Planet Forward: Emergency on Planet Earth

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EL PASO, Texas — The University of Texas at El Paso is “walking the walk and not just talking the talk.”

A famous quote by Henry David Thoreau states : “Thank God men cannot fly, and lay waste the sky as well as the earth.”

When it comes to concern about the environment; UTEP’s answer:  build three new multi-million dollar construction projects. UTEP’s ongoing construction projects all have green initiatives, including locations for cyclists to come and relax, take a shower, and place their personal belongings in new lockers. This supports the concept that students should ride their bike to UTEP instead of driving their car. Ed Soltero, UTEP’s director of planning and construction promises, “one day UTEP will eventually be off limits to cars, it will become strictly students.”

Currently, UTEP proposes to be in the vanguard in helping to preserve the environment in the southwest. “UTEP has most certainly been at the forefront of these sustainability issues,” according to Soltero.

Balacera en Juárez impacta a UTEP

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EL PASO, Texas — Una bala, de calibre no precisado, impacto en un edificio de la Universidad de Texas en El Paso, durante la tarde del sábado 21 de agosto. Se presume que el proyectil provenía de un enfrentamiento armado entre sicarios y la Policía Federal, en Ciudad Juárez. La información trascendió, ayer 22 de agosto en la noche, luego de que la presidenta de UTEP, la doctora Diana Natalicio, emitiera una declaración oficial sobre el incidente, el cual se encuentra bajo averiguación. “La Policía de UTEP investiga el descubrimiento de una única bala que golpeó el edifico Bell Hall del campus durante la tarde del sábado 21 de agosto de 2010”, dijo, Natalicio. Y agregó: “Entre 6:10 y 6:40 de esa noche, hubo un intercambio de disparos de fusil en Juárez, México, que tuvo como resultado el cierre del paseo Paisano desde las calles Executive hasta la Santa Fe”.

Economic Growth in El Paso Debatable

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EL PASO — The city of El Paso is home to hundreds of thousands of people, and its economy is smaller compared to other cities in Texas such as San Antonio and Dallas. University of Texas at El Paso Economics professor Tom Fullerton believes that El Paso has a much smaller economy compared to Houston or Dallas because, “In part that’s simply because population base here is a lot smaller,” he said. Fullerton believes that a larger economy is not an impossible goal for El Paso.  “El Paso has very good economic potential. It has a young demographic here it has a labor force that’s ready, willing and available for working. What needs to be done however is to increase investment in infrastructure and convince young people to stay in school.”

As part of that mission to spark the economy of El Paso, Jorge Vazquez, is trying to bring in more entertainment to the city.

Maestros de UTEP apoyan labor de homólogos de Centro y Sur América a través de donativos

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EL PASO, Texas — Maestros de Centro y Sur América —17 en total— reunidos el 10 de agosto en El Paso, agradecieron un donativo de materiales y útiles escolares realizado por homólogos locales que cursan maestrías y postgrados en la Universidad de Texas en El Paso (UTEP). La entrega de lápices, libretas, cuadernos, libros bilingües y otros implementos serán destinados a niños de El Salvador, República Dominicana, Guatemala, Honduras y Nicaragua que carecen de esos materiales y estudian en condiciones inadecuadas. “Estoy altamente agradecida a nombre de nuestro país porque allá tenemos algunas precariedades con la adquisición de recursos y didácticos para los niños”, dijo, María Luisa Lagual, de República Dominicana. Y agregó: “Me siento feliz porque además estamos aprendiendo mucho y fortaleciendo lo que ya sabemos para perfeccionar la enseñanza en mi tierra”. El reconocimiento fue secundado por todos los educadores presentes en la reunión.

Family Dollar no es una familia amistosa

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EL PASO, Texas — Decenas de ex-trabajadores de la cadena Family Dollar volvieron a manifestarse, el sábado 7 de agosto, por las presuntas violaciones de sus derechos, robos de sueldos y presiones psicológicas de las que han sido objeto por parte de directivos locales de esa compañía. Los reclamantes hicieron sus denuncias frente a una de las tiendas de esa cadena sita en el número 500 de la calle Piedras, a la altura de la Carretera Interestatal 10, en el área Central de la ciudad. “La compañía viene tratando a sus trabajadores como esclavos, estamos sometidos a laborar muchas horas siempre y cuando el trabajo salga”, dijo el ex empleado, Abelardo López, con más de siete años de experiencia en esa cadena. Y agregó: “Trabajamos diariamente, como mínimo, doce horas diarias, de 10 de la mañana a 10 de la noche”. Sostenida bajo el lema “Family Dollar no es una familia amistosa”, la marcha forma parte de una campaña progresiva contra funcionarios de esa cadena a nivel local.

Critics cite new driving test expensive and ineffective

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Texas new driving course

EL PASO, Texas — According to the Texas Department of Transportation almost 20 percent of automobile accidents are caused by adult drivers, ages 18-24. Since March, 2010, a new Texas driver’s license law has been in effect. For the first time driver license applicants from the ages 18 to 24 must now receive a certificate which states they have successfully completed and passed the six-hour adult driving course by the Texas Education Agency, before they can take the standard driving test to receive their driver’s license. This course, which costs $100, can be taken online or in person, but it has provoked speculation whether it is really necessary and whether it will be effective. This new law, Senate Bill 1371 passed by the 81st Texas Legislature last year, incorporates two series of tests, one which is highway signs and traffic laws.

Paseños celebran suspensión parcial de la ley antiinmigrante SB 1070

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EL PASO, Texas — La unión de las palabras “festejo” y “protesta” resulta inusual. Sin embargo, el binomio fue utilizado ayer 29 de julio, a nivel local, gracias a que la juez federal Susan Bolton, emitiera recientemente en Phoenix una suspensión provisional de las porciones más racistas de la ley antiinmigrante SB 1070. Fue así como lo que prometía ser una jornada de protesta en contra de la ley de Arizona y de reafirmación humanista a favor de los inmigrantes indocumentados, se convirtió en fiesta de la sociedad civil. De esta manera más de 200 personas, integrantes de diversas generaciones de inmigrantes, se congregaron frente al nuevo edificio de la Corte Federal del juez Albert Armendáriz, en la confluencia de las calles San Antonio y Campbell, en el Downtown de El Paso. ¿Por qué festejo?

Buckram rushes for the Miners and El Paso aiming for the NFL

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EL PASO, Texas — Donald Buckram played his career breakout season in 2009 knowing that he needed exactly that to let the NFL scouts know that he has what it takes to shine on Sundays in the big league. The senior running back from the University of Texas at El Paso compiled 1,594 yards and 18 touchdowns in his junior season with the Miners. Not only did he run the ball, Buckram, broke a UTEP record that stood since 1948, held by former Texas Western (now UTEP) running back Fred Wendt. Buckram didn’t always aspire to play football. Growing up in Copperas Cove, Texas, he idolized another sport other than football.

El Paso has a front row seat on the unending killing in Juarez

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EL PASO, Texas — About a century ago, El Pasoans lined themselves up near the border for a good view of the revolutionary war raging just across the river as gunshots and war cries echoed from the brush and dirty water. A hundred yeas later, El Paso once more holds a ringside seat to the bloodshed of Mexican souls. Last week, shots fired from Mexico hit the windows of El Paso’s City Hall. Although no one can be sure how or when the bulk of the violence will die down, many students at the University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP) have their opinions. “A lot of people have told me that maybe if they legalize marijuana in Juárez it would be better because then the drug lords would loose some of their power,” said Lindsy Gutierrez, a music major.  She sat in the shade outside the Fox Fine Arts building of UTEP reading a book on poetry.

Living in constant fear, Mexicans long for the good life they lost

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EL PASO, Texas —Little is known about the truth behind the Cartel Wars, but one thing is certain, they must end. They are a constant plague on our way of life, the borderway.  For more than four decades, the citizens of the borderland have been subject to a war that brewed and heated until it erupted only four years ago. Frankly, the people here do not care who is in charge, to them the only person they call “boss” is Bruce Springstein, and maybe Pedro Infante. Regardless, we the people say screw these bastards who are endangering our Juarense brothers and sisters. We demand to be protected and we will not accept the current standard.

Research and Education Now Cross-connects Beyond Borders

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EL PASO – The University of Texas at El Paso and other research and educational institutions across the U.S. have teamed up with universities in Mexico to make it easier and more affordable for them to access the state of the art Internet research capabilities available in the U.S.

The jointly constructed optical infrastructure between El Paso and Ciudad Juárez is called Cross Connect. “We have designed an innovative way for exchanging teaching and research information,” says UTEP Vice President for Information Resources and Planning, Dr. Stephen Riter. According to Dr. Riter, this started more than five years ago when UTEP used money from the National Science Foundation to begin a link of networks from El Paso to Ciudad Juárez. UTEP established a relationship with the Universidad Autonoma de Ciudad Juárez to help enhance research tools for students in Juárez. Students in Mexico now have the ability to use video conferencing and educational demos to boost their educational experience.

Downtown El Paso as seen from the Paseo del Norte International Bridge. (Sergio Chapa/Borderzine.com)

Downtowners Express Their Hopes for El Paso

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EL PASO— A taxi driver, a shopper and merchants from downtown El Paso share their perspectives of the city’s history and their hopes for its future. The following video, audio and slideshow presentations were produced by the following participants in of the Dow Jones Multimedia Training Academy held recently at the University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP): Jessica Retis, Bradford Owen, Mark Albertson and instructor Doug Mitchell. Downtown El Paso Merchants Tell Their Story

flee market at downtown El Paso

El Paso’s Voices on the 100th Anniversary of the Mexican Revolution

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EL PASO — The year 2010 marks the 100th anniversary of the Mexican Revolution. In the following video, audio and slideshow presentations, El Pasoans give their views on the impact of the Revolution and the lasting meaning it still holds. Dow Jones Multimedia Training Academy students, Elio Leturia, Elizabeth Marsh and John Freeman and instructor Lourdes Cueva Chacón, thank Mr. Roberto Rodríguez Hernández, Cónsul General of México in El Paso, the consulate staff, Dr. Kate Bonansinga, Director of the Stanlee and Gerald Rubin Center for the Visual Arts, and the citizens of El Paso and Ciudad Juárez who shared their voices. Voices from El Paso

The Virgin of Guadalupe

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EL PASO, Texas — Ever since 1531 when the image of the Virgin Mary appeared miraculously on the cloth worn by Juan Diego, a humble peasant in Tepeyac, Mexico, the Virgin of Guadalupe has been a sacred symbol of Mexican faith. Today the image of the Virgin can be found almost everywhere on the Borderland, from churches to sidewalks, from candles to tattoos. The photography class at the University of Texas at El Paso was given the assignment to photograph the Virgin wherever she appeared. (Click on the pictures to enlarge.)

Border Patrol officer, Ralph Gomez, talks to reporter Seok Kang at the international border. (Christopher Karadjov/Borderzine.com)

A Day with Border Patrol Agents in El Paso, TX

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EL PASO, Texas — Border patrol agents deal with everyday conflicts and apprehensions in the border areas. Chris Karadjov, Donna Pazdera, and Seok Kang tagged along with two border patrol agents, Joe Romero and Ralph Gomez. Contrary to what non-border residents may think, the boundary between the United States and Mexico is not a straight line or a simple division between the two places. The border bisects desert, mountains and urban areas. Each type of terrain calls for simple fencing in desert areas, tall steel mesh in more populated areas and plain rocks markers in mountainous areas or open desert, for example.

Bad City and Good City — The Border Twins are Conjoined at the Hip

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EL PASO, Texas — Many consider them sister cities.  With a combined population of more than 2 million persons, El Paso and Ciudad Juárez form one of the largest international metropolitan areas in the world. El Paso is the 6th largest city in Texas while Ciudad Juárez has experienced a higher population growth rate than the country as a whole. Together they interact and even share citizens. Recently though, most of what is heard about this urban area has to do with the Mexican drug cartels. Still, while Ciudad Juárez is ranked as one of the most dangerous places in the world, El Paso remains one of the safest cities in the United States.  In my curiosity to find how it is that this city is viewed, I talked to five students living here but originating from different cities, states, and countries to see what they think of the Sun City.

Hey Bartender, Don’t Keep Me Waiting!

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El Paso, Texas — Every time I go out I experience the same thing —horrible service. It is a crime that one has to wait more than 20 minutes to get a bevvie, especially if you specialize in the service. I mean, they aren’t doctors or lawyers —they’re bars and nightclubs. It is an inescapable curse of going out with a small group of friends or not knowing the bartenders from regularity or some other means, the fact that a beer is twenty minutes away at the peak of the night. Do these bars not have managers capable of seeing the suffering that one goes through when they go out?

Raised in Two Cultures, But Uncomfortable in Both

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EL PASO, Texas — “Can I have the rosa-pink sticker instead?” I would ask Miss Pat, my teacher at St. Mark’s when I was three years old. “I don’t like the amarillo-yellow one,” I would say. Growing up as a three year old, I distinctively remember my obsession with “rosa-pink.” I wanted everything —from my Barbie’s dress to the color of my room— to be “rosa-pink.” My aunts and uncles knew me as “rosa-pink” because everything I owned was “rosa-pink.”

Strangely enough, I never really thought of the term “rosa-pink” to be an odd way to refer to the color pink. It was just the way my mother taught me how to say pink in both Spanish and English.

Demonstrators Invoke César Chávez in Fight Against the Arizona Law

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EL PASO, Texas — Waving signs that read “La Lucha Continúa” and “Thank a Farm Worker Today,” hundreds of people marched in honor of the late civil rights activist César Chávez and in protest of the recent Arizona immigration law. “Farm workers rights should be respected, because they are the ones bringing food to the tables,” said 60-year-old Silvestre Galván, who fought alongside Chávez, the founder of the United Farm Workers, during the 1973 grape strikes in Delano, California. Carlos Marentes, director of the Border Farm Workers Center said the annual income of a field worker is about $6,000, far below the federal poverty guidelines of an annual income of $10,000 per person. Marentes pointed out the hazardous working conditions such as exposure to pesticides that harm the health of agriculture workers. “In the crops of chile, particularly in the Luna County, New Mexico, where many of these laborers go to work, more and more toxic chemicals are being used and as a result they have more diseases, especially in the skin of workers,” Marentes said.

Damas de Blanco reciben apoyo en El Paso

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EL PASO, Texas — Las Damas de Blanco, familiares de presos políticos en Cuba, fueron apoyadas el fin de semana por casi un centenar de sus paisanos radicados en la ciudad de El Paso, Texas. El sostén moral se hizo patente a través de una manifestación, en Crestmont Park, con reclamos de “justicia y libertad de expresión” para estas mujeres reprimidas en varias ocasiones en la isla. “Son madres, esposas, hijas, hermanas, de prisioneros de conciencia que han sido encarcelados por solo decir lo que piensan en contra del régimen de los hermanos Castro”, dijo, la organizadora de la protesta, Niurka Curbelo. Agregó: “El único delito de estas mujeres es caminar por las calles de La Habana, vestidas con el color de la paz y con flores en sus manos, para mostrar el dolor que sienten por lo que han hecho con sus familiares”. Los cubanos reunidos este sábado, en el Oeste de la ciudad, también vestían de blanco, portaban gladiolos, banderas de Cuba, carteles y fotografías de las víctimas, al estilo de aquellas mujeres.

El Auto — Local Bar’s Car Show Draws VW Classics

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EL PASO, Texas — I love retro vehicles. As a graduation present, my aunt is giving me a 1965 emerald-colored bicycle, which I will be sanding, repainting and outfitting with a big basket and a rotary-action bell this summer. When I get married, I hope to drive away into the sunset in a 1960s shiny red convertible Mustang, veil floating gracefully in the wind. By no means am I car expert, but when I found out that a local bar was hosting a Volkswagen car show I knew I had to be there. Hope and Anchor, located at 4012 N. Mesa, managed to get about 80 cars into their tiny parking lot, all of them VWs and all of them oldies.

Roses and Thorns — Painter Gaspar Enriquez’ Students Are His Inspiration

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EL PASO, Texas — Seeing no future in art, legendary El Paso artist Gaspar Enriquez abandoned the idea of pursuing an artistic career during his high school years. Little did he know where the potential of his talent would take him. “I liked art since I was a kid, but knew there was little or no pay in the field,” said Enriquez. Having grown up in the poverty-stricken neighborhoods of Segundo Barrio, Enriquez found himself growing up at a faster rate than most teenage kids. Moving to East Los Angeles right after graduating from Bowie High School, Enriquez began working as a dishwasher, then at a defense plant lab, and eventually as a machinist as he continued working his way up until he graduated in 1970 from the University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP) with a degree in Art Education.

A Dream Fulfilled at Estine’s Eastside Barbershop After All These Years

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EL PASO, Texas — The barbershop is hidden away from the hustle and bustle of the city on a side street at the corner of Piedras and Alameda that was created when the Piedras overpass and Interstate 10 highway were built in the mid 1960’s. Working inside, Estine Davis, an elderly but lively African-American woman who won’t reveal her age, has cut hair for decades. The wrinkles on her face and the countless plaques on the wall whisper tales of times long past. Davis is the owner of Estine’s Eastside Barbershop. For those familiar with this border city, this area is considered South Central El Paso.

Marchers Demand That Congress Reform Unfair Immigration Laws

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EL PASO, Texas – Now that the historic health care reform bill has been pushed through Capitol Hill, hundreds of thousands of immigration reform supporters expect to see their comprehensive plan in the congressional forefront this year. “It’s been needed. It’s been needed for a while now,” said Fernando Garcia, executive director of Border Network for Human Rights, who organized a march in El Paso, Texas. “We have people being separated. We have people being deported.

Mercado Mayapán Celebrates Chicano Power and Pride

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EL PASO, Texas — The smell of tacos al pastor greeted visitors of the Mercado Mayapán like the warmth of a Mexican grandmother’s bosom.  Chicanos gathered here surrounded by the beat of indigenous drums and warm colors for Chicano Power: Legacy of the Chicano movement in El Paso on a Saturday afternoon. Throughout the month of February, Museo Mayachén and La Mujer Obrera presented to the El Paso community different exhibits all having to do with the struggles of the Chicanos and Chicanas during the 60’s and 70’s.  Cultural dances, musical performances, and informatory forums were hosted at the Mercado Mayapán every Saturday in an effort to bring people to the recently opened museum dedicated to the Chicano movement in El Paso. The forum on February 13th was organized by Salvador Avila who participated as a member of the Brown Berets during the era of the Chicano movement. “Hoy se hace historia en la comunidad de El Paso,” Ávila said.

Young Users Find Ecstasy in a Cheap Abundant Pill

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EL PASO, Texas – Electro-beats fill the arena, green laser lights project out to the dancing multitude and somewhere in that crowd many will be consuming ecstasy, including 19 year-old Randy. “The first time I ever took ecstasy was when I went to a rave a few months ago and my friends gave me this really small pill. I took it and everything changed,” Randy said. “I just felt happy and everything sounded and looked even better than before.”

El Paso has seen an almost 2 percent increase of ecstasy seizures from 2008 to November 2009 according to Diana Apodaca, Drug Enforcement Administration special agent. “At first we thought it had to do with the violence in Mexico, but then we realized it had nothing to do with it,” Apodaca said.

Miss Texas 2010 — A Killer Smile in the Pageant and a Killer Spike on the Court

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EL PASO, Texas — Last summer, she traded in her sneakers for high heels in hopes of becoming Miss El Paso.  A win meant gaining media exposure to launch her volleyball career and experience in front of the cameras for her journalism aspirations. It turned out to be the ace of her game. If being smart, talented, civic minded and articulate is what is needed to win beauty pageants, then UTEP Miner Kelsey Moore, who captured Miss Texas 2010 with no prior pageant experience, could just win Miss USA 2010 in Las Vegas this April. Although she entered the El Paso pageant with only one month to prepare, she astonished the pageant community by her intense focus and uncompromising determination to learn fast. She captured the Miss El Paso title in June and went on to win Miss Texas in September as well.