State. So we are, you know, we're hoping to just inform people of what the issues are and how we can get involved and support the issues.
KC Counts:
There was an NPR story recently that indicated that we could see a pretty steep decline in black representation in general in Congress because of redistricting that's happened around the country. How do you view the path forward from there? And the argument between whether it's racial gerrymandering or political gerrymandering.
Dr. Bobbie Green:
I think that it's both. It is both racial and political gerrymandering, and it hasn't just begun. Gerrymandering has been around for a long time. The intent was for the politicians to pick the voters rather than the voters selecting the politicians, and it's still that way. So that is an issue that we do have to be aware of, not so much in New Mexico, and I'm grateful for that. New Mexico seems to be a little bitter about voting rights and
voter...
KC Counts:
Well, some Republicans might disagree with you, but...
Dr. Bobbie Green:
Well, they probably would disagree with me, that's true, but I sat on the redistricting committee here in Las Cruces, so our efforts were to try to make it as equitable as possible. possible, looking at the growth and the population and making the, making the district such that it was balanced.
KC Counts:
Do you think there should be an independent group doing those maps?
Dr. Bobbie Green:
Absolutely.
KC Counts:
It was interesting to watch California, right, which went that direction and then brought it back to the people to vote not to do that so that they could kind of counter what was happening and Republican states across the country, namely Texas, of course.
Dr. Bobbie Green:
California was very shrewd in combating what was happening and doing it because it was going to be very, in my opinion, very detrimental to the country. And we were going to end up with more of the same. The gridlock that we have now, the fact that we can't get anything done, unless it's part of, for example, the Big Beautiful Bill, which I think was just a tragedy. So we need to, we do have to respond. We have to, we don't have a choice. We do have to respond. And so to California's credit, I'm grateful that they did respond because that affects all of us.
KC Counts:
So let's get back to the celebratory aspect of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day and talk a little bit about what's happening that you think people might enjoy.
Dr. Bobbie Green:
Well, we have a brunch this year. We used to have a breakfast for many years and people had to get up early on their day off. So this year...
KC Counts:
I love brunch personally.
Dr. Bobbie Green:
I love brunch too and it's a little more civilized. I think it's going to be well received by the public. I'm hoping that they will appreciate the fact that they do get sleep in a little bit and then they can come and enjoy some music and the keynote speaker is the Executive Director of the ACLU of New Mexico. There is a great common denominator between the NAACP and the ACLU. We have very common issues that we fight for. And so he is going to come and speak to us. We've had several meetings with the ACLU in New Mexico. So he's coming to talk. And the theme is still the fierce urgency of now. It is still an urgency. Dr. King spoke on it 67 years ago. and it's still urgent today so we do need to be aware that it's up to us to take action to get out and speak up if we need to and do it without fear of reprisal although there is some you know concerns about safety and security and what have you and we still need to be able to reach across the aisle, try to find common ground, try to find things that we agree upon. And if we can't agree, we can disagree without being disagreeable. So with the Martin Luther King brunch, you'll hear some wonderful music. The NMSU Gospel Choir will be there showcasing their talents, some of which I'm very proud. We do have the Billy Towns Ensemble from El Paso, who is fantastic. And we have a soloist, a gospel artist coming in from Albuquerque, Rosalyn Jones, who's an incredible singer, and she's coming. So we're going to have a wonderful, it's going to be music, it's going to be food, it's going to be education, it's going to cover all the bases.
KC Counts:
You said education, and that was the word that was on my mind in terms of what you think people take away. What do they learn from being a part of this event?
Dr. Bobbie Green:
Well, Martin Luther King had some principles of non-violence, you know, that are not taught in school. So I'm hoping to reach out to some of our young high school students. We're reaching out to several high schools to see if we can get some students to come to be a part of it. We have student ambassadors that are part of the Martin Luther King Coalition. So we want to have more exposure so that the things that they don't, that our students and even our adults don't learn, didn't learn in school, they can find out about this man and how incredible he was and what a talent he was. And I have some of his clips that I'll play, the more famous clips, of course, I will play. And we have some of his speeches and I'll take a few of those clips and just play them so that they can hear some of them.
KC Counts:
I don't want to put you on the spot, but any words I'm sure a lot of them do, but is there a certain phrase or quote that really is kind of the one that comes back to you time and time again in different situations?
Dr. Bobbie Green:
I have a dream that one day my children will not be judged by the color of their skin, but rather by the content of their character. That to me is timeless. It is so profound. It is simple, but yet very complicated. And it speaks to what I think most families, most parents, that's the dream they have for their kids.
KC Counts:
There's a reason why it is one of the most known phrases, not only from him, but of all time.
Dr. Bobbie Green:
Absolutely. And you know, like I said, it's not just black parents. All parents feel that way. Everybody wants that for their kids. And I think that's what we should all.
KC Counts:
Dr. Bobby Green, well, so nice to see you again. Thank you for coming by to help spread the word about how people can mark and honor and celebrate Dr. King.
Dr. Bobbie Green:
Come to the Hotel Encanto on Saturday the 17th at 2 P.m. for the conversations and our panel discussion, or come to the Convention Center on MLK Day, January 19th at 11 A.m. for the brunch. And we would love to see you there. Thank you.