Fronteras: Some are asking President Obama to hire more Latinos in his second term. Proponents are planning to reintroduce the Violence Against Women Act, which died in the House last session. Immigrant driver's licenses are a hot topic in New Mexico, and we look at how Mexico is re-making its centuries-old tradition of midwifery.
Obama Has 'Binder Of Latinos' Problem With Cabinet
President Barack Obama’s press conference Monday was dominated with questions about the "debt ceiling" and gun control, but he was also quizzed about diversity on his second term cabinet. Fronteras correspondent David Martin Davies has more.
Proponents Plan To Reintroduce VAWA
The Violence Against Women Act died in the House last session. The law stiffens penalties against domestic violence, stalking and rape. It’s the first time the law hasn’t been re-authorized in 18 years. The dispute was over a new provision that would have allowed Native American tribes the authority to prosecute nonnatives in their own courts. From the Changing America Desk in Flagstaff, Laurel Morales reports.
Immigrant Driver's Licenses a Hot Topic In New Mexico
New Mexico’s 60-day legislative session started this week. One topic that’ll ignite fierce debate for the third straight year is driver's licenses. The governor wants to repeal a 2003 law that allows illegal immigrants to get one. She claims the law invites fraud into the state and threatens public safety. Mónica Ortiz Uribe reports. (This story was reported in collaboration with New Mexico In Depth, at nmindepth. com)
Mexico Training Midwives In Hope Of Preventing Maternal Deaths
These days in Mexico, the majority of babies are born in hospitals, but that hasn't helped reduce the number of maternal deaths. So health officials are now betting a new kind of midwife, one trained in a clinical setting, may be a solution. Reporter Mónica Ortiz Uribe visited a newly opened school in southern Mexico that's educating the next generation of midwives
- This story was produced in collaboration with reporter Lilián Lopez and Round Earth Media’s Mexico reporting project
Arizona Artist Explores Native Identity of His Generation
Twenty-three year-old mixed media artist Tom Greyeyes grew up dividing his time on and off the Navajo reservation. In his work, he explores how Native young people straddle native and mainstream American cultures. He does paintings and graffiti installations that are big and bold – they cover entire walls and appear on abandoned buildings on reservations. Fronteras Desk reporter Jude Joffe-Block caught up with Greyeyes this week at a week-long print-making project at Arizona State University. You can see photos of his work here.