While all Americans should feel welcome to enjoy our nation’s natural and cultural treasures, data show that racial and ethnic groups are less likely to view our national parks as part of their heritage and birthright as Americans. This makes them less likely to visit these places. There are many reasons for this, including a lack of racial and ethnic diversity within the NPS staff.

As our nation’s racial demographics change we must take steps to close the opportunity gap if we are to keep our economy strong and keep the American dream viable.

When the national KIDS COUNT Race for Results: Building a Path to Opportunity for All Children report was released earlier this month it was as if the proverbial other shoe had dropped. The first shoe that fell was New Mexico being ranked dead last in the nation in terms of child well-being. Now, Race for Results presents us with a first-ever, state-level index of racial/ethnic equity for children that shows New Mexico is also failing to provide equitable opportunities for ALL of our children to succeed at key developmental stages of life.

Would we all do everything in our power to ensure that our children are safe and lovingly cared for? In theory the answer is yes, but legislation that is being passed across the country is making that nearly impossible. When you encounter all of the rhetoric around the immigration issue, take a moment to think about the children.

A few weeks ago I was fortunate enough to take part in an exploration of equity and justice. I recently spent a week in Memphis  at the Voices for America’s Children National Forum. You always wonder if leaving town to attend a conference is going to be worth putting your day-to-day workload on hold for a week. But once I got there and was able to focus on the challenges before us — not only for New Mexico, but as a nation — I was inspired and energized. The focus of the conference was to motivate and organize Voices’ national chapters (advocacy organizations in nearly every state and territory) into a unified Children’s Movement. Our own Executive Director, Eric Griego, is the Chairman of the Member Leadership Council for Voices for America’s Children, and is a leading force in the Children’s Movement. …