Dear Mexican: I live in East Harlem, which over the past years has started to look much less boricua/plátano and much more mexicano — tamales have replaced pasteles, you hear “güey” more than “mi pana,” and you can barely make out those smooth salsa bongos under the booming oompah of…
As we’ve reported, Colorado Governor John Hickenlooper’s willingness to accept Syrian refugees has resulted in significant push-back. Among those who vehemently disagree with the policy is former Congressman Tom Tancredo, a onetime candidate for president and Colorado governor known nationwide for his advocacy of strict immigration policies. Tancredo actively supports a…
Although Colorado Governor John Hickenlooper put out a press release yesterday revealing his plan to accept Syrian refugees into the state, his staff didn’t share the announcement on his Facebook page. In all likelihood, this omission was made in an effort to avoid a storm of negative commentary. But the storm, like…
Dear Mexican: I’m an old fart with lily-white genes. I lived in the OC, in L.A. and in the Bay Area for twenty years, yet I had scarcely any interaction with the Latino population. It wasn’t because I was anti-Mexican; I was just apprehensive. I felt like I was the…
The Fight for 15 campaign, which calls for a minimum $15 hourly wage and the right for low-wage workers at fast-food restaurants and similar businesses to organize, didn’t get a lot of support at this week’s Republican presidential debate. The headline of the Al Jazeera America report about the way…
In recent years, Colorado sheriffs have gotten mighty political, with many of them attempting to work as a team to achieve their objectives. Note a 2013 lawsuit, filed under the names of 55 sheriffs in the state, that attempted to undermine new gun-control laws; the following year, a judge ruled that…
Last night’s Republican presidential debate, sponsored by Fox Business News, featured fewer candidates on the main stage (eight) than in previous GOP events. But there remain a slew of hopefuls seeking the Republican and Democratic nominations. Which are generating the most interest in Colorado? One way of measuring that is…
Are you interested in Building a Better Colorado? Are you confused as to why Colorado’s new budget looks gloomy when the state economy is booming? Wonder why we just had to vote on Proposition BB when we thought Amendment 64 had authorized the state to collect marijuana taxes and use…
Special Best Of Edition Dear Mexican: Isn’t the acceptance of illegal immigration by Latino politicians insulting to generations of Mexican-Americans who paid taxes, built communities and worked hard for their families and their country? Legal Smiegel Dear Gabacho: Nope, mainly because people sin papeles also pay taxes, build communities and…
An October 23 press release announced: that Colorado Attorney General Cynthia Coffman had joined a “bipartisan group of 23 states” challenging the Environmental Protection Agency’s “Clean Power Plan.” The plan “is an attempt to expand federal power over the States through administrative regulation in violation of the law.” Coffman said in…
The Denver election results are in, and while they’ll remain unofficial under the vote is certified on November 17, we’ve got a clear idea about the winners and losers in every race, with one possible exception. Three out of four ballot questions passed, with a new college tax proposal being…
Tonight, Denver City Council will vote on whether to rezone a portion of the Emmaus Lutheran Church property off of Speer Boulevard at West 32nd Avenue. Built in 1907, the church is surrounded by other businesses and is close to Highlands Square which is filled with restaurants, bars and shops. Approving…
Dear Mexican: What’s up with the bull stickers on the trucks? Is this a secret business, something earned at some unmentionable contest south of the border, or a brotherhood of sorts? Native Californian Whitey Dear Gabacho: The bull sticker is no cloak-and-dagger marker. Toros on trucks are just cultural archetypes,…
Well. That was the least crazy Republican debate in recent memory. Those who are familiar with my personal politics know that this admission comes with some amount of sadness. For so many reasons, I’m not particularly fond of this batch of 19 Duggars and counting — er, Republican presidential candidates. In…
Bowing to public sentiment and the urgings of the dental establishment, the Snowmass Water and Sanitation District voted 3-2 last week to lift a controversial ban on fluoride in its drinking supply, which had been imposed last July. That prompted one water board member — whose wife had been one…
“Ben Carson looks high as hell.” “I bet Jeb would give me a warm kiss.” “Ugh! Carly Fiorina’s smile is so fake.” Such was the commentary from University of Colorado Boulder students as they watched last night’s GOP presidential debate in their student center, where hundreds packed the Glenn Miller…
With Halloween just days away, there’s no time like the present to make sure your costume is planned and ready. But in case you’re still searching for last-minute costume ideas, there was plenty of inspiration to be found among protesters outside of yesterday’s GOP presidential debate in Boulder. Throughout the…
When the University of Denver hosted the presidential debate three years ago, who was the big winner? Not Mitt Romney or Barack Obama, but DU itself, which looked great on national televsion and got a big boost for its new brand (and paid $1.6 million for that boost). And who…
Sandy Widener, co-founder of Westword and the paper’s first managing editor, was killed in a horrific car crash in December 2007 that also took her husband, John Parr, and the couple’s daughter Chase. The only survivor was then seventeen-year-old Katy. But Sandy and John also left behind quite a legacy of…
If you didn’t score a ticket to tonight’s Republican presidential debate, you’re in good company: CNBC is only allowing 1,000 of the 11,000 seats at the University of Colorado’s Coors Events Center to be filled. But if you’re in Boulder, there will be plenty of action outside the arena. Here’s our…
The Republican presidential candidates will take the stage at the University of Colorado Boulder at 6 p.m. MST tonight for the third in their series of debates, this one titled “Your Money, Your Vote.” We know you won’t be inside the 11,000-seat Coors Events Arena, because very few tickets…
Denver City Council members had just returned from a recess when activists stormed into council chambers last night. There were about a dozen of them, weaving towards the front of the room in a single file, fired up after recent spats with law enforcement. They included representatives from Occupy Denver,…
