I’m Young, Ambitious, and Want to Stay in New Mexico

A recent opinion piece in the Albuquerque Journal sought to convince young people that New Mexico is a place not worthy of their ambitions and dreams. As one of those young people, I was deeply disturbed and angered by the letter’s flippant attitude towards the state I love.

New Mexico is unrivaled in the nation in its natural beauty, cultural diversity, and spiritual sense of belonging and pride. It is also a state that faces a range of challenges from under-performing school systems to crime rates so high they truly make no sense. The economic potential of the state is at the same time evident, yet seemingly unattainable. The relative isolationism of the state’s history and present gives the state a sense of home and comfort, but also disconcerts some who look with envy on the growth of places like Denver, Dallas, or Phoenix. These gives and takes certainly create a dilemma for many people in my age cohort, I’m 24, but also of people in all age groups and socio-economic strata. Stay or leave?

Political division and fear-mongering, un-inspired policy making, and stagnant cultural ideas of resistance to change all make it seem like the clear choice that we have is to leave. I would love to move to Dublin or Washington, D.C. to study Modern European History, or experience the excitement of San Diego or Seattle. Leave and look for green pastures that I, personally, believe do exist.

The problem is that life is not that simple. Why can’t people see the green pastures right under their feet? I have been fortunate in that I have been able to travel quite a bit. I’ve been to a dozen countries and half the states. I’ve spent time in Texas and California and New York. Each time I visit a new place or see how a new group of people live, I am struck by how much more I fall in love with my home state. The Land of Entrapment is a negative and pessimistic misnomer that people use to put down the idea of staying in N.M. It is just as maddening as the car theft numbers coming from my alma mater, UNM.

We must strive to understand that though we may be in a period of drought causing our pastures to brown, they will not be improved by fleeing. The state that gives us all a home, that allows us to eat too many enchiladas, that distracts us too much with its sunsets and movie stars, needs us young, ambitious people to stay and help solve the problems of the past that still plague us today. Those problems will not be solved by leaving. Young people leaving simply drains New Mexico of the talent and intellect that give the state hope, that give all the people who truly love the state even more reason to love it.

The level of ingenuity that exists at our universities, the national labs, and private companies all over the state show just how much innovative potential exists here, on a world-class level. The passion and drive of volunteer organizations that help others and build community demonstrate the willingness of citizens to work to improve the state.  And yes, New Mexico has the best food, beauty, and culture that make it worth staying here and creating new economic opportunity here. Maybe we have balance that exists nowhere else.  

A challenge certainly awaits those who seek to stay, to build their lives in New Mexico. But the rewards of doing so may be far greater than we can realize. Headlines of crime and corruption do not give the whole picture. If we refuse to look at the greater canvas, we have already lost. Instead of putting our state down, let’s work together to build it up.