In the U.S., the Supreme Court decision will hand the determination of abortion legality to individual states
In 1973, the Supreme Court of the US passed a ruling in the famous Roe v Wade case that made abortion legal in all 50 states.
Since that time, individuals, religious groups, and legislators have tried to limit the access women have to obtain an abortion. When the leaked memo signed by Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito was made public recently, this issue has come to the forefront again.
The story is different in México.In a unanimous 10 to 0 ruling in September 2021, the Supreme Court of Justice in México decriminalized abortion in the states of Coahuila and Sinaloa.
The effects of these rulings are broader in México since it sets a federally binding precedent: Judges cannot sentence people to jail for either having or assisting in induced abortions, even if local legislative bodies have not changed their criminal laws. The Mexican Supreme Court also established that local rules granting protections of «life from conception» were invalid—and that access to legal abortions is a fundamental right.
Back in the U.S., the Supreme Court decision will hand the determination of abortion legality to individual states, many of which are gearing up to outlaw abortion completely or criminalize, subjecting women who have abortions or even miscarriages to jail time. The impact will fall hardest on those women who cannot afford or don’t have the ability to cross state lines where the procedure is legal.
The leaked U.S. ruling is likely to go into effect since there are five very conservative judges on the Court. In addition, people fear this will not be the end. It will open the floodgates for more restrictive laws to be put forth. Laws like banning same-sex marriage, undermining rights of transgendered people, and even eliminating interracial marriage are already being considered.
This is why we, all the members of Democrats Abroad Mexico, encourage ALL US citizens to vote in the upcoming midterm elections—and to vote for candidates who will work against this extreme movement to limit women’s rights.
For further information, go to the Lake Chapala Society every Monday from 10:00 am to 12:30 pm to request your overseas ballot and more. Or go to VotefromAbroad.org and follow the instructions on the webpage.
46: number of weeks Amy E.’s car has been in jail
Efrén González and Antonio Velazco in front of the museum, located at Privada Flores Magón #3. Foto: Sofía Medeles.
Sofía Medeles (Ajijic).- the doors of the Ajijic Museum of Art (AMA) will open June 1st, 2nd and 3rd with three unveilings, a ribbon cutting, and three days of cultural activities,on Privada Flores Magón #3, in the west side of Ajijic.
The artist Efrén González, who is the main promoter of the project,said that June 1st, 2nd and 3r, will be for all the people of Ajijic and for visitors to be part of the celebration.The schedule for the three days will be from three in the afternoon to eight at night, and there will be musical presentations, folkloric dance shows, among other activities.
González said that after the inauguration, the museum will remain open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. It will have six rooms where different artists from the Chapala Rivera area will be exhibited, and the plan is to change the pieces exhibited at least four times a year.
«With this project, we not only promote the preservation and exhibition of Ajijic’s art, but also support the people of the area, and expand the commerce and activities beyond Ajijic main square «, he said.
This first inauguration corresponds to the first stage of the museum project, while the second will be completed around December, according to Efrén González . The museum will also have an area to buy souvenirs, and near the museum, on Flores Magón Street, a second wall of the dead will be located.
Translated by Patrick O’Heffernan
Chapala municipal workman installing new cages in new dog shelter in east Chapala. Photo: Chapala official video
Patrick O’Heffernan (Ajijic).- SOS Chapala Dog Rescue announced on Facebook Monday, May 23, that it is closing its dog shelter in West Ajijic. The next day, May 24, The Chapala municipality announced via a Facebook video the construction of a new shelter for dogs in Hacienda La Labor in East Chapala.
If the new shelter is properly completed to handle up to 100 dogs, and the dogs from the SOS facility in West Ajijic are moved to it and then closes down, the Aguirre Administration will have solved a Gordian knot of technical and legal problems and competing interests handed to it by the previous administration. However, as of the close of this edition, a few questions remain unanswered.
The actions by both entities are the result of a year-long political and legal battle involving homeowners whose lives have been turned upside down by the noise from the SOS West Ajijic shelter, SOS who took on management of the facility in good faith for the municipality and invested large sums of money into it, the Chapala municipality, and the Jalisco State Pension Fund.
As Laguna reported on May 13 of this year, a group of 20 Mexican and Expat homeowners and representatives of several Homeowners Associations in West Ajijic filed a lawsuit against the SOS Chapala Dog Rescue organization, the Chapala government, and the Jalisco State Employees’ Pension Fund over the dog shelter established by the previous municipal administration near their homes.
SOS operates the shelter under an agreement with the previous administration, which established it on land originally donated to the municipality for a graveyard. However, after SOS took over the Department of Ecology’s flailing operation, invested $800,000 pesos and turned it into a shelter noted in the industry for its high standards (but condemned by its neighbors for noise), the previous administration transferred the land to the Jalisco state Pension Fund to pay a debt to the Fund. SOS was not informed of the transfer and the Fund was not informed of the existence of a shelter on its property… essentially dumping the problem in the lap of the State and SOS before it left office.
The original shelter established and operated by the Moisés Anaya Administration was built without consulting the surrounding homeowners who found themselves suddenly inundated with the loud barking of dozens of dogs 24/7. Months of negotiation to solve the barking at the shelter went nowhere so the homeowners sued. In a copy of the lawsuit obtained by Laguna, the plaintiffs charge that the dog shelter was illegally established by the Anaya Administration on land zoned for housing only, and that the agreement between the Anaya Administration and SOS Chapala Dog Rescue was invalid. The lawsuit requests that the court orders administrative action be taken to move the shelter to a site zoned for the correct use.
The new administration reopened negotiations, found a useable site, and obtained a commitment from the homeowners to pay the lease fees – $15,000 pesos per moth – and, according to a photo provided to Laguna by the homeowners, signed a lease on May 2 with Señor Trinidad in Hacienda la Labor for a former horse facility.
“The lease is for a 11,000 sq meter space with electricity and water and everything they need. It is a dog paradise, Linda Freeman, a spokesperson for the homeowners told Laguna, adding that, “ it’s $15,000 pesos a month but the homeowners agreed to pay for 2 months in advance and (all rent) for two years. The owner has been given $30k.by the municipality, but we paid for it through a donation to the municipality. As a group we will continue to support the municipality” Freeman. They are acting in good faith.”
Sue Hollis of SOS sys not so fast; the site is not properly prepared and the lease is too short for serious investment.
Questions about the site remain unanswered, as well as who will manage the new shelter, but the government is not asking for any investment for SOS, according to the homeowners.
I know for a fact that the government did not expect SOS to pay one cent for either the lease or for construction of new facilities,” Nita Rudy, President of the Puerta Arroyo Homeowners Association, told Laguna.
As to the site, Hollis pointed to issues with the facility in terms of design and construction.
“They (the municipality) are not building new cages, just dividing the existing stalls, which have to be fumigated for ticks before dogs can use them, plus they have to have drainage for the needed daily washdowns. And outside of the stalls they want to put dog runs in the corral, which is not acceptable because many dogs in one run will get into fights, especially during fireworks,” Hollis told Laguna in a telephone interview.
Hollis said that she (SOS) refuses to put money into a new property with only a two year lease and that the rent after that is much too high for the group.
“We cannot afford this and it is not an appropriate site. We were quite willing to move, but it has to be the right property under the right conditions,” she told Laguna.
However, Nita Rudy told Laguna that in a meeting with Mr. Trinidad and representatives of the municipality, he indicated he would be willing to extend the lease and perhaps even sell the land.
It is currently unclear if the site under construction by the municipality will meet these requirements. It is also unclear where the monthly rent will come from beyond the funds provided by the homeowners group for the two years of the lease. The group has paid $30,000 pesos for first and last month’s rent and committed to pay the monthly rent for the duration of the lease, if the dogs are removed from the West Ajijic site. But as to who will make the payments after two years is still up in the air. Laguna has reached out to the Chapala government with these questions but at press time has not received a response.
However, as far as the facilities are concerned, the video released by the municipality not only shows the horse stalls being divided into cages, but additional cages being constructed on concrete pads installed by Jesus González of the Department of Ecology. In the video, Jesus tells President Aguirre that the facility is 60% complete and in 8 – 10 days will have 50 completed cages. The video does not reveal the sanitation system for daily cage cleaning or the septic system for handling the daily waste of 100 or more dogs. Laguna has requested these details from the Administration.
The controversy seems to be coming to a head. The Jalisco State Employees Pension Fund has ordered SOS to leave its site and SOS is closing it down. The Municipality has leased and is nearing completion of a new shelter in East Chapala and claims it can begin to take dogs very soon. The homeowners have paid $30,000 pesos to the landowner and agreed to pay the rent for 2 years, but only if the dogs and the cages in SOS shelter are removed. Secretary General of the Council Lilia Alvado Macías informed the homeowners that the SOS dog shelter lawyer had seen the site and agreed to it,” allowing the dogs to be moved and SOS to manage it.
The only questions that remain are: will the new shelter meet the standards SOS requires to manage it, will the owner extend the lease after two years so the municipality and the site manager will not be scrambling for another site, and can funding be found or guaranteed to meet the rent payments after the lease is up and a new administration takes over.
The first question may be answered if SOS closes the facility and adopts out or fosters the dogs, rather than send them to the new shelter and manage for the municipality. The second question may take two years to answer and will be handed to the next administration. The third question could come down to the ability of any operation at the new site to pay for itself either through adoption fees, municipal funds, or donations.
In the meantime, anyone looking to adopt or foster a dog, should contact SOS Chapala Dog rescue through its Facebook page, https://www.facebook.com/soschapaladogrescue
Jesús María Higuera Hernández «Katuza» in his temazcal (sweat lodge). He passed away last Sunday at the age of 68. Photo: Facebook.
Sofía Medeles (Ajijic).- «Katuza», one of the most iconic characters of Ajijic passed away last Sunday, May 22 at the age of 68, leaving an artistic and spiritual legacy in Ajijic..
«Katuza» was the local name by which Jesús María Híguera Hernández was known since he was young. He was born on March 1, 1954 to a family from Ajijic. He studied in both Ajijic and Chapala, graduating as an accountant in the municipal capital, in the school known as «la academia de las monjas» (the nuns’ academy).
He never practiced his profession. He had a restaurant in Canada and later returned to México to begin his career as an artist, sculptor and shaman, being his marakame name – people who heal with traditional Huichol methods of the region, Cehuia Ilhuiac Marakame.
His relatives and acquaintances described him as a sincere man who said things as he thought them and disliked people who acted hypocritically, and as very spiritual and ahead of his time. «He spoke as he was told,» said one of his sisters.
He died last Sunday, May 22, of a heart attack. In the next edition of Semanario Laguna, we will publish his complete profile, his history, and his work in the town of Ajijic.
Translate by Patrick O’Heffernan
El Lago de Chapala. Foto: Héctor Ruiz.
Por: Daniel Jiménez Carranza
En este inicio de primavera, hemos vivido con asombro el aumento inusual de temperatura que anticipa un candente verano derivado del cambio climático, del cual ningún país, región o individuo, nos mantendremos a salvo, por lo que nos debe llevar a tomar providencias necesarias en diversos ámbitos de nuestra vida cotidiana, mismos que deberán constituir parte habitual de la misma, empezando por evitar la deforestación, pues los árboles, representan un elemento fundamental en la absorción del bióxido de carbono, constituyéndose como elementos fundamentales en el equilibrio ecológico, que desafortunadamente, no se ha respetado y mucho menos revisado su reproducción, sino por el contrario, como resultado del crecimiento demográfico en nuestra zona, observamos la invasión de zonas boscosas en las montañas que nos rodean, la depredación por parte de particulares, de árboles existentes dentro de sus propiedades, asi como la existencia de amplias zonas carentes de vegetación que se utilizan para la explotación comercial de ganado o desarrollos urbanísticos que erosionan el suelo y contaminan la laguna.
En relación a esta última, es importante destacar la función que cubre como humedal, al mantener el equilibrio del ecosistema, que implica la preservación de la flora y fauna propia de la región, además de su función como recurso hídrico que abastece a la zona metropolitana de Guadalajara, también representa un recurso importante para la explotación pesquera, misma que desafortunadamente, como consecuencia de una falta de regulación estricta y regeneración de especies, algunas de ellas se han extinguido y otras se encuentran en proceso de ello, lo que hace necesario la intervención de un organismo específico que se dedique a mantener y reglamentar su uso, particularmente en las afluentes de los ríos que transportan desechos y pesticidas que llegan a contaminar la laguna, todo ello, arrojará un positivo saldo a sus habitantes, e incrementará su atractivo turístico.
A nivel personal, es necesario que nosotros como habitantes de este bello enclave, contribuyamos con una conducta de saneamiento atmosférico, evitando la quema de ramas o cualquier objeto , reaprovechar los desechos orgánicos utilizándolos como composta fertilizante, evitar utilizar plásticos en la mayoría de los casos, y si lo hacemos, depositarlos en cajas o bolsas por separado al momento de ponerlos en la basura, y por último, importante modificar nuestros hábitos alimenticios, evitando la ingesta de productos cárnicos, que como resultado de su gran demanda, una parte considerable de tierra laborable, es utilizada en la producción de su alimentación, agotando sus recursos e impidiendo su rotación.
View of the Ajijic boardwalk and Lake Chapala. Photo: D. Arturo Ortega.
Editorial Staff.- After the first heavy rain of the year, Lake Chapala is still losing water. To date, Mexico’s largest freshwater lake has lost 93 cm (over 3 feet); it’s at about 63% of total capacity.
From January 1st to May 4th, Lake Chapala dropped from 74.98% of capacity to its current level, a loss of about 12 cm.
Translated by Amy Esperanto
Fernando Riveros Magaña, director of the Chapala Regional High School. Photo: Jazmin Stengel.
Jazmín Stengel (Chapala).- Sex education, and keeping students safe from harassment and bullying will be a priority for Fernando Riveros Magaña, the new director at the head of the Chapala Regional High School of the University of Guadalajara (UdeG), for the period 2022-2025.
Riveros Magaña served as Secretary General of the Chapala school from 2015 to 2018. Now, he takes the place of his colleague and friend Juan Ramón Álvarez López, who led the high school management since 2015.
Riveros Magaña says his priority will be to train teachers to raise awareness and diagnose disorders that may cause harm to students.
He said that a case of alleged sexual harassment involving Professor David N. is unique in the Chapala High School record to date.
«Teachers must not only conscientiously avoid the abuse of minors,» he said, but they must act as first responders in situations of bullying or harassment.
«Harassment is something deeply rooted at all levels,” Riveros Magaña told Laguna. “However, that does not justify it happening here,» he said.
Students will be taught to recognize different levels of bullying and harassment and urged to report such incidents to the proper authorities if they themselves are victims. This would help create a safety net between teachers, administrators and students.
Issues relating to gender violence and sexual diversity would also be addressed, from the point of view of both young people and adults.
“The staff must be open to new forms of expression of love and coexistence between couples,” as well as being respectful towards, and tolerant of, the LGBTQ+ community, said Riveros Magaña.
The new director said he was aware of the need for more psychologists to serve students. His ideal is to have at least one psychologist per shift, with help from teachers who are knowledgeable about the subject.
Riveros Magaña said he would also work to resolve infrastructure deficiencies at the school, including drainage repairs at bathrooms, which must be fixed before they become a hygiene problem.
The director also plans to create a wired internet network with fewer bugs and powered by solar panels. His most ambitious project is a large, open-air auditorium where young people can engage in activities in combination with the cultural centers of the municipality.
Fernando Riveros Magaña, 56 years old, graduated from the Faculty of Medicine of the University of Guadalajara in 1993. For 13 years he worked as a private doctor in the system of the Federal Health Secretariat, currently serving for the Jocotepec Community Hospital.
His teaching career began 13 years ago at the University Center of the North (CUNorte) of the UdeG in Colotlán. He also was in charge of Medical Services at the Los Valles University and area manager at the Universidad de Oriente. Within the UdeG he is responsible for the Outreach and Liaison Area of the Transdisciplinary Literacy Institute (ITRALI) and deputy director of the “Letras a Volar” («Letters to Fly») program.
Translated by Alan Ferguson
Jocotepec Regional High School on Donato Guerra Street, south of the city. Photo: Héctor Ruiz.
Héctor Ruiz Mejía (Jocotepec).- Francisco Díaz Aguirre, the new director of the Regional High School of Jocotepec of the University of Guadalajara (U of G), was sworn in on May 17. The event took place at the Enrique Díaz de León Auditorium in Guadalajara, where the list of academics who will direct the U de G’s high schools during the period 2022-2025 was made public. Ricardo Villanueva Lomelí, the general rector of the U of G, announced the new appointments.
So far, the new principal is still in the process of handing over the responsibilities of his former position and has not yet been on site at the Regional High School. However, Lourdes Álvarez Cerna, who directed the institution from 2015-2018 and 2019-2022 said she was satisfied with the choice of Díaz Aguirre (Paco), as her successor. «I feel very calm, very satisfied because I know Paco very well. He is very empathetic with young people and very committed. He has my full support and I am sure that he will continue with all the projects in progress,» she stated.
Álvarez Cerna said that, although she will no longer be the school’s director, she will continue as a teacher, «I am not sad. It is something that was already coming, the contract expired and there is a need for new blood to lead the school. I will continue teaching here.»
Finally, Ávarez Cerna, after expressing her good wishes for the administration of «Maestro Paco,» emphasized that one of the main challenges to be taken on by the administration is that of young people and addictions and the psychological, social and economic effects left behind by the pandemic.
Translated by Elisabeth Shields
Heavy machinery clearing streambeds in La Canacinta Ajijic. Photo: Courtesy.
Jazmín Stengel (Chapala).- Chapala is preparing for the rainy season by clearing streams and riverbeds in the municipality to prevent flooding. Up to 32 risk points have been identified in the municipality, where rains could cause flooding.
The work focused in the Ajijic area is near the La Canacinta neighborhood because of the mudslides that occurred in October of last year.
Other places where work has been completed or is underway are the San Marcos stream in the municipal capital, the Grande stream in the San Antonio Tlayacapan delegation next to the golf club and the one in the Las Guerras neighborhood, in Atotonilquillo.
Emergency Services in Chapala are prepared to deal with complications from rainfall of 30 to 70 millimeters, according to general statistics on which the Fire Department and Civil Protection are based. However, the rainfall on October 5 reached 120 millimeters near La Canacinta.
Translated by Nita Rudy
Miguel Ibarra Garavito, coordinator of Health in the municipality of Jocotepec, on behalf of the Jalisco Ministry of Health (SSJ). Photo: Héctor Ruiz.
Héctor Ruiz Mejía (Jocotepec).- Medical authorities in the municipality of Jocotepec reported a favorable outlook regarding dengue infections for this year.
According to Miguel Ibarra Garavito, coordinator of Health in the municipality of Jocotepec on behalf of the Secretary of Health of Jalisco (SSJ), very few infections have been reported.
As of May 6, only one suspected case of dengue was reported in the municipality, which turned out to be negative.
The incidence of cases this year contrasts radically with that of past years, including 2020, where the municipality of Jocotepec had the highest number of dengue cases at the state level with 393.
Despite predictions for high infections this year, the outlook is favorable. According to the doctor, dengue is a biannual disease, which means that one year there is a higher incidence and the following year there is a lower incidence. 2022 should be one of infections.
The success so far this year is due to the intense decluttering campaigns to eliminate all containers that can accumulate water throughout the municipality, such as the campaign that started on March 1st until April 29th.
27 trips were made throughout the municipality and around 359 tons of scrap metal and other materials that could serve as incubation sources for mosquitoes were removed, as well as a total of 1,559 tires. These items were found in houses and vacant lots.
In view of the positive scenario of contagion, Ibarra Garavito urged the community to pay attention to symptoms such as headache, body aches, eye pain, weakness, fever, among others, and not to self-medicate, but to see a doctor as soon as possible.
There are variants of dengue that with the combination of wrongly administered medications can trigger hemorrhages, since dengue, being a disease caused by a virus, in most cases the only treatment is paracetamol.
Dengue is a disease transmitted to humans through the bite of infected Aedes Aegypti mosquitoes, of which there are four serotypes, ranging from a mild infection, strong flu-like symptoms, to severe hemorrhage.
Translated by Nita Rudy
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