• Featured in this section is a story by Natasha Gutierrez about old Christmas traditions in Mexico, the San Luis Valley and Pueblo and the need to continue them. • Jingle and Mingle — A new Christmas tradition where children receive treats and meet Santa Claus. • Photos of Holiday activities in and around Pueblo… Continue reading MIS CRISMES
Category: Education
Life, after life without parole
By JUAN ESPINOSA They say, we learn from our mistakes. David Carrillo, 51, wants the young men and women he encounters to learn from his mistakes. As a 19-year-old gang leader, Carrillo was convicted of first degree murder of a young man in 1993 who was a member of a rival gang. He was sentenced… Continue reading Life, after life without parole
Headstart
Still a revolutionary social program By DEBORAH MARTINEZ MARTINEZ Pueblo Headstart program is moving forward with a recently-opened center in Walsenburg at 100 W. Spruce with the help of the new fiscal collaborator Chicanos por la Causa. The previous Headstart programs were run by Rocky Mountain SER, and the changeover happened two years ago. Pueblo… Continue reading Headstart
Update Gobble, Gobble
Special to La Cucaracha News The 2nd Annual Pueblo Turkey Giveaway was a huge success. This year, 500 Turkey baskets were handed out. This is a Denver and Pueblo collaboration to feed the less fortunate for Thanksgiving in the Steel City. This couldn’t have been possible without our amazing sponsors! We thank Excalibur Outreach, McDivitt… Continue reading Update Gobble, Gobble
Racial Profiling & ICE
A modern echo of old injustice By NATASHA GUTIERREZ — GUEST COLUMNIST PUEBLO — Fear and injustice doesn’t always arrive with flashing lights. Sometimes it shows up in quiet ways — like when a family chooses not to leave home for groceries because they’re afraid the color of their skin will make them a target. … Continue reading Racial Profiling & ICE
Guatemala’s giant kites
Dia de los Muertos tradition By DEBORAH MARTINEZ MARTINEZ Giant kites of the Maya, some 50 feet across, celebrate Dia de los Muertos in Guatemala. In a country that has suffered 100,000 deaths at the hand of the government, and 50,000 disappeared, the kites carry social and political messages. The preparations begin months ahead of… Continue reading Guatemala’s giant kites
November 2025
Visual Story Telling Workshop A series of Visual Storytelling Workshops will be held at Pueblo area libraries between November 2025 and March 2026. The workshops are led by local Chicana and Indigenous artists Jazzelle Bustos, Katrina Gomez, Celeste Velasquez. While painting a collaborative mini-mural, we’ll celebrate the stories, cultures, and characteristic that represent our neighborhoods.… Continue reading November 2025
Youth Leadership 101
372 attend Rita J. Martinez Youth Conference By VICENTE MARTINEZ ORTEGA & DEBORAH MARTINEZ MARTINEZ PUEBLO — Hundreds of area high school students were treated to a day on a university campus, introduction to Chicano Studies and took home valuable educational gifts at a student conference held earlier this month. The occasion was the 2025… Continue reading Youth Leadership 101
Día de los Muertos
From Sacred Hills to Global Stage By H.R. LLAMAS For centuries, El Día de los Muertos — the Day of the Dead — has been a cherished celebration among Indigenous communities across the Americas. What began as a humble act of remembrance in the Purépecha hills of Janitzio, Michoacán, has transformed into one of the… Continue reading Día de los Muertos
Colorado Dems Buckle…
…as Shutdown Showdown Continues By J. Castaña Last week was a poor showing from the Democrats, including Colorado Senators Bennet and Hickenlooper. As the shutdown of the federal government stretches on and Congress Democrats and Republicans showdown over spending bills, at least one of the “must-pass” measures blew through with surprising ease: the National Defense… Continue reading Colorado Dems Buckle…