COVID-19 by the numbers
New Mexico health officials reported 365 new COVID-19 cases over the weekend: 206 on Saturday and 159 on Sunday, bringing the statewide total to 28,844 so far.
Bernalillo County led with new cases: 72 over the weekend, followed by Doña Ana County with 59 and Chaves County with 44. Santa Fe County had 25 new cases over the weekend: 14 on Saturday and 11 on Sunday. There have now been 1,004 cases in Santa Fe County, of which the health department has designated 596 as recovered.
The state also announced five new deaths from Chaves, Curry, McKinley, Sandoval, San Juan counties on Saturday; no additional deaths were reported on Sunday. There have now been 870 fatalities.
As of yesterday, 66 people were hospitalized with COVID-19.
You can read all of SFR's COVID-19 coverage here. If you've had experiences with testing or the virus, we would like to hear from you.
SFPS enrollment drops, threatening funds
Along with other school districts across New Mexico, Santa Fe Public Schools faces dropping enrollment and the potential loss of millions of dollars in funding. According to SFPS Superintendent Veronica García, enrollment on the 26th day was down by 496 students or 3.8% compared with last year's enrollment numbers. If those numbers don't rise by day 40 (when head counts tied to funding occur), SFPS could lose millions, she says. However, García says she expects enrollment to drop further and is joining other school leaders in hoping the state will hold districts "harmless" for this year's enrollment figures. The district's youngest students account for more than a third of its enrollment decline; García attributes the drop in part to Santa Fe's declining birth rates.
CD2 candidates debate
The first debate between US Rep. Xochitl Torres Small from New Mexico's 2nd Congressional District and challenger Republican Yvette Herrell aired last night on KOAT and ABQjournal.com. The race is considered one of the most competitive in the US, with the Washington Post predicting it as one of the 10 most likely to flip. Torres Small and Herrell—a former state legislator—also faced off in 2018 when the former beat her opponent by fewer than 4,000 votes in a traditionally Republican district. Recent polls show Torres Small leading by just 2%. During last night's event, Herrell described herself as "unashamedly pro-God, pro-life, pro-gun, pro-business and pro-family." Torres Small discussed her capacity for bipartisan work, noting: "I know good solutions—common-sense solutions—don't come with a party label."
DPS secretary out
On Friday, without explanation, Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham announced she had dismissed the state's Public Safety Secretary Mark Shea. According to a news release, State Police Chief Tim Johnson will serve as interim secretary and Deputy Chief Robert Thornton will serve as interim state police chief while the administration searches for a replacement secretary. While the governor did not provide a reason for Shea's dismissal, the news release does say her administration plans to take the opportunity of a leadership change to "strengthen the mission of the Department of Public Safety to deliver vigorous and smart-on-crime statewide law enforcement, with a renewed emphasis on community police work and the unequivocal protection of New Mexicans' civil rights."
Listen up
On the most recent edition of KTRC 1260's Brave Space—a weekly Saturday morning show focused on feminism, community and social change—hosts Cecile Lipworth and Patricia Trujillo interview Reading Quest's Avery Armstrong and Faridah Ndiaye about Black joy in literature and workshops for teens in Santa Fe. The nonprofit Reading Quest grew out of a student-led literary campaign and, among other activities, tutors hundreds of students. You can watch a video about its work here.
Pueblo Revolt redux
The New York Times took a deep dive over the weekend into New Mexico's ongoing Native American protests. Author Simon Romero postulates national protests over racial inequality have spurred a reckoning in the Southwest about its own particular history of racial injustice. Indigenous groups, he writes, have been citing the state's 1680 Pueblo Revolt as a reference point to organize around myriad issues, including the Justice Department's deployment of federal agents to Albuquerque and the Trump administration's handling of the coronavirus pandemic, which has disproportionally impacted Native Americans. "The Pueblo Revolt was the most successful Indian revolution in what is now the United States," Porter Swentzell, a historian from Santa Clara Pueblo says. "Twenty twenty is energizing this upsurge of activism inspired by the revolt that was building for years."
Jay-Z produced Western kicks off
On Friday, New Mexico State Film Office Director Amber Dodson announced the Netflix-produced feature film The Harder They Fall—produced by Jay-Z, James Lassiter, Lawrence Bender, and Jeymes Samuel—is commencing principal photography and will continue production in Santa Fe and the surrounding area through December 2020. Plot-wise, the film is a Western that tells the tale of outlaw Nat Love (Jonathan Majors) who, upon discovering his enemy Rufus Buck (Idris Elba) is being released from prison, reunites his gang to track Rufus down and seek revenge. According to a news release, the movie will employ approximately 500 New Mexico crew members and 312 New Mexico vendors, including background actors, stunt performers and principal talent.
Temporary temp drop
For no discernible reason, today's forecast calls for a mostly sunny day with a high near 63 degrees (that's approximately 20 degrees colder than yesterday). Southeast winds 15 to 20 mph will decrease to 10 to 15 mph in the afternoon. Tonight, look for a low around 35 degrees. Temps climb back into the low 70s tomorrow and then the high 70s for the rest of the week, so enjoy the cool air while you can.
Thanks for reading! The Word was once detained in an airport after TSA dogs sniffed out contraband in her luggage (an apple) and was then also reprimanded by TSA agents for dropping to the ground and petting/hugging the dogs while saying in her best dog-friendly voice, "Do you smell something in my luggage? (Apparently inappropriate behavior when in trouble). Anyway, let this story be a lesson to you should you encounter any of the COVID-19 sniffing dogs perhaps coming to an airport near you.
