Read the statements of interest below and cast your vote at this link.
https://action.aclu.org/webform/nm-2023-board-election
Eartha Hodge
The skills I have developed from my work experience and community background support my candidacy for this position. I'm currently employed as a Community Peer Educator with Project ECHO®, a non-profit organization that is partnered with the New Mexico Department of Corrections to help Returning Citizens navigate successfully through probation and parole. The goal of the program is to help men and women become productive members of the community, and this is a personal goal for me because I know the struggles and difficulties that come with transitioning from incarceration to society.
The ACLU is known to advocate and fight for injustices and inequalities for all people, especially the marginalized populations, in the courtrooms, the legislature, and in our communities. As a returning citizen, I personally know the importance and effect of mass incarceration and racial injustice and I will use my position on the board to support incarcerated people. I will help to support their successful return to society by being a voice for those who have lost theirs to the system. I would be honored to be a part of this organization and I look forward to serving my community as a member of the ACLU–NM Board of Directors.
Christine Sierra
I continue to be convinced of the singular importance of ACLU-NM in protecting and furthering the civil liberties and civil rights of residents in our state. I want very much to continue to contribute to the development and impact of our organization as a member of its Board of Directors. I was first appointed to the Board of Directors in 2019 to fill a vacant position on the board. In 2020, I won election to a full term. I have served on the By-laws Task Force (2019-20), Committee on Equity & Inclusion (2019-2021), and Nominating Committee, as a member (2020-2021) and subsequent Chair (2021-2022). I have just completed my service on the Strategic Planning Committee and continue to serve as a member of the Governance Committee. My service on these four committees and one task force has provided me with both detailed knowledge of organizational structure, processes, and policy priorities, as well as a holistic understanding of the organization’s overall goals and values.
As a native of El Paso, Texas, with family networks embedded in southern New Mexico, I bring to bear a deep and personal understanding of our border region and our state. As a political scientist at the University of New Mexico (1986-2015), my expertise in race, ethnicity, and gender in American politics, immigration politics and policy, and New Mexico government informs my policy positions and understanding of contested issues. I am excited to continue my participation in leadership with ACLU-NM and ask for your support in doing so.
Alexandria Taylor
I was born and raised in New Mexico. I am the Deputy Director at the New Mexico Coalition of Sexual Assault Programs where I oversee and support the services provided by the thirteen rape crisis centers in New Mexico, as well as the sexual assault coordinators within community mental health agencies, twelve sexual assault nurse examiner programs, and eleven children's advocacy centers. I also lead the Coalition’s policy efforts.
I have worked in the field of interpersonal violence, including domestic violence and sexual assault, for the past 15 years. My commitment to the fight for liberation of all people is rooted in a social justice background working from margin to center. I am deeply committed to addressing issues from an intersectional lens. All of my career has been rooted in social justice. While in graduate school at the University of Baltimore, I worked for a social justice law firm, The Public Justice Center. At the PJC, I worked on the Prisoner’s Rights Project, the MedicaidMatters Coalition, and the Civil Right to Counsel Coalition.
The mission of the ACLU-NM and the work it focuses on are deeply connected to the issues I have spent my life working on, including racial justice, women’s rights, and criminal justice reform. I completed my Masters in Public Administration at the University of Baltimore and my Masters in Social Work at Columbia University. With over 15 years of non-profit experience, which includes direct program delivery, fundraising and development, board development, policy, and management, I believe my experience will serve the Board of Directors of the ACLU-NM in diverse ways. I also bring a feminist and critical race theory lens to any work I engage in. Recognizing the importance of the ACLU-NM in our state during these times, I am deeply invested in being a steward of this organization to ensure continued service of the community.
Rodney Bowe
My adult life has been spent serving and supporting my community in multiple capacities, always striving to do what is right. Even though we live in what is considered the greatest country in the world, we still have challenges with injustice and inequities in our society. My background comes from a community and university perspective in diversity, equity, and inclusion. I believe that the ACLU entity is one of the few entities dedicated to combating injustice, looking beyond just the laws of our country, stand for what is right based on morality, integrity, and human dignity, giving everyone the same opportunities to their civil liberties and rights.
My leadership encompasses the experiences of a compassionate man of color, utilizing a much-needed common sense denominator of love and compassion, even for those who I may differ with. I have a strong sense of integrity and fairness in the charge of assisting and protecting those from diverse backgrounds. If re-elected to the board of directors, I will continue to work to uphold the precepts of the American Civil Liberties Union and augment the work with the life knowledge, abilities, and training I bring to change the lives to those in need. This would be done from an open and fair-minded perspective in the pursuit of truth.
