Caveza: A Journey Home
This is a whole new journey. Yet, not new at all. Allow me to introduce myself: I am Elicia Gonzales, a maternal granddaughter of Placida Inez Caveza Martínez - “Nana.” In May 2026, I will hop in a car with my best friend and wife, Megan Hannah, along with our fur baby James Bond and Miro (dear friend, cultural anthropologist, and healer rooted in indigenous practices) will embark on a cross-state journey. The quest will take us through several states and indigenous lands, through northern New Mexico up into Southern Colorado to visit the former The Lafayette Head Home & Ute Indian Agency compound - now the Casa Desenterrada, created by Ronald Rael (creator of the well-known “Teeter Totter wall”). We will connect with our cousin Yvette Gabardi (my 1st cousin) and maybe others - including her mom Emily, my closest aunt we call Auntie Nae. Together we will all traverse throughout the San Luis Valley.
We're embodied, guided by spirit, stories, historical records, & DNA evidence. (Yes, you ARE the father!) We'll honor the enslaved whose identities will ideally be revealed by Native Bound-Unbound: Archive of Indigenous Slavery. This project was founded by Dr. Estevan Rael-Gálvez with whom we've been working with since 2022. We'll visit the "compound," now Casa Desenterrada, We'll film, photograph, & record audio of family members speaking on our history, traumas, & joys. We’ll share our journey through film, community gatherings, & educational workshops for BIPOC folks on similar journeys of unearthing their forgotten, buried roots. Our hope: shifting the narrative around the “founding” of our nation by actively repairing harms to forgotten enslaved people for whom this land belongs.
