The 19th Amendment was passed by the U.S. Congress in 1919 and ratified in 1920. It gave women the right to vote. But minorities, like Native Americans, were still unable to cast a ballot. New Mexico was one of the last states in the country to change that.The Land of Enchantment is home to 19 pueblos and three tribes, along with the Navajo Nation.
In 1948, Trujillo traveled to Los Lunas in Valencia County to cast a ballot. He was denied that right by the county registrar Eloy Garley. Trujillo then went to his attorney, Felix Cohen, a lawyer known for Indian law. The two took the case to court and challenged New Mexico's 1912 Constitution. 'Even if our lands aren't taxed, we're taxed just buying things going into the community. So we are citizens in that respect,' Perea said.