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OPINION: Defiance in definitions: Reflections on the southern New Mexican identity

Marcela Johnson | September 23

I will be the first to admit I grew up confused by the New Mexican identity because it is a mixture of so many different heritages and experiences. Trying to understand myself and my community through the lens of a Mexican American from southern New Mexico feels like a full-time job. I grew up in Silver City, New Mexico, in a very proud Mexican/Midwestern household. My siblings and I were lucky that we were never told to deny our heritage. While I was allowed to be proud of my Mexican heritage, this was in part because I am also white and don’t have racist views directed toward me. Not everyone has that privilege.

Culture

In the green: Meet a New Mexican green chile roaster

Addison Fulton and Elijah Ritch | September 23

In all of its varieties, chile is a staple of New Mexican culture and cuisine. Chile composes iconic dishes such as chile relleno and posole; ristras are strung up everywhere; and even the state’s official question, “Red or green?” references New Mexicans’ deep love for their peppers. Jhett Browne is a chile roaster and seller whose family has been in the chile business since 1962. Roasted green chile did not become popular until around the 1980s, though Browne’s family began roasting its chile in 1977.

Culture

Keeping traditional New Mexican Spanish alive

Maria Fernandez | September 23

You may have never seen this hidden jewel in New Mexico, but there’s a chance you’ve heard it: a dialect of Spanish native to the Land of Enchantment. Traditional New Mexican Spanish is a dialect developed nearly 400 years ago as medieval Spanish blended with Mexican Spanish and the languages of the Indigenous peoples of northern New Mexico, according to the Associated Press. This fusion of language formed a local parlance not found anywhere else in the world.

Culture

Lobos y Lowriders: Cultura y comunidad on campus

Marcela Johnson | September 23

The second annual Lobos y Lowriders event on Sept. 18 was one of several events that kicked off Hispanic Heritage Month at the University of New Mexico, bringing New Mexican car culture and community to campus. Sponsored by the Chicana and Chicano studies department and the Student Activity Center, the Cornell Mall held twice as many vehicles as last year. Valerie Chavez, a CCS doctoral student, organized the event — which consisted of 12 cars — for the second time. “My main goal with throwing the event is to have as much representation of the lowrider community as possible,” Chavez said. “So the more people from the lowrider community I can get here, the better.”

Culture

REVIEW: The brilliance of the ‘Bless Me, Ultima’ film adaptation

Kelsa Mendoza | September 23

With an overwhelming amount of European witchcraft being depicted in both film and literature, “Bless Me, Ultima” is an arresting representation of curanderismo and Spanish folk magic in our very own New Mexico. Originally a novel published in 1972, Rudolfo Anaya’s “Bless Me, Ultima” is a coming-of-age story about cultural identity, faith and forgiveness. It would later be adapted into a movie in 2012, written and directed by Carl Franklin.

News

Rudolfo Anaya: Padrino, profesor y autor

Marcela Johnson | September 23

Prolific writer Rudolfo Anaya has deep ties to the University of New Mexico. Known especially for his first book “Bless Me, Ultima,” Anaya received three degrees from UNM and served as a professor emeritus in the English department before his death in 2020. Anaya is a foundational figure in Chicana and Chicano studies, English department associate professor Melina Vizcaíno-Alemán said. “He really put Chicano literature on the map — and I would say even more specifically New Mexico — in the larger national literary scene,” Vizcaíno-Alemán said.

News

UNM neuroscientist’s research could impact future brain injury studies

Arly Garcia | September 20

Understanding brain function is crucial to the world of science, but we can’t always get the full picture from a healthy brain, according to Jeremy Hogeveen, a cognitive neuroscientist and UNM professor. “If we’re doing our studies only on healthy subjects using brain scans, we tend to run into this causality problem where you can’t really infer that the brain is causing the behavior you’re seeing,” Hogeveen said. Overcoming the causality problem — coupled with his experience studying brain injuries as a postdoc at the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago — sparked Hogeveen’s interest in the relationship between brain injuries and psychiatric function, he said.

News

Campus crime: Week of Sept. 9

Lauren Lifke | September 18

From Monday, Sept. 9 through Sunday, Sept. 15, there were 32 individual entries of crimes reported on or near the University of New Mexico campus that were entered into its daily crime log. Red paint poured on statue On Friday, Sept. 13, officers located a damaged statue, according to the crime log. The lobo statue that faces Central Avenue on the corner of University Boulevard had been covered in red paint. It was also adorned in a keffiyeh, according to a photo posted to X. A keffiyeh is a symbol of Palestinian liberation, according to NPR. As of Sept. 15, the keffiyeh no longer appeared on the statue, but the red paint remained.

News

UNM invests in major tobacco companies

Lily Alexander and Nate Bernard | September 16

The University of New Mexico has investments in two major tobacco companies, according to statements obtained by the Daily Lobo via public records requests. The companies are Philip Morris International and British American Tobacco, according to UNM Asset Summary Statements from May-July. In 2023, PMI and BAT had the first and second-highest net sales out of all tobacco companies worldwide, according to Statista. They both manufacture, market and sell cigarettes and other tobacco products. Products that contain tobacco are addictive and deadly. Tobacco kills longtime users and is a leading cause of death, illness and impoverishment, according to the World Health Organization.

News

REVIEW: Logical fallacies in the presidential debate

Lauren Lifke | September 16

On Tuesday, Sept. 10, Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump met in person for the first presidential debate between the two candidates. During the debate, both Harris and Trump used more than a few logical fallacies — described in a philosophical context as “reasoning that comes to a conclusion without the evidence to support it,” according to Merriam-Webster.

Culture

REVIEW: ‘Alligator Bites Never Heal’ sees Doechii in her element

Shin Thant Hlaing | September 16

Rapper Doechii sits poised against a regal green background, dressed in brown, white and lighter shades of green. Beaded cornrows flow past her shoulders with an albino alligator perched on her lap, an homage to her Florida roots. A line from the Doechii’s Spotify bio reads “Did you expect anything less?”

Culture

New Mexico museum highlights the meadow jumping mouse

Addison Fulton | September 16

On Wednesday, Sept. 11, the New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science hosted a lecture on the New Mexico meadow jumping mouse. The talk, part of the Voices in Science series, was presented by Jason Malaney, the curator of biosciences at the museum. The New Mexico jumping mouse is a member of the Zapodidae family of rodents. Jumping mice have powerful back legs and long powerful tails, allowing them to perform a huge saltatorial — or jumping — motion. The jumping mouse can jump up to four meters laterally and two meters vertically, though its body is only centimeters large. As Malaney explained, that’s the equivalent of it jumping over the museum.

Culture

REVIEW: ‘Cemetery Boys’ is like a warm hug for the soul

Marcela Johnson | September 16

It’s almost fall, and you know what that means here in the desert Southwest: the weather drops a degree — or 20 — and then heats back up for a couple weeks. For those chilly times until the heat wave, I could not recommend the novel “Cemetery Boys” by Aiden Thomas more. “Cemetery Boys” follows Yadriel, a young brujo — a person who performs a closed practice of magic — as he works with his cousin and best friend Maritza to figure out the mystery of their cousin Miguel’s death, and help Julian Diaz — who recently became a ghost — before he goes maligno, or malignant.

Culture

OPINION: The VMAs and the state of pop music

Elijah Ritch | September 16

For decades, MTV was a massive cultural force, continuously pushing the needle in both the music industry and pop culture at large. Beginning in 1981, the channel introduced the then-novel idea of the music video to America. The rest is history. MTV’s status as a creator of taste and culture only increased with the inception of the MTV Video Music Awards, which have aired annually in the late summer since 1984. On Sept. 11, the VMAs celebrated its 40th anniversary. As could be expected, it repeatedly reiterated its vast legacy throughout the ceremony.

Culture

REVIEW: Guild Cinema features avant-garde jazz musician Sun Ra

Elijah Ritch | September 16

For three days starting on Sept. 10, the Guild Cinema in Nob Hill showed a double feature of films highlighting the avant-garde jazz musician Sun Ra. The double feature was composed of 1974 cult classic “Space Is the Place” and 1980 documentary “Sun Ra: A Joyful Noise.” The screenings were held in conjunction with the 18th annual New Mexico Jazz Festival, which puts on dozens of performances across New Mexico throughout September. Guild owner Keif Henley described the two films as a “natural fit for Jazz Fest.”

News

ASUNM senate rushes to pass legislation

Marcela Johnson | September 16

The Associated Students at the University of New Mexico passed six appropriation requests, appointed two new senators and passed one bill during a rushed meeting on Wednesday, Sept. 11.

Culture

Wildlife refuge hosts printing workshop for community healing

Marcela Johnson | September 13

Led by ranger Giessell Aguilar and artist Anna Rotty, the Valle de Oro National Wildlife Refuge hosted its second botanical sun printing, or cyanotype, workshop on Saturday, Sept. 7. Cyanotypes are photographic blueprints made with objects laid on top of light-sensitive paper. The objects create shapes that are then made permanent in a chemical bath and hung to dry. The refuge’s primary purpose, according to Aguilar, is to serve its three main communities: the South Valley, Pueblo of Isleta and Mountain View. The refuge makes choices about its events in collaboration with the community.

News

New Mexicans respond to presidential debate

Lily Alexander , Addison Fulton and Nate Bernard | September 13

On Tuesday, Sept. 10, Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump met in person for the first time during a debate hosted by ABC. New Mexican elected officials and students at the University of New Mexico supported candidates largely along party lines. After the debate, 63% of viewers said Harris outperformed Trump, according to a CNN poll. Fox News anchor Brit Hume said “Trump had a bad night,” according to a Fox News post-debate analysis. In contrast, following the June debate between Trump and President Joe Biden, 33% of viewers said Biden outperformed Trump, according to a CNN poll.

News

Campus crime: Week of Sept. 2

Lauren Lifke | September 11

From Monday, Sept. 2 through Sunday, Sept. 8, there were 34 crimes reported on or near the University of New Mexico campus that were entered into its daily crime log. There was also a LoboAlert issued to the community on Sept. 8.

Culture

Sixth annual Latinx Games Fest to come to Albuquerque

Rodney Prunty | September 9

The sixth annual Latinx Games Festival will be held in Albuquerque for the first time from September 20-22. The festival — which will take place at the National Hispanic Cultural Center — will feature showcased games by Latino and Hispanic creators, an esports tournament and live speakers providing insight about game development. The event's goal is to highlight historically underrepresented Latino voices in the video game industry, according to Latinx Games Festival founder and executive director Jason Vega. He has been in the industry for the past 12 years.