Hakim Bellamy 
Title - Social and Community Programs Coordinator
Organization/Agency – New Mexico State Office of African American Affairs
Pictures by Christina Gavino Gray
What inspires you about your work?
I’ve had the pleasure of occupying 3 dimensions of the Non-Profit Universe. As a performance artist and poet who is community and politically inclined, I have been a contractor and service provider to many non-profits that champion causes that I support 40 hours a week. It is always inspiring to work with the people who compose these non-profits because they inspire me to keep finding away to articulate in a poem or song or article, what they live on a daily basis. As a community organizer working for a non-profit, I’ve been able to be on the frontlines, at ground zero, where the money meets the mouth and where our victories and defeats have an impact on our community for years to come. That is inspiring in a high stakes, boiler room kind of way. Even though my artistic activism may take a longer arc towards changing hearts than the immediacy of winning an election or changing policy, it is precisely because I can remember that immediacy that I feel I can often create my politically charged art with such urgency and authenticity. And now, as a bureaucrat working for the state, I get to be on the institutional side of the non-profit sector and see first hand how our sector fills the gaps that are left by attacks on social programs and budgets. When the government can’t, non-profits can. I get to act as a facilitator for connecting non-profits and state government.
How will your career impact New Mexico/the social profit profession?
It’s a hard question to answer humbly. Perhaps I can say as Hip-Hop artist/actor Mos Def said, I’ll shake “up the world like Ali in six-three.” In all seriousness though, I think I am just part of a generation of social justice artists who have bought into the philosophy that all art is political, even art that prolcaims not to be. Yes, we believe there is value in art for arts’ sake, but we also see that there is concerted attack on any art that challenges the status quo or values community interest over commercial interest. A generation that realizes that with the privilege of this voice, this pulpit and this audience, one must advance art as much as messages that are for a good/profit that benefits more than just the artist. This generation of arts activist social profiteers that I am but a product of, is coming of age in a moment where funders and foundations who support social causes (political and non-political) are seeing a value in wielding the influence and insight that we are able to share and spread through our art. They are looking to escape old paradigms of reaching and engaging people with innovative ideas, and rather than seeing artists as a reflection of times, they are reconceptualising the artist as a prognosticator or soothsayer of the times. This confluence of talent and resource in the sector can allow artists to champion causes proactively instead of responding to defeats within our sector reactively.
Why are you a member of YNPN?
Simply because I think it is a worthwhile exercise to take a sector so vast and look at finding ways to organize across varied interests and diverse missions. It also an sector that suffers from a lack of talent development. I think YNPN is a unique tool to assist with the supply side of that equation. It is also a place to discuss, with the assistance of the advisory board and the mentorship program, how we impact the demand side of that equation. How to facilitate healthy turnover and influx of new vision and energy in organizations that have plateaued in their effectiveness or have not had a leadership progression since the organization was founded.
How do you fit the definition of a Young Non-Profit Professional?
Ummm, I’m 32 and really started meaningful work in this sector at 26 when I moved to New Mexico and began as a news reporter at KUNM 89.9Fm (Community Sponsored Radio). I’ve held consultation positions with non-profits as an artist and professional development trainer. Now, I work for the State of New Mexico as the Community Programs Coordinator at the New Mexico Office of African American Affairs.
What do you like best about being a young professional in central New Mexico?
I like that, amongst the folk in my age demographic, there is a general sense of duty and service to the community. Coming from South Jersey and Philadelphia, a city I love very much, I can’t necessarily say that so many young professionals have a sense of community and even global connectedness that almost feels like the norm here. I think in larger “rat race” areas, folks in my demographic can easily get caught up in seeking the “shiny” things and pursuing individual achievements, rather than resonating with the idea that personal success is bound to community success. When we increase the minimum wage in our community, it affects our collective economy in ways that catalyze one’s personal earnings and wealth, regardless of class.
Why do you feel it’s important for young people to work in social profit professions?
It’s important for young faces to be in our line of work so the so the elder generations that have carried the mountain so far, can feel comfortable and confident riding off into the sunset. They can feel that “the movement” (or sector, for my less overtly political social profiteers) is in good hands and relax. Hell, they’ve earned it! I also think it is important for us to be examples to the next generation of social profiteers. We make the idea of serving one’s community or cause a heck of a lot more sexy if we put young, talented and accomplished faces on it. It makes them look at us and say, “Hey, if that ragamuffin Hakim can do, I KNOW I can do it. And probably do it better!” That’s what we want them to think. We want the next generation to challenge us to think better and further and ultimately replace us with the “new, improved” model. That’s IF, in fact, we believe in progress. Though I can almost hear my ancestors chuckling, “The newest model ain’t always the best model…they still have all those bugs to work out!”
How do you avoid burn-out and where do you get support?
Short answer? I don’t. Long answer? I find strength in the cause, I can only sell and sacrifice myself, my health and my sleep for something I truly believe in. As a father of a 3 year-old, every moment I am out “saving the world”, is a moment I am not sharing the world with my son. So I have to be conscious of that when I over commit and over stress myself in a sector that seems to pride itself on martyrdom at times. However, I also see YNPN as an asset, because I have been occasionally blessed to spend time with groups of community servants and civic leaders and they always reinvigorate and inspire me to continue to do the work we do by reminding me that I am not alone.
What is your favorite part of our community?
How supportive they are of people pursuing their dreams, especially if they desire to help people along the way. I really appreciate how this community allows artist to try something new, outside of their comfort zone, and still be held up by community support. It is endearing and affirming. It allows us to create such a unique artistic scene here, complete with unexpected collaborations and ground breaking innovations in art.
What’s one thing most people don’t know about you?
I wanted to be a professional soccer player when I grew up.
Please share a memorable story that sticks out in your mind about work you have done for a non-profit.
Definitely, my first project as Development Director at the League of Young Voters. We put together a Mix CD of different socially conscious artists across genres (hip hop, rock, reggae, poetry etc.) to bring attention to youth issues in New Mexico and fundraise for our organization. We had album artwork from a B-boy in our community. It was compiled by my current artistic partner and producer, Diles, and mastered my our late friend and great musician, N’gala Mfalme.
