HOUSE FLOOR SUBSTITUTE FOR

HOUSE MEMORIAL 70

54th legislature - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - first session, 2019

A MEMORIAL

REQUESTING THE OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL, THE CULTURAL AFFAIRS DEPARTMENT AND THE INDIAN AFFAIRS DEPARTMENT TO WORK WITH PUEBLOS, NATIONS AND TRIBES OF NEW MEXICO TO ENHANCE THE PROTECTION OF PUEBLO, NAVAJO, APACHE AND INTERTRIBAL DANCES AND SONGS AS PROTECTED STATE CULTURAL RESOURCES.

     WHEREAS, New Mexico will safeguard Pueblo, Navajo, Apache and intertribal native dances and songs as protected state cultural resources; and

     WHEREAS, New Mexico officially acknowledges Pueblo, Navajo and Apache tribal nations and other Native American groups as legitimate heirs, owners and originators of their unique cultural and spiritual traditions of dances and songs that constitute the original dances and songs of New Mexico; and

     WHEREAS, New Mexico acknowledges the historical, cultural and regional distinctiveness of the customs, practices and religious obligations of the Pueblo, Navajo and Apache people and other tribal groups pursuant to their unique dances and songs; and

     WHEREAS, New Mexico acknowledges that native dances and songs are culturally and spiritually crucial elements to the core identities of Pueblo, Navajo and Apache people and other Native American groups; and

     WHEREAS, native dances and songs embody who and what native people are, and this reverence creates a collective bond among Pueblo, Navajo, Apache and other Native American people; and

     WHEREAS, native dances and songs do not belong to any one individual but are considered divinely ordained inheritances to all who are legitimately affiliated with their pueblo, nation or tribe; and

     WHEREAS, New Mexico acknowledges that significant Native American cultural events take place on state-operated properties, as well as pueblo and tribal lands, attracting visitors worldwide who bring significant tourist revenue and gross receipts taxes to the state; and

     WHEREAS, New Mexico acknowledges pueblo and tribal performers who share their unique cultural identities through traditional, intertribal and contemporary dances and songs, and Native American dance groups and individuals are hired by and receive stipends from various state-operated departments; and

     WHEREAS, the tourism department uses traditional and intertribal dance images to promote New Mexico as a major tourist destination, and these images should include an intellectual property clause recognizing native dances and songs as state cultural resources; and

     WHEREAS, the federal Indian Arts and Crafts Act of 1990 protects Native American arts and crafts that are part of actual pueblo and tribal dances and songs and arts and crafts that are worn, displayed and handled and that are required to complete authentic dances and songs indigenous to the Pueblo, Navajo and Apache people and Native American groups; and

     WHEREAS, the federal Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act allows enrolled Pueblo, Navajo and Apache people and other Native American groups to use eagle feathers and parts of other federally protected birds and animals in native dances and songs; and

     WHEREAS, native spiritual practitioners, healers and society leaders use these federally protected items and pass them down through biological lineage and tribal affiliation; and

     WHEREAS, the office of the attorney general, the cultural affairs department and the Indian affairs department are requested to work collectively with pueblos, nations and tribes to create legal mechanisms that encourage the appropriate and sensitive use of Native American dances and song;

     NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO that the office of the attorney general, the cultural affairs department and the Indian affairs department be requested to collaborate with pueblos, nations, tribes and others to further strengthen, protect and preserve the sanctity of actual Pueblo, Navajo, Apache and intertribal dances and songs; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that copies of this memorial be transmitted to the secretary of cultural affairs, the secretary of Indian affairs, the governor, the office of the attorney general, the New Mexico congressional delegation, the all pueblo council of governors, the Navajo Nation, the Jicarilla Apache Nation, the Mescalero Apache Tribe and the Fort Sill Apache Tribe.

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