Joseph Hutchison didn’t set out to write a poem about Silas Soule. But he’d been thinking for a while about the Sand Creek Massacre — a dark chapter in Colorado’s past that he’d never learned about when he was a student at Skinner Junior High, writing his first poem. He’d…
Dear Mexican: The Mexican-American community is the most adversely affected by the influx of illegals. Only the politicians have any gain from lumping all Hispanics into the “Latino” category. Are proud, hardworking Mexican-Americans actually willing to continually diminish their own children’s American future purely to facilitate the radical Chicano politicians’…
A hundred miles east of Denver is a rise that, at around 5,900 feet, is the highest point between Denver and Kansas City — or between Denver and Chicago, or between Denver and New York, depending on who’s doing the measuring and who’s doing the bragging. This rise marks what…
The dog days of summer are behind us — but every dog can still have its day on a local patio. That’s because on July 1, new regulations took effect in Denver for restaurants that want to turn over at least part of their patios to pooches, and Racines, which…
Sean Azzariti spent six years in the Marines and was deployed to Iraq twice. Today he’s fighting for the right to use medical marijuana. “When I first got out of the military, in October 2006, I was diagnosed with severe PTSD,” he recalls. The doctors prescribed heavy prescription drugs, but…
Dear Mexican: I’m from the southeastern United States, and people think — correctly, in some cases (see: Bush, G.W.) — that everyone here is dumb. Is there a similar place in Mexico where other Mexicans think the people are inbred mouth-breathers?Swanee Señor Dear Gabacho: Jalisco. Dear Mexican: I am a…
Long before there was a renovated Union Station with its fancy Terminal Bar, even long before Lower Downtown was nicknamed LoDo, the area had a Terminal Bar. It was a down-and-dirty workingman’s joint, named for both the nearby Union Station and the long-gone Terminal Annex Post Office; three happy hours…
Dear Mexican: I see lots of Mexican-Americans struggling in grade school and high school. Many Mexican-American activists claim it’s because they don’t speak English at home or the schools don’t teach them well. But I see lots of Asian-Americans in the same schools who do really well. Many of them…
UPDATE: The steep price of putting in new airport train messages hasn’t stopped Denver from recording two new greetings to kick off 2015. The latest voices of the DIA people mover are new Denver Bronco DeMarcus Ware and pro skier Lindsay Vonn. For more than a decade, the trains ran…
Dear Readers: The Mexican just got married to a chica caliente, and he’s taking her on a honeymoon to the motherland so she can learn the proper art of tortilla-making. In the meantime, I offer this Best Of edition, because I plan to do all of my work this week…
What’s your favorite place in Denver? This morning the Denver Department of Community Planning and Development — whose office is definitely not the favorite place of people applying for building permits and zoning variances — launched the Favorite Place in Denver campaign, part of an attempt to “launch a citywide…
Dear Mexican: I’m not Mexican, but my son-in-law is. He is intelligent, bright, enthusiastic and pleasant to spend time with. He came here, illegally, at the age of eighteen, with his aunts. He and my daughter are married, have a three-and-a-half-year-old son, and have gone through the entire process of…
Dear Mexican: I’m a handsome exemplar of the bronce race living in the motherland. I’m dating a beautiful and wonderful gringuita who is soon taking a trip over the border from the U.S. to Mexico for the first time to visit me and my pinche big family. There are a…
Dear Mexican: What is with the many gringos/gabachos who constantly slaughter Spanish words? Spanish is easy to pronounce (and spell) compared to English. The vowels (a, e, i, o, u) are always pronounced the same way. In English, vowels vary a lot — difficult for new learners. All of the…
Dear Mexican: I am from an Arabic-speaking country. After my education is completed here, I’ll be returning to my country or to Kuala Lumpur. Since I’ve been in this country, I’ve noticed there’s a rising tide of hatred toward Mexicans. I’ve talked to Mexicans, and they all say they’re proud…
Dear Mexican: I have some questions and observations. During George W. Bush’s administration, there was a lot of talk about comprehensive immigration reform (amnesty, to some). One remark that I recall was made by a Mexican and was something like, “Go back to Europe!” Aren’t Mexicans of European descent, also?…
The newly renovated Union Station isn’t hosting its official grand reopening until July 26, but it’s already seeing plenty of looky-loos – and there’s plenty for them to look at, including more than 600 pieces of art. For our money, though the real masterpiece is the historic sign that just…
Dear Mexican: I noticed that Mexican people don’t generally smoke. I’m not condoning smoking, but it’s interesting to see how some groups do or don’t smoke, and I have yet to see a Mexican person smoke cigarettes. Does the tobacco industry not target Latinos?Fulminating Fumador Dear Gabacho Smoker: American Lung…
“In honor of your service at Rocky Flats,” proclaimed the message on the outside of an envelope from Cold War Patriots. And inside, a personalized letter announced that “a commemorative coin has been designed to honor you as a former Rocky Flats worker and celebrate the 25th anniversary of the…
Dear Mexican: The tragedy currently playing out on the U.S. southern border has reminded me to once again ask my (slightly tweaked) question, posed three years ago and perhaps more relevant than ever: If the U.S. had sponsored and funded infrastructural, educational, social and economic development in Mexico and Central…
Update below: Since the 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals handed down its ruling on June 25 invalidating Utah’s ban on same-sex marriage, Boulder County Clerk and Recorder Hillary Hall has been issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples — seventy at last count. But Colorado Attorney General John Suthers questions…
Dear Mexican: I think I might be Mexican, but there are some people who might disagree. Being that you are the source of all knowledge mexicano, I thought I might ask you. Here’s the deal: My ancestors left the U.S. in 1847 knowingly and entered recognized territorio mexicano. The U.S…
