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News

LETTER: UNM professors stance on the repeal of Affirmative Action

Maggie Werner-Washburne and Irene Vasquez | July 7

New Mexico educators suffered a major disappointment by the Supreme Court’s ruling to strike down Affirmative Action in college admissions. That ruling, combined with the cancellation of the student loan forgiveness plan, signals the beginning of a reversal in economic progress for diverse students in higher education. As committed educators, we feel obligated to ensure that all New Mexico students have access to quality education despite any obstacles that we may encounter, including the repeal of Affirmative Action.

Sports

The Suika Circuit track is revving its engine

BillyJack Davidson | July 6

EDITORS NOTE: A previous version of this story said that Andrew Sanford was the new owner of the Suika Circuit. This has sense been changed, and as The Suika Circuit is owned by Dan Brockett, Jim Guthrie and Mike Ossell since Feb. 2023, according to the Rio Rancho Observer. The article has been updated with the corect owner. Just outside of Albuquerque city limits is the Suika Circuit, formerly known as the Sandia Speedway. It's now under new ownership of Dan Brockett, Jim Guthrie and Mike Ossell and is starting to bounce back and start racing. July 1 was the first one-day event to kick off the refurbished pavement track. Members of Southwest Motorsport Inc. came out with their racing cars for their monthly races. The original Sandia Speedway location hosts events throughout each month on the 1.7 mile long pavement or the slightly smaller dirt track. On July 1, the modified street cars were put on the 14 turn pavement – a tricky course.

News

Joy in resistance against The Fourth

Maddie Pukite | July 5

Local Albuquerque community found joy in resistance at Mesa Verde Park – gathered to eat, provide resources and build connections on the Fourth of July in protest of the holiday. In 2022, 1.2 million people were incarcerated in the United States, according to the American Civil Liberties Union. Based on a survey, the ACLU administered about 24,000 incarcerated people – 76% reported being forced to work or facing punishment. Selinda Guerrero, a local organizer, spoke about the event's intent to resist state exploitation in prison systems and by police on the Fourth of July – the nation's Independence Day, a celebration of freedom and the adoption of the Declaration of Independence.

News

Fall Out Boy, a reflective remake

Sydney Walker | July 5

A newly released remake of a song from the ‘80s has successfully sent me down a rabbit hole of deep thought. The last 28 years I have spent on this planet, I realized, have been quite traumatic. Released on June 28, the Fall Out Boy remake of Billy Joel’s, “We Didn’t Start the Fire,” has gone viral with over one million views on YouTube. Within the first three days of its release, the song quickly became a trending topic for TikTok creators. The original song by Billy Joel was released in September of 1989. It covered newsworthy topics spanning nearly 40 years starting in 1948, referencing Joseph Stalin, Marilyn Monroe, the H-bomb, Einstein and many more influential people.

Opinion

Opinion: Albuquerque should be a target for WNBA expansion

Thomas Bulger | July 5

The Women’s National Basketball Association season is in full swing and nearing the league’s All-Star game on July 15. While the league celebrates their top talent, it is a good time to recognize what the gauntlet athletes have to endure to reach that point. With only 144 roster spots across the 12 team league, talented players are waived before they get a chance to develop. Just 15 players from the three round draft made the roster for the team. In the cutthroat league, prospects have to help their teams win from the jump. With limited spots, teams will opt for players with no weaknesses, which leaves players like Brea Beal without a team.

Culture

Risolana encourages community-focused art

Addison Key | July 2

An evolution of screenprinting, called Risographs, mixes a specific amount of four colors to create the artist's desired color. The risograph printer uses premixed ink and lays one color at a time. The process allows for vibrant and fluorescent effects as well as unique mistakes. Risolana – a community risograph studio in the South Valley – aims to educate on this process. In an effort to introduce risograph printing to the community, Risolana holds 30 Under 30 events on the 30th of every month; participants sign up, bring in any art work and create 30 risograph prints for $30, co-founder Karl Orozco said.

Opinion

Opinion: 'Fourth Wing' is the book of the summer

Elizabeth Secor | July 2

I have been in a massive book slump for the past month and a half, leaving me searching for my next read to finish out the summer. After several hours of scrolling through BookTok, the same book, “Fourth Wing” by Rebecca Yarros, came up again and again. After devouring this book, I can confidently say anyone looking for their next summer read should look no further. “Fourth Wing,” a fantasy novel, follows twenty year-old Violet Sorrengail as she is forced by her mother, the commanding general, to enter a war college for dragon riders instead of her lifelong plan of entering the scribe quadrant.

News

Curanderismo course at UNM dives into the culture of traditional healing

Elizabeth Secor | June 29

During the summer, the University of New Mexico offers a two week in-person class called “Curanderismo: The Art of Mexican Folk Healing” to allow students to connect more closely with cultural and spiritual healing. The class takes a holistic approach to healing, Eliseo Torres said — the professor of the course. The class has many guest speakers from all over, including Mexico and Peru. Some of those guests are curanderas who specialize in the traditional healing methods of Curanderismo. One such curandera is Tonita Gonzales who has worked with the class for many years and sees it as an opportunity to give students a perspective on medicine and healing in other cultures outside western medicine.

Opinion

Editorial: Ocean Gate, a slap in the face

June 29

The media and public’s response to the Titan submersible tragedy – as well as the ongoing romanticization and obsession with the Titanic – forces a harsh light on our priorities: our fixation with the rich and the apathy toward the classism and violence that affects immigrants and people of color. This past week, an OceanGate submersible lost contact and all passengers died. OceanGate is a privately owned company that provides tours to see the Titanic shipwreck. The tours start at $250,000 a person. Multiple millionaires were present on the ship, according to the New York Times. More and more people from the Mediterranean region have sought migration as an alternative to unsafe living conditions caused by Western-influenced wars and corrupt governments.

News

Local News Fund creates opportunities for young journalists

Weston Quintana | June 29

The New Mexico Local News Fellowship and Internship Program has expanded its opportunities for aspiring journalists. The program was created to support journalism students and graduates from New Mexico public universities since 2019, according to the department of workforce solutions who partnered with the News Fund press release. With 125,000 in-state funding approved this past pay, the program will be able to double the amount of participants they have. The program is operated by the University of New Mexico’s Communication & Journalism Department where the program recruits, selects and matches journalism students to local newsrooms, according to the The Local News Fellowship and Internship website.

Sports

Joe Franklin's final run with the Lobos

Francesca Cicconetti | June 27

After 15 seasons with UNM’s Cross Country and Track & Field programs, Head Coach Joe Franklin has left on June 16. Franklin was named the Director of Cross Country and Track & Field at the University of Louisville in Kentucky. Franklin came to UNM in 2007 and has had lots of success with the program; as a two-time national coach of the year, his athletes earned a total of 201 All-American Honors and multiple of his athletes have gone on to compete in the Olympics.

Culture

Snell’s gallery combines Queer experience and empowering spirituality

Detroit Kallunki | June 27

Sam Snell – UNM alumni and artist – held the opening night reception of his first solo exhibition titled “Magical Thinking” on June 24. Snell’s idea of “Magical Thinking” is to merge Queer and spiritual identities to help people apply a spiritual lens to their life experiences. The exhibition is also the first solo show hosted by Tori Wilson, owner of Garagedoor Gallery and fellow artist. She immediately connected with Snell’s work and said she was excited to have the opportunity to share it with other members of the community. “When he contacted me to have this solo show here, it was an immediate yes,” Wilson said, “because that means that I get to be surrounded by his art for a whole month.”

News

New Mexican high schoolers see Broadway shows at Popejoy

BillyJack Davidson | June 27

Having performed on local stages herself, the goal of newly appointed Popejoy Hall Director, Fabianna Broghese, is to give local teens an opportunity to see Broadway shows. Popejoy Hall’s Development Director and head of “Broadway for Teens”, Maryellen Missik-Tow, said that the program is a philanthropic effort. The previous year was the program’s first. This past May, it sponsored 80 students and 10 teachers to see Hamilton, Missik-Tow said.

Culture

Green Earth Matters: eco conscious thrifting

Addison Key | June 25

“Green Earth Matters” was the original name of a newsletter Tara Ravishankar hoped to write – before there was an internet – about recycling resources in her local community. Now it is the name of her thrift shop, G.E.M. Ravishankar had always dreamt of opening a thrift store. She opened G.E.M. on Halloween of 2019 after a friend bought a house just north of 12th Street and Candelaria. She said she is primarily interested in keeping stuff out of landfills and creating a space for the community to donate the things they don’t want anymore.

Culture

NM museum's Relaxed Night

Addison Key | June 25

The New Mexico Museum of Natural History & Science holds Relaxed Nights – sensory-friendly experiences for the public. Anthony Fiorillo, the executive director for the New Mexico Museum of Natural History, said the museum strives to make programming accessible to everyone and that Relaxed Nights are important to have. The Relaxed Nights stopped while the museum was closed due to the pandemic, but as the museum opens back up, they have decided to reintroduce them during their busiest months in March, June and July. The museum will also hold a Relaxed Night for veterans in November.

NM United VS Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC

Sports

NM United brings the heat

BillyJack Davidson | June 25

New Mexico United won their 15th game of the season 2-1 against the Colorado Springs Switchbacks on June 24. The boys in black and gold secured their revenge, having previously lost to them on April 22 with a 2-1 loss. This was not only a big win for players, but the club itself. Saturday’s game was the third for the newly appointed head coach, Eric Quill, who came in less than two weeks ago. With Quill, there seemed to be a new fire in the United players' bellies who had a never ending desire to keep possession of the ball.

News

Protesters fight for nurses’ work safety at UNM Hospital

Miyawni Curtis | June 23

Early Thursday morning, members of the Union of Hospital and Healthcare Employees joined together outside the University of New Mexico Hospital to protest what they said are unsafe working conditions. Protesters were there in demand of safe staffing, safe working conditions and fair wages. Many nurses joined the group in their scrubs while getting off their shift or on break, at 6:30 A.M. A coalition of campus unions were there in support of nurses, including resident physician William Wylie. He works with nurses everyday and said that they are crucial to the hospital. “They're our eyes, ears and hands. They’re with the patients most of the time,” Wylie said.

Culture

Duke City Comic Con returns

Danielle Knox | June 22

The Duke City Comic Con brought together fans to celebrate comics, video games, anime, movies and TV shows, June 16 - 18 at the Albuquerque Convention Center. In attendance were actors from popular media, including Jackson Rathbone from the “The Twilight Saga” and voice actor Alejandro Saab from “Genshin Impact” – a popular video game franchise. Jared Rotegas, a Con attendee, said that he is interested in both the social and material aspects of the Con. “(I want) to show my cosplay off and meet other people,” Rotegas said. “I’m also here to browse. I spent a little over a hundred bucks yesterday.”

Culture

Meow Wolf’s Queer and accessible prom

Addison Key | June 22

A Queer prom was hosted by Meow Wolf and the Human Rights Alliance of Santa Fe on June 14. The HRA works to educate and engage the Santa Fe community in Queer and LGBTQ issues. The prom was held in honor of Shontez ‘Taz’ Denise Morris – a former Meow Wolf employee and member of the HRA. HRA is an organization first created to advocate for the civil rights legislation in the 1990’s and currently provides a scholarship and hosts pride festivities, according to the Santa Fe HRA website. Mark Westberg, a committee member for the HRA, worked with Meow Wolf to organize the prom. The event was focused on creating an environment that Taz would enjoy. The committee’s members' roles include community outreach with an emphasis on Queer youth, Westberg said.

Sports

Albuquerque Roller Derby welcomes all

Addison Key | June 20

The Albuquerque Roller Derby club at Wells Park provides an inclusive atmosphere to all gender, body types and skill levels, Wrecka Roller Derby – a member of the club – said. The Albuquerque Roller Derby's competitions are run and supported by skaters. The league sets up their own matches and provides referees for them. The team’s goal is to get out in the community and invite more people to watch and participate in the sport, Wrecka said. Wrecka has been with the league since 2019 and said they encourage anyone to join; the team lends gear to new skaters and teaches introductory safety skills. “I was like, ‘Roller derby –, I wanna beat people up,’ but I had no idea that I would find such a community and just an awesome, loving group of people. So that's what's kept me going,” Wrecka said.