16th annual Festival Sefardí to explore the intertwined history of Sephardic Jews, Indigenous communities

Albuquerque’s Festival Sefardí returns for its 16th year, exploring the complex heritage of Sephardic Jews in the Southwest with a series of talks by prominent scholars, as well as music, dance, poetry, art, workshops and food.

The event will be held at the synagogue Nahalat Shalom, which describes itself as a welcoming and inclusive congregation. The theme of this year’s festival is “Centering Indigenous Experience in New Mexico Jewish History,” and participants will explore the intertwined history of Sephardic Jews and Indigenous communities, including detribalized Genízaros. Anyone who is interested is welcome to attend.

Most Sephardic Jews arrived in New Mexico in the 16th century in an attempt to flee the Spanish Inquisition. But the Inquisition came here, too, so many families went underground, converting to Catholicism and hiding their Jewish identity from their neighbors and, in some cases, their own descendants.

Known today by a variety of names – “Conversos,” “crypto-Jews,” “Hidden Jews” or “Anusim” (Hebrew for “forced ones”) – some of these families remain “hidden,” either unaware of their Jewish heritage or uncomfortable acknowledging it openly, according to festival director Hershel Weiss.

Weiss said that when Nahalat Shalom was founded in 1982, “people were just starting to discover this legacy of Jews here in New Mexico who had hidden their identities for hundreds of years. And some were just starting to feel safe enough to become public with their identities.”

Weiss said many people only learned of their Jewishness from a grandparent on their deathbed, noting that the perceived need for secrecy was a legacy of the Inquisition, which lasted much longer in New Mexico than most people realize.

“The Inquisition was still imprisoning and torturing people in New Mexico in the 1800s,” Weiss said.

Weiss’ own family is Sephardic on his mother’s side, but because they had lived in North Africa for centuries, they never had to hide their Jewish identity.

Still, he said his mother lost many of her Sephardic customs in an attempt to assimilate into America’s larger Jewish culture, which is predominantly Ashkenazi. So, while the descendants of New Mexico’s “Hidden Jews” may appreciate Festival Sefardí as a place to explore their Jewishness, for Weiss it represents an opportunity to embrace his Sephardic side.

“Growing up in a household with an Ashkenazi dad and a Sephardic mom, the Ashkenazi culture dominated. My mother spoke Ladino, which is the historical language of the Sephardic Jews, but it was kept from me,” he said. “So, when I came to New Mexico and started meeting Spanish-speaking Jews, it was like a missing piece for me, personally.”

Over the years, Festival Sefardí has created a sense of community for New Mexico’s Sephardic Jews, as well as for non-Sephardic Jews and non-Jewish New Mexicans interested in exploring the region’s shared cultural history.

“A lot of relationships have been formed, and people come back year after year and stay for the entire weekend,” Weiss said.

On Saturday morning, Rabbi Lynn Gottlieb, founder of Nahalat Shalom, will conduct what Weiss called “a very unique, unusual service,” incorporating music and poetry — all performed in Spanish, Hebrew and Ladino. Gottlieb, one of the first ten women in Jewish history to become a rabbi, is also a practicing artist and a social justice advocate.

“Absolutely everybody is welcome, even folks who have never felt comfortable walking into a synagogue before,” Weiss emphasized. “Everybody will be warmly welcomed.”

After the service, lunch will be catered by local Indigenous vegan restaurant Itality.

“They’re all about promoting wellness and health in the Native communities, and they just make the most delicious plant-based food,” Weiss said.

For a full list of festival speakers visit nahalatshalom.org. But Weiss emphasized several highlights. Jon Ghahate (Laguna and Zuni pueblos) will discuss how the 1680 Pueblo Revolt intersects with Jewish history. Enrique Lamadrid, a folklorist and cultural historian, will discuss Genízaro history. Roger Martínez-Dávila, who is a descendant of both Spanish Catholic knights and Jewish rabbis, will present his research into some of the darker episodes of Jewish-Indigenous relations. And Gottlieb will speak about creating a culture of repair, accountability and renewal within a Jewish framework.

“This is our 16th year, and it’s the first year we have really consciously made an effort to take a look at the historical interactions between the early Jewish people who came with the conquistadores and how they affected the people that were already here,” Weiss said.

Weiss acknowledged that the histories the festival is exploring this year may be emotionally difficult for some participants, who may feel uncomfortable learning that some of their ancestors, who were oppressed by the Spanish, could have turned around and joined them in oppressing Indigenous communities.

“But it’s something that has to be confronted. Otherwise, we’re kind of stuck and we can’t move forward until we look at it,” Weiss said. “Acknowledge it, talk about it and make a decision to move forward. In my opinion, that’s a good way to develop solidarity.”

Weiss called Festival Sefardí “a very safe space” for challenging, but necessary, conversations.

16th annual Festival Sefardí to explore the intertwined history of Sephardic Jews, Indigenous communities