Womp womp
Even folks who don't care about politics care about the annual House-Senate basketball game held at the Santa Fe Indian School. But last night's charity game was cut short when seven participating senators were pulled away to debate an energy bill back at the Roundhouse. Sen. William Sharer (R-Farmington) filibustered the bill that details closure of the San Juan Generating Station until the game was in jeopardy; seven senators were excused to go play, but then were called back when Sen. Craig Brandt (R-Rio Rancho) ordered a call of the Senate, which meant police went to find the seven missing senators. After all that, the bill passed anyway ($), and now heads to the House.
Everybody go with the flow
Yesterday Vogue published a profile of Tewa Women United and the nonprofit's work to restore and provide resources for Indigenous birthing practices in Northern New Mexico. The group is driven by the statistic that Native women are twice as likely as white women to die in childbirth, and TWU has launched a free doula training program; in healing the birthing process, they hope to heal generational trauma as well.
Just a little more
OK, bear with us, a lil' more Roundhouse news. (The session is over March 16, for anyone wondering when we'll stop having to tell you about the Legislature.) A House committee killed a bill yesterday that would limit late-term abortion and that would require minors get a parent's consent, thus voting to leave decisions about health care in the hands of doctors rather than lawmakers. Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham brought her young granddaughter to the Roundhouse to advocate for pre-K funding, which depends on a bill ambling on wobbly legs; it was struck down in committee last week, but a new, watered-down version has been reintroduced in hopes of getting some Land Grant Permanent Funds for schools.
Good for business
It's no secret that owning a small business is difficult, but the City of Santa Fe wants to lighten the load. The city's economic leader, Matt Brown, sat down with SFR this week and talked a bit about plans to jump-start business development in Santa Fe.
lol sorry my friend wrote that so anyway wyd
A meme calling the governor an epithet ($) was shared on the Republican Party of New Mexico's Facebook page yesterday. The party swiftly took it down and apologized, saying a rogue volunteer was the sharer. That volunteer says she meant to post the meme on her own page … and that she's not sorry because does indeed think the governor is an [epithet]. (We are reminded of the story of an NPR staffer who accidentally posted a charming status about his daughter Ramona on the official NPR page; that was much more adorable than this.)
We are but dust
Down at Albuquerque's Metropolitan Detention Center yesterday, the Albuquerque Journal reported that Archbishop Michael Sheehan visited inmates for Ash Wednesday. The story is pretty simple, but we were taken by photographer Robert Rosales' pictures from the jail, a few more of which he also shared on his Instagram.
It’s back
It's been a few days since we talked about wind, but you knew that wouldn't last. Today's gonna get blowy. And then showers are predicted to swing through tomorrow.
Thanks for reading! The Word slipped and fell while climbing up a hill yesterday and got a lot of scratches. But we're happily reminded of a family quote: "A boo-boo is a sure sign of spring." (As is wind, unfortunately. Did we mention that yet? The wind? There's gonna be wind.)
