How I See It
by Dorothy Wilkinson
Chair of the West Side Dems
I think a lot about the old union song, “Which Side are You On?” Which side am I on? I believe in democratic and union values. I hate the Trump regime and all it stands for. I believe conservative religious people are mistaken in their beliefs that Trump is right and diversity is wrong. I believe that with all my heart.
The question is: What am I willing to do about it? What are you willing to do about it?
I attended the No Kings rally. I sign petitions and I send a little money – not much because I don’t have much – to Democratic organizations.
But there is more that we can all do. We have, right here in Bernalillo County, a chance to strike against Trumpism. Those of you who live in City Council District 5 know about whom I write. We have a Trumper who would vote to allow ICE to harm our immigrant community. You know the name: Dan Lewis.
We have a Democrat who is well qualified to be a city councilor, and she is the opposite of a Trumpster. She believes that all people deserve dignity and that sexual orientation should have nothing to do with one’s ability to participate in society. She believes immigrants should be accorded the rights that are stated in the Constitution: The right to have a hearing and to have an attorney present when dealing with ICE. You know the name. Athena Allen.
We all need to pitch in to help Athena win the election. I have just volunteered to do extra phone banking, and I am going to send a little more money to her campaign. When we win, when Athena wins and when Dan Lewis loses and Trump loses, I want to be able to say I did my part. Will you also be able to say you did your part? Together we can win, but we can’t win unless we are all together.
Voting Made Simple
WSD members Patty and Bob Kuning in collaboration with the Bernalillo County Clerk have produced a video explaining the ease of voting. Please share this video with your non-voting friends and family.
It’s Your Turn
“It’s Your Turn” is the title of a new column in our monthly newsletter. Each month we will feature an article from a WSD member. If you would like to contribute, send your article to info@westsidedems.org.
Your article can be informational, about something in city, county or state government that you like or dislike, ideas you would like to see WSD implement, or criticisms.
Our first guest columnist is Jennie Lusk. Jenny gives us great insights into how we can all be involved in the fight for the rights of our immigrant community.
It’s Your Turn
by Jenny Lusk
Join Albuquerque’s staunch efforts to support immigrant justice – every single person who can help is needed. Now.
A strong network of organizations in Albuquerque acts in unity against ICE raids, intervenes to help immigrants survive detention and upheaval, and supports families who are uprooted. Of course, more help is perpetually needed. It’s never been more important to reach out and lend a hand – not only for the sake of the people caught in the system but for the sake of preserving our democratic principles.
ICE is active in New Mexico, picking up both undocumented people and U.S. citizens on Albuquerque streets in a malign system that feeds into detention and deportation. At least 30 people have been kidnapped from Albuquerque Walmart parking lots, especially on the West Mesa, in Rio Rancho and on East Central. They wind up in detention, where a Trump policy keeps them locked up rather than released on parole. Most will serve the whole of their cases – sometimes years – while locked up. And only a few will have access to legal or medical support.
Some 1,000 immigrants were detained at the end of August in New Mexico county jails. Core Civic is on contract with 223 beds at Cibola in Grants and 505 at Torrance County in Estancia. Near Las Cruces, Management & Training Corporation (MTC) held 893 at the Otero Detention Center at Chaparral. Reportedly, 90 percent of detainees need health care and medicines they do not receive while incarcerated. The recently enacted Big Beautiful Bill increases the federal budget from 41,000 to 100,000 immigrant detention beds and increases the budget for deportations to $45 billion. Yes, $45 billion. https://wapo.st/4nO67Wk (No paywall.)
Translators, lawyers and doctors are especially needed in these dire times. But beyond these professionals, every willing person is needed to help on the streets here. You can give your time, money and/or food and clothing to support uprooted families, accompany potential deportees to ICE hearings, encourage businesses to advertise that they welcome immigrants, or call detention centers to ask that they provide specific medications for detainees.
And it’s always important to lobby elected officials in D.C. and in Santa Fe – yes, even good Democrats. We’re up against a massive anti-immigrant lobby that makes regular hate-filled calls and can seem to represent a majority of constituents.
Click HERE for specific ways to help with contact information for volunteers:
Early voting is here!
Early voting has begun for the Nov. 4 election. Early voting began citywide at most polling locations Saturday, Oct.18. Polls will be open from 10 a.m. until 7 p.m., Monday through Saturday.
Early voting ends Saturday, Nov. 1. On election day, all polls will be open from 7 a.m. until 7 p.m. For a list of early voting locations click here.
- Absentee voting closes Tuesday, October 21—ballots will no longer be mailed after that date.
Let Me Be Blunt
We need a new treasurer. Ken Scott, our current treasurer, is facing serious illness and an overwhelming workload. He has asked to be relieved as treasure of WSD so he can focus on his health.
So we need a new treasurer. We have simplified the job so all the treasurer has to do is record membership applications, keep with up the budget, money coming in and money going out and how much money we have in our bank account. The treasurer will also work with our new membership coordinator and prepare a financial report for the executive committee and the members.
With our new streamlined treasury you should be able to complete your work in about 3 hours every week.
If you have experience in finance or in budgets, you are the person we’re looking for. You would become an officer of WSD, and you would become acquainted with wonderful people who share your Democracy values. If you are can fulfill this position please notify me at chair@westsidedems.org.
Joy Garratt Campaign Kickoff
Democratic Mayoral Candidates’ Endorsements
WSD has reviewed the websites of our Democratic candidates for Albuquerque mayor to learn which community leaders and organizations have endorsed them. Here are links to their websites; some list their endorsements, and some do not.
Mayling Armijo for ABQ Mayor – Albuquerque Mayoral Candidate
Endorsements — Mayor Tim Keller | Albuquerque, NM
Home – Alex Uballez for Mayor of Albuquerque
HOME| Louie Sanchez for Mayor | A Safer, Stronger Albuquerque
OLE Endorses Daniel Leiva for City Council District 1
Planned Parenthood Endorses Athenea Allen for
City Council District 5
Local Democratic candidates in races on the West Side are invited to submit candidate events to WSD at Info@westsidedems.org by 8 pm Sunday.
Canvass with Athenea Allen to unseat Dan Lewis as District 5 City Councilor
Yard Signs Available for Chris Sedillo for District 3
Daniel Leiva is running for ABQ City Council District 1. More info HERE
Ahren Griego is running for City Council District 1.
State Representative and conservation attorney Matthew McQueen is running for NM Land Commissioner.
This is a new feature that the West Side Dems is sharing until the November 4 local elections. We are asking all our Democratic candidates on the West Side for their views on specific issues each week. Their unedited responses are unedited, except for formatting. Candidates are presented in the order of city council district on the West Side. These are all the candidates who responded to this question.
QUESTION: HOMELESS HOUSING: Homelessness Programs at the city and state levels are attempting to resolve or mitigate issues related to our unhoused neighbors but progress is slow. How would you allocate resources to address access and affordability of housing while protecting property rights and ensuring that all citizens housed and housed are safe and secure?
Answers:
Ahern Griego
Candidate for Albuquerque City Council District 1
We must recognize that housing policy is about more than building new homes. It’s about keeping people in the homes they already have, creating new opportunities across income levels, and ensuring the most vulnerable among us are treated with compassion. Preserving and maintaining the existing stock of affordable housing must be a top priority. The City should work with landlords and property owners, offering tax reductions or temporary tax eliminations in exchange for keeping units affordable for a guaranteed period. It’s a smarter use of resources to preserve affordability now than to build our way out later.
Greater investment should also be directed toward mixed-income developments. Residents shouldn’t be locked out of affordable housing because they earn slightly too much. Mixed-income neighborhoods lower costs for everyone and strengthen communities. Expanding the City’s initiative to convert hotels and motels into affordable housing would provide an immediate boost in available units.
Resources should be put toward developing more starter homes—small single-family houses that help young families build equity. To make these loans accessible, the City can partner with credit unions to create a loan-guarantee fund for small mortgages that traditional banks often avoid.
Efforts should also focus on empowering builders to build. The permitting process needs to be streamlined, and technology should be used to create an instant approval system for projects that meet zoning and schematic requirements.
Casitas, or accessory dwelling units, are another key solution for multi-generational and affordable living. The City should invest in small grant and loan programs through credit unions to help families build them.
Finally, resources must go toward expanding legal aid, renter assistance, and the Gateway Center to provide healthcare, addiction recovery, and job placement services—ensuring compassionate, people-centered solutions to homelessness.
Daniel Leiva
Candidate for Albuquerque City Council District 1
Housing is a human right, and we need to act like it.
My approach is housing first: we expand affordable and supportive housing while connecting people to vital services like mental health care, addiction treatment, and job training. We’ll remove construction barriers and fund what works to provide stable housing.
Instead of criminalization or displacement, we’ll use coordinated outreach through Albuquerque Community Safety and our service providers. Safe neighborhoods and compassion aren’t opposites. Everyone in our city deserves stability and dignity, and we must work to ensure no one is left on the streets.
Stephanie Tellez
Candidate for Albuquerque City Council District 1
Homelessness is one of Albuquerque’s most urgent moral and civic challenges. Despite good intentions and numerous programs provided by the city progress has been slow because we continue to design solutions for our unhoused community instead of with them. If we want lasting change, we must start by listening to the voices of those most directly affected.
True progress begins with inclusion. Too often, we assume we know what’s best for people living on the streets, yet we rarely ask them what they need or why they may refuse services. Many of our unhoused neighbors have faced trauma, systemic inequities, or have lost trust in institutions meant to help them. If we are serious about creating effective solutions, we must treat the unhoused not as a problem to manage but as partners in the work of rebuilding lives. I will advocate for formal mechanisms — like lived-experience advisory boards
Ready to Make an Impact?
Share Your Skills with WSD
WSD is a growing organization in numbers, power and prestige. This is your invitation to become an influential member of our team by volunteering.
If you are tech savvy, volunteer to work with our webmasters. If you take good photos, volunteer to take pictures at our meetings and events. If you are interested in the State Legislature, volunteer to advocate and keep track of legislation. If you’re interested in City Council or County Commission, volunteer to follow their meetings and report to our membership. If you have a little time to call or text, you contact our members about meetings and events.
We need volunteers to help us in our mission to keep the West Side blue and to fight to keep our democracy. If you’d like to write, we have a place for you If social media is your thing, let us know you are willing to help with that. If you’re interested in volunteering in any way, contact chair@westsidedems.org.
Also, if you would like us to cover an issue that we haven’t addressed, contact info@westsidedems.org.
Join Us
Members of West Side Dems are welcome to come to our executive committee meetings. We meet on the first Saturday of the month.
For more information about when and where we meet, contact info@westsidedems.org.
NEW! Protest in Tijeras on Sunday mornings, 9 – 10 am at 487 & NM-333.
NEW! Weekly Friday vigil in Santa Fe, Sandoval, and West Alameda, 12-1 pm.
TESLA PROTESTS IN BERNALILLO weekly Saturdays 9am–10:30am.
Weekly speak-out about Trump, Oligarchs, & Project 2025 in Santa Fe. More info here.
Join People Against Tyranny every Tuesday 11am to NOON protesting the chaos, divisiveness and cruelty of Donny-2-Dolls’ wreckage! We’re in the Northeast Heights at the intersection of Montgomery and Juan Tabo.
There’s plenty of parking in the shopping centers on each corner. Bring your signs, your voices, noisemakers, bodies and souls, and your friends!
Please do not engage with hecklers (we haven’t had many) and allow pedestrians to get through.
Alamagordo 10 am Every Saturday
Honk and Wave Event Otero County — more info here
Members of West Side Dems are welcome to come to our executive committee meetings. We meet on the first Saturday of the month from 2-4 pm. For more information about where, contact info@westsidedems.org.
So you can’t make a meeting? You can zoom the meeting by accessing info@westsidedems.org and requesting a zoom link. A recording will also be available at westsidedems.org
West Side Dems Immigration Info Hub
“If the rights of one person are denied, the rights of all of us are denied. This concept of mass deportation is very frightening. So West Side Dems will develop a hub of information about immigration and mass deportation.”
— Dorothy Wilkinson
Read Dorothy’s editorial on why immigration is so important.
Click here to see our new IMMIGRATION PAGE, with ways to get involved.
“If the rights of one person are denied, the rights of all of us are denied. This concept of mass deportation is very frightening. So West Side Dems will develop a hub of information about immigration and mass deportation.”
— Dorothy Wilkinson
Read Dorothy’s editorial on why immigration is so important.
Click here to see our new IMMIGRATION PAGE, with ways to get involved.
Our Mission
To Serve the 88,000 Democrats
Living on the West Side
Democrats Care!
We encourage and support candidates who will work for the good of everyone in our community. We believe in a government that is truly “of the people, by the people, and for the people”…not just for corporations, Wall Street, or the rich.
United By A Common Goal…
Social justice and human rights are more important than corporate profits. We seek to improve the quality of life for all of our residents through grass-roots support of candidates who listen and work to implement liberal programs and legislation.
Get Involved…
Your candidates can’t win without your help. Canvassing, phone banking, word-of-mouth, volunteering, and donating are all ways to work together to achieve our common goals.