As our dance community exists across the political spectrum, we except that the concerns of individual members may vary from these enumerated points. This list is meant to represent overall concerns expressed to us by members of the dance community but does not apply to all members, nor is it a comprehensive list.

  • Many of our members have obvious privacy concerns regarding registering with the city government, and being mandated to carry and identify yourself when attending any event at these public, tax-payer funded facilities.

The remainder of our concerns focus around accessbility of the dance.

  • Will any person be able to obtain an ID at or before the Tuesday night dance? And will this ability to obtain an ID at the dance remain in perpetuity?

    We are worried that even if the city implements a strategy to allow people to obtain a city-issued ID when they arrive to go to a Tuesday night dance, that eventually the city will not appropriate staff the center such that this will be possible. The heights has been running weekly for over 20 years, and while any one administration may be able to guarantee staffing we would be subject to the whims and ability of future administrations that will not necessarily hold to the promises of the previous ones. This begs the question:

  • What happens if people show up to attend the dance and are unable to get an ID? Will they simply have to leave?

    Turning away dancers not only removes them from the immediate ability to participate in the fun, but also can leave people with a lasting negative impression of the dance such that they won’t return and may speak negatively about the dance to their friends. This type of experience can easily result in reduced attendance, and abstaining from participating in the dance.

  • Is there a requirement for an address in the city of Albuquerque to obtain the ID?
    • Does this address need to be a permanent address? Specifically, do they need a New Mexico state ID in order to utilize the community center?

    Many attendees of the dance are not necessarilty residents of our city. Some are from neighboring cities such as Santa Fe and Socorro; we get visitors from out of state; and we have a number of members who are university students that do not have permanent addresses in the city of Albuquerque. How would this policy effect them?

  • How does this policy affect minors?

    The Tuesday night dance at the Heights community center is one of, if not the, most age-diverse social dances in the city. In particular the Heights dance attracts many local teens (most often between 15-17 years old) that are under the age of 18. The established policy, as far as we have been able to determine, requires that all minors obtain the ID card with parent / guardian supervision. This has many issues, some of which are:

    • How would this affect minors with estranged relationships with parents or guardians? How can they obtain community center IDs?
    • How does this policy affect minors with parents that work long hours or multiple jobs that may be unable to coordinate the time to obtain the ID?
    • How does the policy affect university students that are currently minors but are from out of state, or are from other New Mexico cities that are hours away? How would their parents be able to coordinate getting to Albuquerque to obtain an ID? Are they prohibited from attending?

    Community centers are meant to be used and enjoyed by us, the community; of all ages. And this policy will likely disproportionately affect the ability of minors to attend the dance.

  • What happens if the system is not functional?

    Social dances maintain their strength through consistency. We all have the ability to look forward to a fun night of dancing on Tuesdays. We don’t want our attendees to be concerned with instability that may arise from the system just not functioning. I think many members of our community sympathise with concerns of the system functioning properly, particularly after the rather disasterous execution of the Albuquerque Rapid Transit.

  • What happens if someone with an id simply forgets it? Do they have to be turned away?

    We all forget to carry things around. And this additional ID will require all persons to either be regularly carrying around another ID, or remember it every Tuesday that they attend. What happens if they don’t? We have people that often drive over an hour from Santa Fe to attend the dance and if they simply forget an ID are we forced to turn them around and have them drive an hour back without being able to participate? This seems needlessly cruel.

  • How do we accommodate non-regular attendees?

    We often have people that participate in the dance that can’t regularly be there: for example out-of town dancers / intructors and local bands. Would they be required to obtain an ID that they may only use once? Do they need to go through the hassle of registering with the city to attend a dance while they’re just passing through?