Las Cruces mulls changing street name with a derogatory term -Las Cruces Sun-News, Associated Press
The city of Las Cruces is considering whether to change a street name that contains a word that's used as a slur toward Indigenous women.
The Las Cruces Sun-News reports that City Councilor Johana Bencomo recently proposed to change the name of Squaw Mountain Drive.
Last week, U.S. Interior Secretary Deb Haaland formally declared "squaw" a derogatory term and said she was taking steps to remove it from federal government use and to replace other derogatory place names.
Bencomo raised the issue of the street name during a council discussion earlier this month, though she said she first learned of the derogatory name when the council was looking at a zoning issue in the area this past winter.
Since the city initiated the proposed change, the proposal requires agreement from 75 percent of percent of residents that live on or live adjacent to the street.
If fewer than 75 percent agree, officials say the city must wait a year before it suggests a name change again. If enough residents agree, the name change would still be subject to city council approval.
"I know that people will see (the name change) as trivial," Bencomo said. "I know people will say there's more important things to be done. But again, there is something simple about doing the right thing."
Bencomo said she hopes a new name could be created with input from residents on the street and from the local Indigenous community.
Delegation members urge agency to allow mountain foot race - Associated Press
Several members of New Mexico's congressional delegation are urging the U.S. Forest Service to again allow a decades-old foot race that goes through a wilderness area and up into mountains overlooking Albuquerque.
A letter by Sens. Martin Heinrich and Ben Ray Luján and Rep. Melanie Stansbury asks the agency to reverse its 2020 decision that the La Luz Trail Race wouldn't be permitted under the Cibola National Forest's draft land and resource management plan.
The lawmakers wrote that the 9-mile event held annually for over 55 years "is a point of pride for New Mexicans and an important source of recreation and tourism."
The race, which attracted hundreds of runners, started in the foothills of the Sandia Mountains on the outskirts of Albuquerque and finished at Sandia Crest after an elevation gain of over 4,000 feet.
In a 2020 announcement, Sandia District Ranger Crystal Powell said officials had determined that the race should not have been permitted in the wilderness area since it was a commercial event.
The delegation members' letter dated Wednesday said the race was in conducted "in full conformance with wilderness requirements."
Native American leaders say Chaco prayers being answered - By Susan Montoya Bryan Associated Press
The stillness that enveloped Chaco Canyon was almost deafening, broken only by the sound of a raven's wings batting the air while it circled overhead.
Then a chorus of leaders from several Native American tribes began to speak, their voices echoing off the nearby sandstone cliffs. They spoke of a deep connection to the canyon — the heart of Chaco Culture National Historical Park — and the importance of ensuring that oil and gas development beyond the park's boundaries does not sever that tie for future generations.
The Indigenous leaders from the Hopi Tribe in Arizona and several New Mexico pueblos were beyond grateful that the federal government is taking what they believe to be more meaningful steps toward permanent protections for cultural resources in northwestern New Mexico.
It's a fight they've been waging for years with multiple presidential administrations. They're optimistic the needle is moving now that one of their own — U.S. Interior Secretary Deb Haaland — holds the reins of the federal agency that oversees energy development and tribal affairs.
Haaland, who is from Laguna Pueblo and is the first Native American to lead a Cabinet agency, joined tribal leaders at Chaco on Monday to celebrate the beginning of a process that aims to withdraw federal land holdings within 10 miles (16 kilometers) of the park boundary, making the area off-limits to oil and gas leasing for 20 years.
New leases on federal land in the area will be halted for the next two years while the withdrawal proposal is considered.
Haaland also committed to taking a broader look at how federal land across the region can be better managed while taking into account environmental effects and cultural preservation.
The perfect weather did not go unnoticed Monday, as tribal leaders talked about their collective prayers being answered.
"It's a nice day — a beautiful day that our father the sun blessed us with. The creator laid out the groundwork for today," said Hopi Vice Chairman Clark Tenakhongva.
A World Heritage site, Chaco is thought to be the center of what was once a hub of Indigenous civilization with many tribes from the Southwest tracing their roots to the high desert outpost.
Within the park, walls of stacked stone jut up from the bottom of the canyon, some perfectly aligned with the seasonal movements of the sun and moon. Circular subterranean rooms called kivas are cut into the desert floor, and archaeologists have found evidence of great roads that stretched across what are now New Mexico, Arizona, Utah and Colorado.
Visitors often marvel at the architectural prowess of Chaco's early residents. But for many Indigenous people in the Southwest, Chaco Canyon holds a more esoteric significance.
The Hopi call it "Yupkoyvi," simply translated as way beyond the other side of the mountains.
"Whose land do we all occupy? We walk the land of the creator. That's what was told to us at the beginning — at the bottom of the Grand Canyon," Tenakhongva said. "Many of us have that connection. Many of us can relate to how important the Grand Canyon is. Ask the Zuni, the Laguna, the Acoma. They made their trip from there to this region. We know the importance of these areas."
Pueblo leaders also talked about areas near Zuni Pueblo in western New Mexico and Bears Ears National Monument in Utah that are tied to Chaco civilization.
Laguna Gov. Martin Kowemy Jr. said Chaco is a vital part of who his people are.
"Pueblo people can all relate through song, prayer and pilgrimage," he said. "Now more than ever, connections to our peoples' identities are a source of strength in difficult times. We must ensure these connections will not be severed, but remain intact for future generations."
Acoma Pueblo Gov. Brian Vallo said the beliefs, songs, ceremonies and other traditions that have defined generations of Pueblo people originated at Chaco.
"Our fight to protect this sacred place is rooted in what our elders teach us and what we know as descendants of those who settled here," Vallo said. "That is our responsibility — to maintain our connection, our deep-felt obligation and protective stewardship of this sacred place."
Both the Obama and Trump administrations also put on hold leases adjacent to the park through agency actions, but some tribes, archaeologists and environmentalists have been pushing for permanent protections.
Congressional legislation is pending, but there has been disagreement over just how big the buffer should be.
The Navajo Nation oversees much of the land that makes up the jurisdictional checkerboard surrounding the national park. Some belong to individual Navajos who were allotted land by the federal government generations ago.
Navajo leaders support preserving parts of the area but have said individual allottees stand to lose an important income source if the land is made off-limits to development. Millions of dollars in royalties are at stake for tribal members who are grappling with poverty and high unemployment rates.
Haaland's agency has vowed to consult with tribes over the next two years as the withdrawal proposal is considered, but top Navajo leaders already are suggesting they're being ignored. Noticeably absent from Monday's celebration were the highest elected leaders of the tribe's legislative and executive branches.
Navajo Nation Council Delegate Daniel Tso has been among a minority within tribal government speaking out against development in the region. He said communities east of Chaco are "under siege" from increased drilling.
He told the story of one resident who wipes dust from his kitchen table only to have it dirty again the next day due to the oilfield traffic. He said the consequences are having negative effects on residents' spirits and thus their ability to remain resilient.
"Yes, we want the landscape protected, we want better air quality, we want to protect the water aquifer, we want to protect the sacred," he said. "The undisturbed landscape holds much sacredness. It brings peace of mind, it brings a settled heart and it gives good spiritual strength."
No matter what side they're on, many Navajos feel their voices aren't being heard.
Haaland on Monday invited everyone to participate in the listening sessions that will be held as part of the process, which she has dubbed "Honoring Chaco."
Environmentalists say the region is a prime example of the problems of tribal consultation and that Haaland's effort could mark a shift toward more tribal involvement in future decision-making when it comes to identifying and protecting cultural resources.
"By creating a new collaborative process with 'Honoring Chaco' we have the ability to ameliorate broken promises and to right the wrongs of consultation just being a check-the-box exercise," said Rebecca Sobel with the group WildEarth Guardians. "Hopefully it will be the beginning of a new relationship."
New transfer rule leads to fast turnarounds for hoops teams - By Arnie Stapleton AP Sports Writer
When Richard Pitino took over the downtrodden University of New Mexico men's basketball program last March at the start of the pandemic, he couldn't hit the recruiting trail to improve a team rich in tradition and light on recent success.
His timing, however, couldn't have been better.
Less than a month after he took the Lobos job, the NCAA approved a plan allowing all college athletes to transfer one time as an undergraduate without having to sit out a season.
"We won six games last year, so we needed to make major changes," Pitino said after a hard-fought 87-76 loss at Colorado this month. "With COVID, we still weren't able to go on the road recruiting when I first took the job. So, your only real option was the transfer portal."
The one-time exception for athletes to transfer from one Division I school to another had been available to athletes in other college sports for years, but the change in the spring meant it now applied to football, men's and women's basketball, men's ice hockey and baseball.
"I think college basketball, specifically, seismically shifted when they changed the sit-out rule," Pitino said. "We had a lot of guys transfer and they didn't have to sit out a year."
Pitino was one of a handful of coaches who took advantage of the loosened transfer rule by signing several talented transfers who were eligible to compete immediately.
Among his nine newcomers this season are four Division I transfers, two junior college transfers, two freshmen and a walk-on.
"The goal is not to bring in nine new guys every year," Pitino said. "But when you take over a program, guys transfer, guys leave, you know, a coach gets fired. Sometimes you just have to do it. It's just part of the deal, you know? So, that's not what we want to do every year. We got to grow and get these guys better and learn from it."
Pitino brought Jamal Mashburn Jr., son of 12-year NBA veteran Jamal Mashburn, with him from Minnesota, where he coached for eight seasons. He recruited another son of an NBA player, Jaelen House from Arizona State, whose father, Eddie, played 14 seasons in the NBA.
Pitino also added Gethro Muscadin from Kansas and Taryn Todd from TCU.
After going 6-16 overall and 2-15 in the Mountain West Conference, in Paul Weir's last season, the Lobos are off to a 4-1 start under Pitino, their only hiccup that 11-point loss at Colorado that was close until the final minute.
Mashburn said with every game, the chemistry improves among all the new players, including an entirely new starting five.
"When we come in, we're all ready to work and we all have that same mentality, that same mindset," Mashburn said. "So, it's only going to get better from here."
House said the new guys all hit it off right away.
"I like this group of guys, and I love playing with them," he said. "And we'll just keep getting better as the season goes on."
Other schools that capitalized on the new rules by landing four or more transfers from power conferences (ACC, Big East, Big Ten, Big 12, Pac-12, SEC) are also reaping early rewards.
IOWA STATE
The Cyclones went 2-22 last year and lost all 18 of their Big 12 games. They're off to a 5-0 start this season.
GRAND CANYON
The Antelopes reloaded after going 17-7 last season and 9-3 in the Western Athletic Conference. They're off to a 4-1 start.
TEXAS A&M
The Aggies were 18-11 overall and 9-8 in the Southeastern Conference last season. They're 6-1 this season.
TCU
The Horned Frogs were 12-14 overall and 5-11 in the Pac-12 in 2020-21 and are off to a 4-1 start this season.
TEXAS
The granddaddy of attracting talented transfers, the Longhorns are off to a 4-1 start, with their loss coming against top-ranked Gonzaga. The Longhorns added seven transfers, including five from power conferences: Devin Askew (Kentucky), Christian Bishop (Creighton), Timmy Allen (Utah), Marcus Carr (Minnesota) and Avery Benson (Texas Tech).
"Before, you were always a little leery of taking transfers because you just didn't know, was there a character issue or something?" Pitino said. "Now, you can get some really good players in the transfer portal.
"It's drastically changed guys' decisions. They know 'OK, I can move after a year and I don't have to sit out.' Nobody wants to sit out."
Navajo Nation reports 72 new virus cases, 9 deaths -Associated Press
The Navajo Nation has reported 72 new COVID-19 cases and nine deaths as of Wednesday evening.
The tribe is urging residents on the vast reservation to limit in-person gatherings to help prevent the spread of the virus during the Thanksgiving holiday.
In all, 39,158 confirmed COVID-19 cases and 1,536 deaths from the virus have been reported by the tribe since the pandemic began.
The reservation covers 27,000 square miles and extends into parts of Arizona, New Mexico and Utah.
Art critic Dave Hickey, known for book 'Air Guitar', dies - By Sam Metz Ap / Report for America
Dave Hickey, a prominent American art critic whose essays covered topics ranging from Siegfried & Roy to Norman Rockwell, has died.
His books, including "The Invisible Dragon: Essays on Beauty" (1993) and "Air Guitar: Essays on Art & Democracy" (1997), won him legions of fans beyond the art world cognoscenti.
His stylish prose, brash criticism of taste-making institutions like museums and universities and equal embrace of works considered both high- and low-brow left a lasting influence on a generation of artists and critics.
"There is no one like him. He belongs in the canon of American nonfiction prose," his biographer Daniel Oppenheimer wrote in "Far From Respectable: Dave Hickey and His Art," published last June.
He died Nov. 12 at home in Santa Fe, New Mexico, after years of heart disease, said Libby Lumpkin, an art historian who was married to him. He was 82.
David Hickey was born in 1938 in Fort Worth, Texas, and grew up moving around Texas, Oklahoma, Louisiana and California. After hopscotching through graduate school programs, he dropped out and opened a contemporary art gallery in Austin, Texas. He moved to New York in 1971, where he ran more galleries, edited the publication Art in America and wrote for the Village Voice and Rolling Stone magazine. His work and interests immersed him in an artistic community that included Andy Warhol, Dennis Hopper and David Bowie.
Hickey later moved to Las Vegas to teach at the University of Las Vegas, Nevada. In the essays published in "Air Guitar" about how art should fit into broader culture, he championed Las Vegas as the most American of American cities for its detachment from traditional social hierarchies.
America "is a very poor lens through which to view Las Vegas, while Las Vegas is a wonderful lens through which to view America. What is hidden elsewhere exists here in quotidian visibility," he wrote.
Hickey challenged the idea that the Strip's neon lights were somehow inauthentic, pushed back against notions that Las Vegas entertainment was culturally irrelevant and "especially enjoyed a good smoke and gambling spree at Eureka Casino on East Sahara Avenue, where he was often spotted with a cigarette while jabbing at slot machine buttons," according to a Las Vegas Review-Journal obituary.
In "The Invisible Dragon" and later works, Hickey's endorsement of "beauty" as the ultimate arbiter of artistic value ignited a clash with his contemporaries focused on 20th century conceptual art's theory and meaning, who preferred to deconstruct the reasons why people find things to be beautiful.
"He chooses to overlook the view that beauty may be merely what the ruling economic and social elites say it is. In the process, his adversaries argue, he substitutes his own bad-boy outsider judgments for those of narrow-minded art professionals," The New York Times wrote in a 1999 profile of Hickey.
Lumpkin said her husband never intended to champion traditionalism as his critics claimed.
"A lot of Dave's work was misinterpreted. The assumption was made that the beauty he was talking about was something very old fashioned, but he was a supporter of very conceptual artists from the beginning," she said.
His tastes were indeed eclectic. He sang the praises of artists and figures in popular culture ranging from Norman Rockwell to Robert Mapplethorpe to Ellsworth Kelly. His essays covered basketball player Julius Erving, reruns of the television series "Perry Mason," and outlaw country music.
In 2001, the MacArthur Foundation awarded him a "genius" grant for his body of work. He was inducted into the Nevada Writers Hall of Fame in 2003 and won a Peabody Award for a 2006 documentary about Andy Warhol.
Hickey and Lumpkin decamped to Santa Fe in 2010 and accepted positions at the University of New Mexico in Albuquerque. Lumpkin said Hickey considered teaching among his most important work and legacy.
"He was a real intellectual without being a snob and he trusted his students to be able to think theoretically. When you put your trust in students like that, they get it and they make good art," Lumpkin said.
'Legally armed' rule has critics gunning for New Mexico town - By Ollie Reed Jr. Albuquerque Journal
Mayor Nathan Dial said a recently approved rule requiring people to be "legally armed" to attend an Estancia Town Council meeting is just a way of sending notice that the town is not going to let the state dictate what it can and cannot do.
"Rural New Mexico is just tired of being pushed around," Dial told the Albuquerque Journal as he sat in town hall with a snub nose .357 on his hip. "This is not just about the Second Amendment. This is about all civil liberties."
But Morrow Hall, one of the two Estancia Board of Trustee members who voted against the rule, said it's just a stunt, a staged event, the mayor's reaction to a ban on bringing deadly weapons into the state Capitol building.
"I told the mayor, 'I can't support your rule. It's crazy,'" Hall said last week. "He said, 'I know it's crazy. But it's also crazy I can't carry a gun into the Roundhouse.' "
Hall said he doesn't understand why anyone would need to bear arms in the Roundhouse.
"To me, that means going in to fight," he said. "I don't know who you would fight at the Roundhouse that you would need a firearm."
But Dial said the term "legally armed" doesn't necessarily mean a weapon and could be defined as armed with knowledge.
The state ban on weapons in the Capitol building goes into effect Dec. 6. The Estancia rule requiring people to be legally armed to attend meetings goes into effect Dec. 7.
Nov. 30 is the deadline the American Civil Liberties Union of New Mexico has set for Estancia to rescind the rule or get sued "for constitutional and statutory violations."
"This new rule put forth by the Town of Estancia unequivocally violates the First Amendment," reads a letter sent by ACLU New Mexico to Dial and the town's Board of Trustees. "The law will deter community members from attending town council meetings to petition their local government, thus creating a chilling effect on the exercise of their fundamental rights under the First Amendment."
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Not unanimous
Estancia's four-person Board of Trustees split 2-2 on the "legally armed" rule. Dial broke the tie with his affirmative vote.
The rule reads: "In order to attend an Estancia Town Council meeting, one must be legally Armed. By entering this meeting, you acknowledge that you are prepared to defend yourself and beliefs with what you believe is necessary to do so. (This definition is at the discretion of the Executive Branch.)
"Any and all Religious, Medical or Ethical exceptions will be honored without question."
Dial said he never intended for the rule to keep people from exercising their right to attend public meetings.
"I don't want anyone to be afraid to show up," he said. "If they don't want to carry a firearm that's their constitutional right."
The mayor said the rule is intended only to make clear that the town has no intention of enacting a ban on weapons at public meetings as the state has done at the Capitol.
The mayor's contention that "legally armed" could include knowledge doesn't wash for Maria Martinez Sanchez, deputy legal director for ACLU New Mexico. She said no one could be expected to interpret the rule's wording that way, and that ACLU will sue if the rule is not rescinded by Nov. 30.
"They need more specificity in order for people to know if they are violating the rule," Sanchez said.
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'Cautious about government'
Estancia, the Torrance County seat, is about 52 miles southeast of Albuquerque and 17 miles south of Moriarty. Dial, 52, said the population, not including the inmates at the Torrance County Detention Facility, is about 1,200. The detention center is the town's major employer.
Strung out along N.M. 41, which serves as the town's main street, are a couple of dollar stores, a food truck, a couple of service station/convenience stores, an auto store, a hardware store and a restaurant. Other buildings appear empty or in disuse. A cafe closed just a few weeks ago.
Dial grew up in Estancia and graduated from Estancia High in 1986. He is retired from the Army, having served about 25 years with the Army National Guard and the Army Reserve, including stints on active duty. He has served in Bosnia, Afghanistan and Central America.
He was recently elected to his second term as mayor, a job that pays him $650 a month after taxes.
There is no doubt he is a staunch advocate for Second Amendment rights. He pushed a measure declaring Estancia a Second Amendment sanctuary town, and in January 2019, he showed up at the state Capitol wearing a sidearm to test a new rule banning weapons of all kinds during joint sessions of the House and Senate.
Bitty Lutrick, 63, who grew up in Estancia, supports Dial's stance against state government.
"I like the mayor because he is not one to sheepishly back down to government regulations if they infringe on our individual liberties," Lutrick said as she took a break from work at The Front Porch, the food truck business she started here six months ago. "I just feel we need to be cautious about what we let the government do. I'm not afraid of my fellow citizens, but I'm cautious about the government."
Estancia native Cruzita Zamora, 38, feels the same way about Dial.
"I think he has our best interests at heart," said Zamora, who is preparing to open an apothecary, soapery and gifts business in Estancia. "I do feel people tend to view guns differently in the city than we do out here. In the city, it's about crime. Out here it's an everyday thing. We have them for hunting and for self-protection from whatever we need self-protecting for. I carry guns for snakes."
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Waste of time
Tom Kennedy, 47, lives just north of Estancia. He is a lecturer in biology at the University of New Mexico and moved to Torrance County to get away from Albuquerque's crime. He visits Estancia several times a week to take his young daughters to the town park or to watch birds.
He admits he sees things differently than most of his neighbors in this rural part of the state.
"I have guns, but I don't carry them," he said. "There is no need to carry a gun unless you are hunting an elk. It seems to me people out here are more interested in Second Amendment rights than in water needs, funding schools and fixing roads. If the mayor is talking about legally armed being about knowledge, then I don't think he is legally armed."
Board of Trustee member Hall, 73, a former Estancia mayor, was just reelected to his third term on the panel.
"Essentially, the rule is meaningless," he said. "It has nothing to do with Estancia except that man (Dial) lives here. It's a waste of a lot of people's time. I just hope it doesn't end up costing us money."
Visiting New Mexico's Capitol? Bring vaccine proof, not guns - By Cedar Attanasio Associated Press / Report for America
New Mexico's state legislative complex will be open to the public during upcoming legislative sessions, but only for those who provide proof of vaccination.
New rules will also prohibit performances, advocacy booths and tours at the state Capitol starting Dec. 6, when the Legislature meets for redistricting — setting new political boundaries based on 2020 census population counts.
The rules will also be in place during the regular legislative session that starts in January, limiting festivities in the Roundhouse — the state capitol building that includes the Legislature and the governor's office — but allowing the public to attend legislative hearings for the first time since the start of the pandemic.
"Given the high number of COVID-19 cases across the state and the strain this continues to put on state resources, it is incumbent on us to protect everyone in the Capitol complex while conducting the state's business," said Legislative Council Service director Raúl Burciaga, who oversees safety and operations at the state capital.
The vaccination requirement does not apply to lawmakers.
The Roundhouse has been open to the public for months, with a masking requirement but no vaccine requirement. It's popular for visitors thanks to four floors of local art and its round shape, unique among U.S. state capitals.
It was completely closed to the public during the last legislative session due to coronavirus concerns and fenced off with armed guards following the Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol. Legislative debates were broadcast online and public comment was given via Zoom.
The internet broadcasts will continue indefinitely.
Earlier this month, Democratic lawmakers banned weapons including firearms at the Capitol for the first time in its century-long history.
State Republican lawmakers have condemned the gun and in-person restrictions, including Tuesday's announcement.
"Last year they put up a fence blockade and called the National Guard, this year they've decided to ask for your medical records and take away your Second Amendment rights," said state House Republican Leader Jim Townsend, of Artesia, in southeastern New Mexico.
Before the pandemic, legislative sessions served as a festive platform for musical performances and dancing, and lobbying booths. That included advocacy groups handing out pens and massage stations where legislators and members of the public could get a free backrub, all of which are prohibited under the new rules.
New Mexico on Wednesday reported 1,409 new cases of COVID-19 and 21 deaths linked to the disease statewide, according to the state Health Department. Just under 650 people were hospitalized in New Mexico with COVID-19.