AltWeeklies Wire
Baby Blues: A Lesbian Couple's Quest for a Childnew

Joanna and Tamara have spent more than $40,000 trying to have a baby through in vitro fertilization with no luck; meanwhile, people around the country are disposing of embryos and foregoing the storage fee during the economic decline.
Weekly Alibi |
Marisa Demarco |
12-31-2009 |
Sex
EPA Looks Into American Cement Permitnew
In early October, neighbors of American Cement got word that the city had approved the permit to extend operation to 24 hours a day. The station at 4702 Carlton NW is a few blocks from Mountain Mahogany Community School and La Luz Elementary.
Weekly Alibi |
Marisa Demarco |
12-15-2009 |
Environment
Health Care or Hell? A Diary of H1N1new
I asked myself what other business in civilized society would allow a customer to sit in their lobby for an entire day. Waiting. Hour after hour. No apologies, no apparent attempt to speed things up or call in extra help. I actually thought it was normal...for the first six hours.
Weekly Alibi |
Michael P. D'Arco |
12-08-2009 |
Science
How the Holder Memo Affects New Mexico's Groundbreaking Medical Marijuana Programnew

Doctors, growers, caregivers and patients stick their necks out under New Mexico's cannabis law. Does the AG's directive make any difference?
Weekly Alibi |
Marisa Demarco |
11-12-2009 |
Drugs
Being a Blue Reporter in a Red Statenew
Most of the people I knew at the college paper where I cut my teeth went to places like Chicago, Los Angeles and New York. Not me. As an English major, my services weren't in as much demand. Since there would be no editorial position at the New York Times, I embarked on what I called "John Bear's Backwater Nightmare Tour."
Weekly Alibi |
John Bear |
09-08-2009 |
Media
Nancy Hollander Defends Guantanamo Prisoners ... and Our Justice Systemnew
The Albuquerque lawyer is one of the nation's leading criminal defense attorneys, but she now faces perhaps her greatest legal challenge yet: Representing two prisoners incarcerated at the Guantanamo Bay detention camp.
Weekly Alibi |
Simon McCormack |
08-11-2009 |
Civil Liberties
New Mexico's Transgender Community Unsettled by News Coverage of Murdersnew
"They should have said the word 'victim' in there somehow, because regardless of what these people were doing when they were killed, they still had the right to live," Transgender New Mexico facilitator Janice Devereaux says. "And referring to them as victims, I think, would have been more appropriate."
Weekly Alibi |
Marisa Demarco |
07-28-2009 |
Media
Health Care on Life Support: New Mexicans Tell Us What Reform Looks Likenew
Froozan Parwana is one of more than 400,000 New Mexicans without health insurance. Her trip to the emergency room last summer, which cost more than $300, was a harsh introduction to what awaits patients without medical coverage. The hospital bill forced Parwana to take fewer college classes.
Weekly Alibi |
Simon McCormack |
07-20-2009 |
Science
Overcoming Illness Is Only Half the Battle for Cash-Strapped New Mexicansnew

Through outreach work, Health Action New Mexico has discovered common scenarios that force people to fall into the trap of insurmountable health costs.
Weekly Alibi |
Simon McCormack |
06-09-2009 |
Economy
How Albuquerque's South Valley Is Giving Capitalism a Good Namenew
Albuquerque's South Valley Economic Development Center (SVEDC) is a small business incubator that provides facilities, resources and training to support the development and expansion of all manner of small enterprises.
Weekly Alibi |
Ari LeVaux |
05-05-2009 |
Business & Labor
New Mexico Religious Group Stands by Its Spiritual Leader and Waits for Deliverancenew

In April 2008, reports of inappropriate contact between three female minors and the leader of a New Mexico religious group prompted their removal from the group's property.
Weekly Alibi |
Maren Tarro |
04-24-2009 |
Crime & Justice
Tags: Michael Travesser, Strong City
A Developmentally Delayed Man Files Suit Against the System that Put Him Behind Barsnew
Though Robert Gonzales was never convicted of killing Victoria Sandoval, and though DNA evidence couldn't place him at the scene of the crime, he spent 997 days in the Bernalillo County Metropolitan Detention Center.
Weekly Alibi |
Marisa Demarco |
04-24-2009 |
Crime & Justice
Albuquerque's Drinking Water Could Be at Risknew

Groundwater from Albuquerque's aquifer lies less than 500 feet below Sandia Labs' Mixed Waste Landfill. Sandia says there's no evidence any of the waste in the landfill has contaminated the water, but an environmental watchdog group says we can't know for sure.
Weekly Alibi |
Simon McCormack |
04-14-2009 |
Environment
A Bill to Repeal Capital Punishment in New Mexico Breathes New Life into a Fierce Debatenew
Albuquerque Rep. Gail Chasey’s bill to replace the death penalty with a sentence of life without parole made it past the New Mexico House in 2005 and 2007. Chasey expects her legislation to clear the House again this year. Several new senators, Chasey says, should vote in favor of her bill.
Weekly Alibi |
Simon McCormack |
02-03-2009 |
Crime & Justice
Tags: New Mexico, death penalty
2008's P.U.-litzer Prizes: America's Stinkiest Media Performancesnew
Now in their 17th year, the P.U.-litzer Prizes recognize some of the nation's stinkiest media performances. As the judges for these annual awards, we do our best to identify the most deserving recipients of this unwelcome plaudit.
Weekly Alibi |
Norman Solomon and Jeff Cohen |
01-06-2009 |
Media
Tags: media, Year in Review