On Saturday, Feb. 28 at 11 a.m., the Route 66 Centennial Speaker Series returns with simultaneous talks across Albuquerque and surrounding communities, each exploring a different thread of the Mother Road’s history.
This month, two presentations stand out for the way they frame Route 66 not just as a highway, but as a turning point in the city’s identity.
At the Martha Liebert Public Library in Bernalillo, Abraham Santillanes will present Why Turn Left at Albuquerque? Albuquerque, Route 66 and the Many Roads That Came Before. The title nods to the famous Looney Tunes character Bugs Bunny, whose wrong turn in Albuquerque became a pop culture catchphrase. Santillanes uses that familiar line as an entry point into a much deeper history…