Hevyn Heckes - The Daily Lobo

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Crowd rallies for missing and murdered Indigenous women

Hevyn Heckes | October 5

Dozens of Indigenous families, individuals and allies gathered on Sunday, Oct. 3 at Tiguex Park to march for awareness of missing and murdered Indigenous women. The rally featured stories and testimonies from a broad range of people affected by the staggering number of missing and murdered Indigenous people whose cases remain unsolved. Speakers highlighted the apathetic attitudes of law enforcement and the structural ineptitudes of federal, state and tribal agencies to cooperate and share investigative responsibility. In addition, attendees brought up victim-blaming and shaming as barriers to achieving justice for missing Indigenous people.

Culture

Balloon Fiesta lifts off

Hevyn Heckes | October 3

Tourists flocked to Albuquerque on Oct. 2 for the first Balloon Fiesta in two years, with more than 600 pilots gathered to produce the spectacle that has become the most photographed event in the world. After Dawn Patrol balloons ascended to provide pilots with an idea of the wind speeds and direction, attendees watched as hundreds of colorful balloons in many different shapes and sizes were inflated by pilots and ground crews in preparation for Mass Ascension. Pilots and crews mingled with attendees to talk about the different aspects of hot air ballooning before the balloons launched.

News

Romero, Regalado take ASUNM election in decisive win

Hevyn Heckes | March 10

On Wednesday, Greg Romero and Ryan Regalado were elected ASUNM president and vice president for the upcoming 2021-22 school year. The election marked another abysmally low voter turnout for the University of New Mexico, with only 874 voters (5.2%) out of a total of 16,662 eligible undergraduates participating in the election. Romero received 341 votes, beating his closest opponent by more than seven percentage points: an impressive margin, given the four-way race. Regalado garnered almost the same number at 329, taking 37% of the vote.

News

ASUNM presidential election kicks off

Lissa Knudsen and Hevyn Heckes | March 7

This year’s ASUNM election is anything but business as usual. Presidential and vice-presidential candidates have presented diverse and comprehensive platforms that moved beyond empty platitudes. With the events of the past year fresh in their minds, the candidates outlined their strategies for tackling the biggest issues still plaguing the UNM community. Undergraduates can vote online beginning on Monday March 8 by going to their myUNM student portal and selecting two of eight candidates — four running for president and four running for vice president. Each position is elected separately as opposed to one united slate.

News

ASUNM senate elects new president pro tempore

Hevyn Heckes | February 3

The Associated Students of the University of New Mexico assembled on Zoom Wednesday, Jan. 27 to elect a new president pro tempore, ensure more transparency in proposed legislation and call for a more collegial relationship with the Daily Lobo. Raina Harper, a junior studying film and digital arts, was nominated for ASUNM president pro tempore by Finance Committee Chair Sarah Polsin. Polsin said she nominated Harper because “she’s such a well-rounded person” and “she knows what she’s doing.” Harper, the only nominee, was elected by a majority vote. Votes were conferred confidentially to Ryan Lindquist, the director of the Student Activities Center.

News

ASUNM senator resigns after use of racist slurs

Hevyn Heckes | February 1

Associated Students of the University of New Mexico (ASUNM) Senator Romie Sandoval has resigned after text messages emerged in which Sandoval repeatedly used the n-word, causing a public outcry. On Jan. 20, Twitter user @ntonyjean published screenshots providing evidence that Sandoval used the n-word in private messages. @ntonyjean didn’t disclose in the post the origins of the screenshots or whether they were the original recipient of the offending messages. The Daily Lobo spoke with ASUNM president Mia Amin on Jan. 25 regarding the complaints about Sandoval’s language. Amin said she had no knowledge of the allegations and requested to have the screenshots forwarded to her so she could research the situation.

News

Great American Outdoors Act: ‘A big damn deal’

Hevyn Heckes | September 14

On Aug. 4, after waiting several months for a proposal from Congress, President Donald Trump signed into law the Great American Outdoors Act (GAOA), giving nearly a billion dollars a year in the process to wilderness conservation and park construction projects across the country. “The Great American Outdoors Act provides $900 million a year in guaranteed funding for the Land and Water Conservation Fund so that all Americans can continue to enjoy our parks and wildlife refuges,” according to a White House briefing. New Mexico stands to benefit greatly from the legislation, given that the state is home to two national parks and a number of wilderness areas.

Culture

Brined, not stoned: ‘An American Pickle’ required viewing for Seth Rogen fans only

Hevyn Heckes | September 10

If you’re wondering what the science behind a man being preserved in pickle brine for 100 years is, you’re in luck! An unnamed reporter asks that very question in the first 15 minutes of the Seth Rogen vehicle “An American Pickle.” I won’t spoil the answer here. I can only say that, according to Herschel’s inner monologue, “The science was good, and everyone was satisfied.” The main highlights of the film include Rogen’s passable Russian accent as Herschel and a few not-so-subtle digs at social media. Fans of YouTube’s “Kalen Reacts” will be pleased to see Kalen Allen make several appearances as Herschel’s “fairy godmother” of the technological age and pickle-odor aficionado.

News

Medical examiner says no CTE in Flowers autopsy

Hevyn Heckes | August 30

Editor’s note: This article contains discussion of suicide. If you’re feeling suicidal, you are not alone. Please call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-8255 or UNM’s Student Health and Counseling at 505-277-3136. On Aug. 25, famed attorney Ben Crump announced a wrongful death lawsuit regarding the November 2019 death of former University of New Mexico football player Nahje Flowers. The suit alleges that Flowers suffered from untreated and/or undiagnosed chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) — a neurological disorder common in athletes who participate in contact sports such as boxing or football — due to repeated head trauma during the course of play in his capacity as a defensive lineman for the Lobos.

Culture

‘Fallout’: New book sobering reminder of nuclear devastation 75 years after entering atomic age

Hevyn Heckes | August 30

Editor’s note: This book review contains graphic depictions of violence. New Mexicans are perhaps more acutely aware of U.S. nuclear capabilities and the bomb, “Little Boy,” dropped on Hiroshima, since its predecessors were developed and tested in our own backyard. However, most people alive today will not remember the immediate aftereffects of the outsized attack on Japanese citizens that capped off the second world war. Modern awareness of the atomic bomb and the events of WWII are mostly relegated to fictionalized accounts contained in films such as “Pearl Harbor” and “Schindler’s List.” The events surrounding WWII have long since become a cultural legend, and first-person memories of these events no longer exist. We’ve simply forgotten the horrors of global war — until now.