New Mexico Mercury

Public Square: Impact of Early Learning

In this program, we bring together parents, teachers, advocates and people who run early learning programs to discuss the state of New Mexico's Pre-K programs.

The Queen of Junk

Vivid memories of paths crossed and "junking" in this ode to friendship.

A Story of Three Women

This is a story of three young women in Juárez, Mexico. These three stories are intertwined by virtue of the asylum and the leadership of its founder, Pastor josé Antonio Galván, who has created a family atmosphere where not only the patients but the members of the larger “family” provide an enormous amount of support for each other...

Insight New Mexico - Arturo Sandoval

V.B. Price talks with Arturo Sandoval, President and founder of the Center for Southwest Culture, about the sustainability of the organization and its many community projects.

Leaving the world to find it

For a vast, remote and harsh expanse of southwestern desert, the Kaiparowits Plateau has seen a lot of life, from prehistoric Indians to migrating Mormons to adventurers that, during the Memorial Day weekend, included my son and I. Just as this seemingly inhospitable area helped save earlier travelers, so it redeemed our own trip that otherwise could have gone off the tracks. Sometimes, it would seem, you have to leave the world behind in order to find it...

A Prescription for New Mexico’s Children

As a physician, I know that when you have a cure for an ailment, you use it. You don’t waste time, because you know that delay only makes the condition worse. New Mexico has a problem. We’re at the bottom of nearly every indicator of child well-being. We know what works and we’re actually giving the right medicine to a few lucky kids. But most are not getting the cure, even though we know it works and we have the resources to get it to them.

Kids need more than health care. They need a comprehensive set of services that promote healthy development. High-quality early care and education is the prescription...

El Grito de Roosevelt Park

Slightly more than three months after the police shooting of homeless camper James Boyd catapulted Albuquerque into the international spotlight, activists returned to the streets to advance their movement against police brutality.

New Mexico must be bolder in mitigating racial disparities among children

It’s estimated that children will be a minority-majority population by 2018 nationally. In New Mexico—where 74 percent of children are racial/ethnic minorities—we’re way ahead of the trend.

In fact, only one other state (Hawaii) has a higher percentage of children who are racial or ethnic minorities. We have the highest percentage of Hispanic children, and just two states (Alaska and South Dakota) have higher percentages of Native American children. Just 26 percent of New Mexico’s children are white.

While we rightfully celebrate our rich cultural diversity, New Mexicans and our elected and civic leaders need to take action regarding racial disparities...

The Myth of the Good Mother

Who is the good mother? From the earliest representations of women-- Paleolithic figurines with wildly inflated reproductive organs – through modern mothers Facebooking their cleanest, happiest family photos, she is a creation mixed with history, culture and pure imagination. The good mother has features we all recognize—her supernatural patience, unwavering attention and empathy, submission to the needs of others, and an expectation to have her own value measured heavily by the outcomes of her offspring.

The problem with the good mother is that she is a myth that many women rely heavily upon as the role model for their real, dirty, wonderful but emotionally turbulent motherhoods...

Tax Credit Increase for Low-Income Working Families Would Increase Tax Fairness

New Mexico lawmakers have at their disposal an effective tool for helping the working families in our state who need it most. The Working Families Tax Credit (WFTC)—a credit based on the federal Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC)—goes to low- and moderate-income families that work, helping them meet their basic needs. Increasing the credit would do so much for these families struggling to get by on low wages, and there’s a way to pay for the increase that actually helps restore a little bit of fairness to our tax system...