NM’s ‘Student Athlete Endorsement Act’ passes first hurdle

On Feb. 3, the Senate Education Committee passed SB 94 — known as the “Student Athlete Endorsement Act” — clearing a hurdle for the bill to become law and allow student-athletes to make money from their name, image and likeness (NIL).

Similar laws passed or proposed in sundry states across the country would allow student-athletes to profit from their NIL, with several due to take effect on July 1.

Thus, if a student were to appear in a commercial and earn money off the appearance, for example, a “post-secondary educational institution” — i.e. the University of New Mexico — couldn’t prevent that athlete from doing the commercial or receiving compensation from the appearance.

ABQ teachers union ‘surprised, alarmed’ by plans to resume in-person K-12 classes

One week after Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham announced that K-12 schools across the state can return to in-person learning regardless of their red to green risk designation, most elementary and secondary students remain at home.

While the announcement came as welcome news to a number of students around the state, many teachers were skeptical, suspicious or downright bewildered about the abrupt about-face regarding convening groups of five or more people while the coronavirus vaccine is still slow to roll out.

“All of the members of the union were surprised at the early date,” Ellen Bernstein, president of the Albuquerque Teachers Federation, said.

New female pastor at Grant Chapel AME adapts to pandemic

Margaret McFaddin has continuously made a point to tie social justice into her preaching, and her work in Albuquerque is no different.

“(The church) empowers you to be able to love people without restriction. That's really who we are and what we do,” McFaddin said.

McFaddin was appointed on Sept. 11 of last year to Grant Chapel African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Church in Albuquerque, and she currently serves as the second female pastor in the church’s history.

Abortion decriminalization bill making way through Legislature

The New Mexico Legislature has introduced two identical or "mirror" bills aimed at repealing the 1969 law that criminalized abortion — which currently cannot be enforced due to the Supreme Court passage of Roe v. Wade in 1973, wherein the court declared it unconstitutional to restrict a woman's right to choose.

On Jan. 25, the Senate Judiciary Committee passed the Repeal Abortion Ban (Senate Bill 10), which would repeal New Mexico’s 1969 anti-choice statute if approved by the full Legislature. Six Democrats voted in favor and three Republicans opposed the bill during the committee hearing. The Senate bill has 28 sponsors and was previously passed by the Health and Public Affairs Committee.

New Mexico aims to provide protections for natural hairstyles statewide

The No School Discrimination For Hair Act passed through the House Education Committee on Jan. 28, moving New Mexico one step closer to outlawing discrimination against natural hairstyles and cultural headwear in schools and workplaces.

Filed as HB 29 and passed unanimously through its first committee, the bill would “prohibit schools to allow discipline or discrimination or different treatment, based on a student’s race or culture, or a student’s use of protective hairstyles or cultural headdresses,” according to the legislation.

The statewide push comes after the Albuquerque City Council passed a similar ordinance earlier in January, as reported by the Daily Lobo. Both of these efforts stemmed from a national movement, created by Dove and the CROWN Coalition, which includes the National Urban League, Color of Change and the Western Center of Law and Poverty. The project stands for “Creating a Respectful and Open World for Natural Hair,” or CROWN.

State paid sick leave bill yet to clock in

After years of grassroots organizing for paid sick leave, a state bill that would recognize those efforts and provide relief for working New Mexicans has yet to be heard in the House Labor, Veterans’ and Military Affairs Committee.

House Bill 37 is a paid sick leave bill, co-sponsored by Democratic state representatives Angelica Rubio, G. Andrés Romero, Patricia Roybal Caballero and Linda Serrato. The bill would — upon passage — immediately require New Mexico businesses to provide their employees with paid time off due to illness.

“This is a very familiar piece of policy for me and for people across the state who have been working to find some equity in a lot of the worker’s justice legislation that we have been trying to push for over the last few years,” Rubio said.