By Dr. Sylvia Peregrino My wife and I were watching television on the morning of August 3rd.  We were going to take her mom and my aunt to watch a Spanish movie downtown at the annual Plaza Classic Film Festival.  It was a black and white Mexican movie about el Santo, a famous Mexican wrestler. … Read More Reflections on August 3rd: Blue Demon Comes to El Paso

By Claudia Florés I first found out in a text message from my brother on Saturday, August 3, 2019 at 3:09 PM EDT – “The family has checked in. We’re all okay here. [Cousin and Aunt] were at Sam’s next door but they’re okay.” Despite being very close to my brother, he’s a man of… Read More An Open Wound in Plain Sight

“I think we wont ever forget what happened that day.” Alicia Villa turned seventy-five this January. She was at Walmart that day having her car serviced. Not only did she survive the shooting, but she helped another person exit the building.

“Cielo Vista Means Sky View,” is a song from the album released by GLOSSOLALIA & THE MIDNIGHT SAINTS. Members of the group include: Adri Love-vocalsCarlos Espinoza-bassRick Quintanar-drumsAdrian Esparza-guitarand David Dorado Romo- sax, spoken word

By Cynthia Renteria *Spanish version follows the English text. On August 3, 2019, our border community experienced a violent attack. An armed white supremacist drove from the suburbs of Dallas, Texas to El Paso, Texas and opened fire inside a Walmart, killing twenty-three people and wounding many others.We recognize that this attack is a part… Read More Frontera Firme: One year after the Walmart Shooting

Note from the author: This outline is the beginning of what I hope will be a meaningful essay on the state of our country today – from my perspective of course. H. W. “Bill” Sparks The longer essay may be broken down into its component parts in order to more concise with my opinions and… Read More A twisted History of the United States – Part 1

Webcast: The Mass Shooting in El Paso and Controlling Gun Traffic to Mexico, Monday, August 312pm Mountain / 1pm Central / 2pm EDT / 11am Pacific On the anniversary of a racist attack with assault rifles against Mexicans in a shopping center in El Paso, Texas, which cost the lives of 22 people and wounded… Read More Webcast: The Mass Shooting in El Paso and Controlling Gun Traffic to Mexico

LA Plaza de Cultura y Artes continues their tradition of presenting the best of Los Angeles Latinx history, art and culture with En Casa con LA Plaza. Register on Zoom using the links below. Guests can also view live-streamed Sessions on their Facebook page. The series is sponsored by SoCalGas and California Humanities, https://lapca.org/en-casa-con-la-plaza-upcoming-zoom-sessions/

Updated, July 27, 2020. As we are approaching the one-year anniversary of the August 3rd shootings, a critically-acclaimed three-decades-old, Bay Area group called Los Niteliters has recorded an original country western single titled “El Paso Strong.” The song will be will be officially released on all digital download platforms on July 31st. Jesús “Chuy” Covarrubias,… Read More “El Paso Strong” new original country single by Los Niteliters

The debate over the atomic bombings—a controversy that forced the Smithsonian Institution to abandon its Enola Gay exhibit 25 years ago—continues unabated in America today as we approach the 75th anniversary of the incineration of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.   Four historians, Gar Alperovitz, Martin Sherwin, Kai Bird, and Peter Kuznick, each of whom has written extensively on the… Read More What Every Global Citizen Needs to Know About the Decision to A-Bomb Hiroshima and Nagasaki

Cover photo courtesy of Kalandra Monarez “You’re a girl. You’re going to be a girl one day. That’s what she told me.” Kalandra Monarez fondly reminisces on memories of Mercedes DeMarco. It’s a warm Saturday afternoon and Kalandra and I are video conferencing and talking about the mark Mercedes left in her life and on… Read More Remembering Mercedes

Sponsored by The Office of FCC Commissioner Starks and The Education Trust URL: https://edtrust.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_lCDYCu0XSraVuLUjkMqEdg Jul 27, 2020 11:30 AM in Eastern Time (US and Canada) Join a panel discussion that seeks to unravel the layers of internet inequality that impact Latinx communities in America. The panelists will explore what actions are needed from the FCC… Read More Panel Discussion: Unraveling the Layers of the Latinx Digital

July 14th there was a victor on the GOP side of the coin. Irene Armendariz-Jackson won the bid to take on current Congressperson Veronica Escobar. While the media flocked to those that were running on the Democratic side and received plenty of media time. The GOP side didn’t even get mentioned. Democrats in El Paso… Read More District 16 Congressional Seat

The Oral History Association and Columbia University’s Oral History MA program (OHMA) are offering these great workshops online. Check out the schedule and attend any that are of interest to you. https://www.oralhistory.org/2020/07/08/summer-workshop-series-on-anti-oppression-and-oral-history/

By Miguel Juárez Editor’s Note: Individuals interviewed here have asked to remain anonymous. El Paso News is honoring their requests. This article has been updated. The lives of the residents of the Val Verde community, like so many others, have been disrupted due to Covid-19.  But some communities’ lives have been impacted more than others. … Read More City and County Officials Move Homeless Individuals to the Val Verde Neighborhood: Two Long-time Grocery Stores Close

Special to the El Paso News – There seems to be some confusion about my archive of El Paso news and information that I have maintained for over the last two decades. No, none of it has disappeared and all of it is still available online. Let me explain. But first a short history. I… Read More Where Did Everything Go?

Okay folks, after my last writing some “things” have come about. The real Bankruptcy was discovered and the information was on dates, address, which state was given. There’s has also been a question about his “Special Forces” claim per his “story” while “attached” to an infantry unit in El Salvador and Honduras in the 80’s.… Read More Samuel L Williams Jr The Epilogue

Recently, on a Facebook group called ChucoPedia, member of the group, asked a pertinent question. She asked whether there were any Latinx Moderators on the site?  She was informed by one of the moderators that if she was under the impression the page was run by Latinx, that she was given wrong information.  A lively… Read More Opinion Editorial: Who Speaks for Latinx, Chicanx on Social Media?

By Fernando Tafoya The United States Constitution is clear. “Congress shall make no law…abridging the freedom of speech..” To silence protestors that do not agree with them, legislators are proposing laws and regulations that violate the constitution. What are these proposals? Why do they violate the Constitution’s first amendment protection? Can government be trusted to… Read More Anti-Protestor Legislation: The New Prior Restraint?

Last winter, after moping to everyone I knew that I hadn’t written anything all year worth typing up, I found a small notebook under a stack of old bills and flipped through the pages.  It held the almost illegible scrawl of a poem I had written last year in April in a Tumblewords Project workshop… Read More Richie David Marrufo and the Tumblewords Project–writing and reading and music and reading and publishing and reading

TXDOT has proposed frontage roads and an unnecessary expansion of l-10 from Copia to Schuster that will take about $100 million worth of property and place more high speed traffic, and the added noise, vibrations, and pollution, closer to low income and historical neighborhoods. TXDOT has said that this expansion and frontage road proposal is… Read More The Reimagine I-10 Study (Widening I-10): Public comment until July 15th

As Mexican President Comes to D.C., Abuse of Mexican Labor Activist Susana Prieto Escalates, Casting Pall on New NAFTA Prieto’s July 1 Prison Release Conditioned on 30 Month Internal Exile, End of Her Matamoros Labor Organizing, Not Leaving Mexico and Relocation to Chihuahua Where Prosecutor Has Issue New Warrants for Her Arrest The extreme conditions… Read More GLOBAL TRADE WATCH: REPORTER’S MEMO

For Immediate Release: July 7, 2020 Contact: Matthew Groch, mgroch@citizen.org, (202) 454-5111 Mexican Labor Activist Susana Prieto, on Eve of Possible  Reimprisonment, and U.S. Rep. Chuy Garcia (D-Ill.) Call on Mexican President AMLO and President Trump to Remedy Ongoing Worker Abuses and Low Wages Celebration of New NAFTA Premature: It Won’t Help Workers Absent Action to… Read More ***MEDIA ADVISORY***

You can find the first part here: https://wordpress.com/block-editor/post/elpasonews.org/1807 I have produced two multimedia art shows since I last posted here. G.A.S #3: Poetry, Art, Music (GAS PAM), features two El Paso poets: Donna Snyder and Lawrence Barrett. Also featured are two El Paso dancers: Darlina Marie and Tac TheMac. Included is a video by El… Read More Surviving Artistically, Part 2

The GOP Congressional runoff as I have written about before has become unhinged. There was a bit of controversy over public records with regard to Samuel Williams Jr. Whenever you run for office you make sure there is no “negative marks” against you. Recently Williams has began speaking about a VA full on Hospital. According… Read More Samuel Williams Jr “The Unraveling”

Well the volleys continue with Mr. Williams even over the 4th of July Holiday. Veteran Blas Hermosillo and former Congressional Candidate Anthony Aguero having been going overtime with Williams. Williams himself has imploded upon his campaign as he continues to berate anyone who has different views. He has rejected any type of reasonable compromise throughout.… Read More Samuel Williams District 16 Congressional Candidate District 16

An earlier version of this article was previously published in RUTAS, Forum for the Arts and Humanities, Spring 1994 / Numero 2. By Miguel Juárez It was Saturday afternoon.  ZaZa and I drove in his air-conditioned car in the 101 degrees towards Copia and Alameda Streets on a mission to comfort our old friend, Alberto,… Read More Caldo de Res in the Decade of AIDS

“Black trans women were at the forefront of queer liberation,” says Joshua Enrique Lerma co-designer of EP JOTX, a new queer grassroots movement created with collaborator Pico del Hierro-Villa. Pride was rooted in activism and creating an alternative queer space in El Paso to discuss borderland LGBTQIA+ issues became a priority for Joshua and Pico… Read More The Art of Resistance: EP JO-TX

By Miguel Juarez, Editor, El Paso News How are you handling getting your degree right now? If you are creating art in response to the pandemic, please send us a scan or use your cellphone to create a jpeg and send it to: miguel@elpasonews.org If you want to include a short summary (a few lines),… Read More Me, several years ago – I can’t imagine trying to get your PhD in this Covid-19 time

By Roberto José Andrade Franco I was about 15 years old when I almost blew my hand off lighting firecrackers on the 4th of July. I don’t remember what kind they were. I just remember they had red and black stripes and were the type that came tied together. I was supposed to untie them and… Read More The 4th of July When I Almost Lost My Hand

For Immediate Release  Contact Veronica Frescas Vfrescas77@gmail.com915-745-0204 July 3, 2020 El Paso, TX – After all the PRIDE celebrations and Independence Day Holiday, a local performing troupe calling themselves the El Paso Quarantine Players, will be performing a one-time only, live, shelter-at-home performance of Robert Harling’s play of “Steel Magnolias” via Zoom in recognition of… Read More El Paso Quarantine Players Performs Shelter-at Home, Virtual Presentation of Robert Harling’s heartwarming “Steel Magnolias”

By: Rogelio Sáenz Last month, as part of my monthly blog for the National Association for Latino Community Asset Builders (NALCAB), I provided an overview of the hemorrhaging job loss among Latinos. Compared to other groups in the country, Latinos had the highest unemployment rate at 18.7 in May and sustained the highest percentage decline… Read More An Update on the Latino Job Situation in May 2020: One Step Forward and Two Steps Back

By Miguel Juárez Introduction One of the most highly recognized images of 1972 La Raza Unida Party Convention in El Paso in 1972 is a black and white photograph taken by Los Angeles Photographer Oscar Castillo, at the El Paso County Coliseum on September 4th.  The photograph features three of the leaders of the party… Read More La Raza Unida Party Convention in El Paso, Texas, 1972

Special to El Paso News. Many political observers are scratching their heads as to why Andrés Manuel López Obrador (AMLO) wants to meet with Donald Trump as his first government to government meeting outside of México. López Obrador has refused to travel abroad during his presidency insisting on holding virtual meetings as he keeps to… Read More In Context: Understanding the Susana Prieto Arrest & the AMLO Response

Launch of New NAFTA Marred by Detainment of Mexican Labor Activist, Hundreds of Court Challenges Against New Labor Law From Global Trade Watch. July 1 Hearing for Susana Prieto, Arrested on Trumped-Up Charges for Exercising Labor Rights in the New NAFTA, Steps on Launch Date  Growing outrage about a jailed Mexican labor activist, bogged-down labor… Read More GLOBAL TRADE WATCH: REPORTERS’ MEMO

Dov E. Kupfer, AIFD, CFD, was born and raised in El Paso, Texas.  He was an inquisitive and artistic child. He attended Mesita Elementary School, El Paso High School, and the University of Texas at El Paso.  He said he was motivated to go into teaching is a second profession. He received his Bachelor of… Read More Dov E. Kupfer, Documenting the Gay Community in El Paso, Texas

Chuck Taylor, mysticpoetics@gmail.com Political Action Tanka Months you haven’t worked.  Demonstrators march through the streets. Statues could go. Why not melt them down, sell the  metal, buy something to eat? Chuck Taylor, mysticpoetics@gmail.com Cities for El Paso A city you can love like a woman You are entranced by the pulsing of her arteries The… Read More Two by Chuck Taylor

Randell David Fleet says he grew up knowing he was special. He said he was a gay kid in a world where people wanted him dead. He said he tried to kill himself many times and he often tried to commit suicide. He said he often begged for God to come get him. He said… Read More The Art of Randell David Fleet

Okay folks there was a slight error in the previous post. So here’s the “corrected” version. What should be the last of the mailers should be over and done. Again Candidates spend buck, bucks and more bucks on these easily discarded things. El Paso we are at a very pivotal point in the election cycle… Read More El Paso Runoff & Chisme “The Redo”

One of fronterizo artist José Montoya’s powerful images is a color photograph titled “Resistance Dance.” It depicts a dancer wearing black laced high-heel shoes, and a black skirt with black fringe. The dancer is photographed in front of the mural painted by David Herrera and El Mac at Mills and Stanton streets in downtown El… Read More Resistance Dance: The Art of José Montoya

As the Borderland began to see the spread of COVID-19 throughout our community and closures and social distancing orders were put in place, many in our community struggled with the economic repercussions that exacerbated the psychological toll that already came with these new regulations. While some received federal aid and were able to alleviate some… Read More El Paso fund dedicated to help Borderland families during pandemic

By Kathleen (Kathy) Staudt, PhD. I am here to speak with you about lawyer Susana Prieto Terrazas who has worked tirelessly for the rights of workers and the improvement of their meager wages at the hundreds of foreign-owned factories—maquiladoras—in Mexico’s northern borderlands, specifically in Cd. Juárez and in Matamoros. Susana is a political prisoner, and… Read More Libertad Para Susana: Remarks at a Press Conference in El Paso, June 20, 2020

A message from Zaza in 2020:  Oscar Wilde said, ‘the one charm of the past is that it is in the past.” Things have certainly changed and improved for the LGBTQ family in the intervening 24 years and that is as it should be. Zaza Montenegro took the name from Sasha Montenegro, the famous Mexican… Read More 1996 Interview with ZaZa Montenegro – Sas Mija!

It is the early 1990s at the Old Plantation Miss Cherry “Miss OP 1978,” a local performer is readying herself for her show.  The dressing room is frenetic energy, but Miss Cherry sits calmly smoking a cigarette and gets ready for her performance.  The cameraman zooms into Miss Cherry who looks straight at him as… Read More Documenting the Gay Community with El Paso Style

Contact: Paulina Almanza, TRLA Attorney, (915) 271-4361, palmanza@trla.org  Hilda Villegas, Familias Unidas Por La Educación, (915) 222-1977, hvillegas63@yahoo.com  Robert Elder, TRLA Communications Director, (512) 374-2764, relder@trla.org  EL PASO, Texas — Parents in the Chamizal neighborhood on June 15 sued the El Paso Independent School District (EPISD) to reopen two Beall and Burleson elementary schools and force the school district to pay for critical… Read More El Paso Parents Sue School District to Reopen – Rebuild Schools in Chamizal Neighborhood

Read about and sign the petition at: https://www.change.org/p/county-commissioners-carlos-leon-vincent-perez-and-carl-robinson-recall-the-vote-to-divide-segundo-barrio?utm_source=share_petition&utm_medium=custom_url&recruited_by_id=db590c80-b006-11ea-8f53-b1fa8e693d2b Background on the petition: https://elpasonews.org/2020/06/16/county-botches-segundo-barrio-historic-district/

By Diana Martinez, Special to El Paso News Dear Americans, Imagine, will you, that you have no consent about what is done to your body.  That in and of itself is a violent violation.  In slavery people did not own their own bodies.  Rape and torture were permissible by law.   Robert E. Lee was not… Read More Robert E. Lee School to be renamed

By El Paso History Alliance We regret to report that the County Commissioners Court, on a 3-2 vote, has moved to omit about half of Segundo Barrio from the planned Segundo Barrio Historic District. This happened under agenda item 19, with Judge Samaniego and Commissioner Stout voting to create a Segundo Barrio Historic District that… Read More COUNTY BOTCHES SEGUNDO BARRIO HISTORIC DISTRICT

By Cheryl Howard, Ph.D. Under this President, there has been a predictable rise in white nationalism, hate crimes, and the soul-crushing violence against Spanish-speaking immigrants and anyone who might sound or look like one.  The August 3 attack on the people of our bi-national community woke us up to the realization that legality or illegality… Read More What We Say: Thousands of Small Cuts

By Miguel Juárez It is the early 1990s at the Old Plantation Miss Cherry “Miss OP 1978,” a local performer is readying herself for her show.  The dressing room is frenetic energy, but Miss Cherry sits calmly smoking a cigarette and gets ready for her performance.  The cameraman zooms into Miss Cherry who looks straight… Read More Documenting the Gay Community with El Paso Style

Ending systemic racism has a good shot right now because the trauma of viewing George Floyd’s death has impacted so many people around the world.  But I fear it will be a short-lived opportunity because the steps necessary to bring about such change will be too unsavory for many people to follow for the long term.  … Read More The Fifth Commandment

In case ya didn’t notice there’s a runoff on the GOP side of Congressional District 16. Williams and Amanadriz. This race has been seriously stupid ugly on Williams part, from driving the wedge deeper withing the party itself, to shooting himself relentlessly on the issues he talks about. The most recent rasism. This particular post… Read More That Which is Williams

by Belinda Subraman In these times of unrest and uncertainty, fighting for democracy and fairness, living through a global pandemic, we all find different ways to survive and blossom. I admire and appreciate all efforts to keep positive and those who seek growth and connection during quarantine. It has been important to me to express… Read More Surviving Artistically

Detienen a Susana Prieto Terrazas, defensora de derechos laborales y abogada del Sindicato Nacional Independiente de Trabajadores de Industrias y Servicios (SNITIS). Exigimos su liberación. Attorney Susana Prieto Terrazas, labor rights defender and lawyer for the National Independent Syndicate of of Industrial and Service Workers (SNITIS) has been detained. We, the undersigned organizations and individuals… Read More Nacional Independiente de Trabajadores de Industrias y Servicios / National Independent Syndicate of Industrial and Service Workers (SNITIS), #LibertadParaSusana, COMUNICADO URGENTE!

By Miguel Juarez, Editor Noticias Fronteradice reported that El Pasoan and Labor Attorney Susana Prieto Terrazas has been detained in Matamoros and has been taken to Victoria, Tamaulipas, the state capital to be arraigned.  She has been accused of trumped charges against public servants, riots and threat and coercion of individuals by the Attorney General… Read More Labor Attorney Susana Prieto Terrazas Arrested in Matamoros

By Xavier Miranda Our education community must contend with a new malignant normalcy in our society.  Consider that our students have witnessed the brutal violence perpetrated by police.  Consider that our students are aware of the caging of immigrant children at Tornillo.  Consider that our students were impacted by the mass shooting incited by a… Read More Post pandemic education thoughts

Preface: How does one become a racist?  Do you take classes?  Do you go to “Racist School?”  Are you assigned a worksheet in which you have to write the n-word used “correctly” in fifty different sentences?  Do you have to stage a play wearing black face?  Do racist teachers play episodes of “Amos and Andy“… Read More Passive Racism

By Dr. Oscar J. Martínez* Despite the crushing financial downturn faced by the city as a result of the covid-19 crisis, on April 28, 2020, by a vote of 6-2, the El Paso City Council rejected the Annello/ Rodríguez proposal to stop the fiscal bleeding by suspending the building of two non-essential and costly projects,… Read More CITY LEADERS MUST ABANDON PLANS TO BUILD COSTLY PROJECTS

A Minneapolis man George Floyd, who was handcuffed and pleaded for air as a white police officer pressed a knee on his neck. On Friday June 5th, local El Paso Pastors issued a message calling the murder of George Floyd an inexcusable tragedy. Pastor Eddie Sinegal, founder of Northeast Bible Restoration Church hosted a press… Read More Local pastors ‘stand with George Floyd and those who demand’

By David Dorado Romo The lynching of Antonio Rodríguez by a Texas mob set it all off. At least from the point of view of the El Paso newspapers in the winter of 1910, this was the event that sparked the Mexican Revolution. It started off as just another lynching. On November 3, 1910, a… Read More The Lynching that Sparked a Revolution

Aside from re-posting important articles in the current environment, El Paso News is celebrating Pride Month. Martin Paredes is no longer contributing articles in this El Paso News site. As the Editor, I am shaping El Paso News to feature articles on local issues and highlight voices which are often not featured in other publications.… Read More This Month in El Paso News

A friend told me that no politicians have said anything good about the protest at Memorial Park. Afterwards, congresswoman Escobar told people to “Did you protest? Please get tested.” Did she that congresswoman tell people visiting their mothers: “Did you visit your mother? Please get tested?” Perhaps she could have thanked the young people, many… Read More Thank You Young People & Debbie Nathan has Written an Open Letter to “Progressive” Politicians.

By Brian Antonio Sieve, Pastor of Metropolitan Community Church of El Paso. Stonewall was a riot!  It was led by gender Queer people of color in response to police abuse and harassment.  Bricks were thrown, fires were set, and property was destroyed in the uprising to gain liberation for the lives of what we would… Read More MCC El Paso Pride During the Time of Pandemic

Make plans to attend El Paso Community College’s Virtual Celebration of “Pride Out and About: LGBTQ Life on the Border,” from June 8th at 7 PM to Jun 13th at 9 PM.  Celebrate Pride Week Virtually! Hear Coming Out Stories, Drag Queens Shows, Health & Resources, Ally Day and Karaoke and a Discussion Panel (see… Read More Celebrate Pride Virtually!

I have teamed up with my colleague Diana Martinez to invite articles in celebration of El Paso Pride Month. This year Pride takes an even more important reason amid the new Civil Rights period in support of Black Lives Matter Movement. In this time at El Paso News, we invited various individuals to submit articles… Read More Updated: How Do We Celebrate Pride in the Time of Black Lives Matter and COVID-19?

Another amendment: The more I read articles and see photographs from the continued demonstrations of protest of the asphyxiation and other killings, I feel compelled to amend my hopeful writing below.  Sadly, the effort to completely dominate our community and discouragement, if not suppression, of our rights to assemble and seek redress includes all the… Read More Another AMENDMENT to the UPDATE of The revolution came to my front door

“Forgotten: Women of Juarez,” recounts the murders of women on the U.S./Mexican border.  The new podcast will premiere on June 1st.   There have been numerous books, films and news and magazine articles on the topic since the 1990s.  Murders of women continue to this day. The news release for the series states: This series… Read More “Forgotten: Women of Juarez” Podcast Launches On iHeartRadio on June 1, 2020

According to data from the Department of State Health Services, as of May 28, the state of Texas has 59,776 confirmed positive cases and 1,601 deaths due to COVID-19. Texas has the eighth highest number of cases in the country. El Paso has 2,569 positive confirmed cases and 72 deaths; El Paso ranks number five… Read More Latinos in El Paso at Risk from COVID-19

by Carina Cione, Deziree Jackson, Abby Ferdinando, Jhamiel Prince, Sarah McCarthy, Ernesto Castañeda, and Emma Vetter The coronavirus pandemic has been racialized since its emergence in the United States with some leading political figures, including the President, referring to it as the “Chinese virus.” The conversation thus far has primarily focused on African Americans, and… Read More Health Disparities and the Coronavirus and Why This Matters for El Pasoans

By Cheryl Howard, Ph.D. There is a city that doesn’t love itself. To be clear, there are many ardent residents who do love the city, and many who are homesick from afar.  It is a city full of potential, but many talented people have left it because they see no opportunity for themselves here, or… Read More THERE IS A CITY

Writer and author Debbie Nathan has published an incredible piece of history on how former City Manager Joyce Wilson engineered the creation of the arena in the Quality of Life Bond Projects. Nathan first posted her article on Chucopedia and after wide interest she posted it on her Medium account. This important piece of history… Read More Card Tricks: How El Paso’s 2012 “Quality of Life” Bond Election Got Riddled With Flimflam

By Rogelio Sáenz, Professor, Department of Demography, University of Texas at San Antonio Below you will find the link to my latest monthly blog which I write for the National Association for Latino Community Asset Builders (NALCAB).  The analysis examines employment loss among Latinos throughout the country. The analysis shows that the pandemic has really… Read More Latino Job Loss in the Last Few Months of the Covid-19 Pandemic

Last week, the Texas Democratic Party held elections for several offices in the runup to the November national elections. Because of Covid-19 concerns, the convention and the votes were held virtually. El Paso, which is in SD 29, elected several party stalwarts. Among several known candidates was Jaime Abeytia, a party operative with a criminal… Read More Texas Democrat Convention Election Results

Memorial Day is the day that we stop, just for a moment, and honor those men and women that have made the ultimate sacrifice for us to enjoy the freedoms that we have today and to remember those that have passed during the past year. This Memorial Day will be a quiet day of remembrances… Read More A quiet Memorial Day 2020

The orgins of Memorial Day orginally began as Decoration Day on May 30th 1868 in remembrance of Civil War Soldiers. Over the years it became a National Holiday to remember our service men and women who have given the ultimate sacrifice, their lives. In El Paso, much like other parts of the country there will… Read More Memorial Day El Paso

So, sitting in my recliner this morning with my coffee and my orange for breakfast, followed by a bowl of Honey Nut Bunches of Oats with pieces of fresh strawberries and milk, I started to wax nostalgia over the breakfasts that I have had in my lifetime. Now THAT was a snake sentence for the… Read More Waxing Nostalgic for Breakfasts that I have known

Immigrants are a drain on the American economy, they say. We seek America for benefits. We are takers and give nothing back. That is what the anti-immigrants say. That is what the anti-immigrants want you to believe. Never mind that immigrants have made America great for generations. Immigrants have have proven this repeatedly, but today… Read More Immigrants Are A Drain on The American Economy, So They Say

I was born and raised in my beloved hometown of El Paso, Texas. I am the fourth oldest of five children. When I was 17-Months-Old, I had a seizure that put me in a four-hour coma. As a result of that trauma, growing up was not easy for me. I was different from other kids… Read More Meet Candidate Shawn Nixon: I’m Running to Be Your Next District 4 Representative

In an article titled: “La pandemia sigue el rastro de la desigualdad en México,” El Pais describes how Covid-19 is affecting workers Mexican workers. The article states Covid-19 crossed over from the United States but it doesn’t mention how other countries contributed to the spread of the virus. https://elpais.com/sociedad/2020-05-19/la-pandemia-sigue-el-rastro-de-la-desigualdad-en-mexico.html?fbclid=IwAR1_IjD4vkGSAJ95FHu5l3NLKGC5mK4GmrDbWnfch9laLbU-XZkfd65JRkk

There is an ongoing debate on whether mandatory lock downs are hurting the economy, or they are not. Part of those who are advocating for their right to remain open support the idea that Americans are a free people and that government should not interfere with their basic rights. The problem with this thinking is… Read More June is The Pivot Point

Happy Tuesday!  I hope this email finds you well. I’m writing on behalf of ICON Custom Home Builder, and want to share some great news! ICON Custom Homes is giving away another home to a deserving El Paso family in need and we need your help to get the word out to families in our… Read More Press Release: Brand New, $200,000 El Paso Home to Be Given Away in June

By Verónica Carbajal Beginning in March, a number of orders were passed to protect tenants from becoming homeless during the pandemic.  Some of those orders have expired.  Below is an explanation of the eviction process during the pandemic. Evictions Self-help evictions are not allowed in Texas, even if you only have a verbal agreement to… Read More Evictions: What happens if you have not been able to pay your rent during the pandemic? (Updated)

By Roberto José Andrade Franco   My uncle made a mess of himself while trying to live clean. It wasn’t the first time that week he’d made a mess and it was far from the first time in his life he had tried to get clean. On that day, he immediately jumped in the shower.… Read More Eulogy for my Uncle

Most high school students study the works of Edgar Allan Poe in their Junior English class.  Macabre tales like “The Cask of Amontillado” and poems like “The Raven” are well known Poe writings that are essential readings in American literature. There are, however, some lesser known short stories by Poe that are worth looking up because… Read More Political Revenge

By Dr. Miguel Juárez Both Governor Greg Abbott and Filmmaker Charlie Minn seem to think that we will all be going back to our previous lives by October 2020.  In Minn’s case, he seems to think that we will be able to attend his week-long October 9th film screening on the Walmart shooting at Premiere… Read More A Compelling Dialogue on Charlie Minn’s New Film on the Walmart August 3rd Massacre: “915”

By Miguel Juárez contesting emotions the haze of uncertainty dogs run free against blue sky measured steps, chosen words she cried unknown tears said because it wasn’t love but some intense passion dogs run free against blue sky expectations in the dance like an insect caught in sweet amber the harder he tries to break… Read More strange days, these are

Like so many others I am recording this period in our history. Hopefully our great grand-children will learn from this, appreciate our efforts to cope during a worldwide pandemic. As a Registered Nurse I actually worked 12 hour shifts at a Veterans Home during an epidemic of Norovirus. It’s not a killer but it can… Read More Pandemic Notes

Even in the Absence of Proximity-my review of Looking Up the Down Spout by Christina Quinn   Looking Up the Down Spout by Christina Quinn Poetic Justice Books & Art (Port Saint Lucie, FL) Christina Quinn is a visual artist and poet, born and reared in England, who has lived many years in the Coachella Valley… Read More My Red Fez review of Christina Quinn’s Looking Up the Down Spout

On Wednesday, May 13, 2020, the El Paso Community College District hosted a Town Hall with President Dr. William Serrata which focused on how the district has responded to teaching and learning during this Covid-19 Pandemic.  The one-hour and seven-minute town hall can be seen in its entirety at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CUxnlDH4DPc For further information contact James… Read More El Paso Community College District, Dr. William Serrata’s Virtual Town Hall & A Conversation with the Cabinet, May 13, 2020

About two weeks ago during a Virtual City Council a few words fell out of City Council Representative Henry Rivera mouth berating El Pasoan Sito Negron. Im not gonna go over what was said it’s been spread all over hells half acre anyway. Sito Negron who happens to be a part of State Senator Rodriguez… Read More WHAT DA F*CK

The following article written several years ago, offers a vignette of one of the most important art collectors of our time in El Paso, Texas.  El Pasoans will now have to visit Austin to see a collection we lost because of unfortunate decisions by city leaders. By Miguel Juárez Collecting is a disease you’re born… Read More Juan Sandoval: A Passion for Collecting

“Words Matter” – that will be the title of my new WordPress page when I get it up and running. Who am I, you might ask? Well, that is a legitimate question and deserves a legitimate answer. However, comma, having spent more than seven decades trying to be “me” and define exactly who I am,… Read More As a matter of Introductions

UNM Newsroom, May 11, 2020 University of New Mexico Provost and Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs James Holloway has named Robert Alexander González as dean of the School of Architecture and Planning (SA+P) effective July 1, 2020. “I am excited to bring Robert González to UNM as our next dean of Architecture and Planning. … Read More Media Release: Robert Alexander González named dean of UNM’s School of Architecture and Planning

MEDIA RELEASE, MAY 10, 2020 Contact: Hannah Hollandbyrd, hhollandbyrd@hopeborder.org El Paso advocates, community organizations form coalition and request urgent support from City, County to provide critical relief to those impacted by COVID-19 crisis EL PASO, TX – A coalition of service organizations and community advocates are asking City and County leaders in El Paso to… Read More Media Release: El Paso advocates, community organizations form coalition and request urgent support from City, County to provide critical relief to those impacted by COVID-19 crisis

The national unemployment rate stands officially at 14.7% according to the numbers released by the Labor Department for April 2020. That number both shows an unprecedented economic devastation because it shows the worst job losses in such a short time in recorded history and it also shows that the 14.7% is the worst percentage of… Read More El Paso Unemployment Numbers For April Amid Covid-19: An Economic Catastrophe in the Making

By Miguel Juárez In October 2012, I attended the Sixth Biennial Urban History Association Conference at Columbia University in New York City.  I was scheduled to return on a Sunday, October 28th at 5:50 p.m.  I wanted to get to the airport early, so I arrived at La Guardia at 3 p.m.  When I got… Read More A Memory/In Memory: At the Sixth Biennial Urban History Association Conference at Columbia University Before Hurricane Sandy Hit the City