COVID and Labor Day, Climate Change, and Political and Racial Tensions

Dr. David Scrase, cabinet secretary for the Human Services Department, knows that as the Labor Day weekend approaches, New Mexicans will want to gather and may be tempted to flout public health rules on masking and social distancing. NMiF producer Matt Grubs talks to Scrase about what he and the pandemic response team are doing to prevent a spike in COVID cases. 

Our Land producer and NMiF correspondent Laura Paskus, who is also an environmental reporter, has authored a new book. At the Precipice: New Mexico’s Changing Climate looks at the state’s fragile place in a warming natural world. 

Gene Grant and The Line opinion panel discuss mounting tension between Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham and the Public Regulation Commission, as the PRC gets evicted from its headquarters in downtown Santa Fe. The Line also looks at the UNM Lobo football team’s reaction to comments made by former Lobo Brian Urlacher regarding the shooting of Jacob Blake, and how attitudes toward race and justice are playing out in New Mexico. The panel also discusses the progress of Operation Legend in Albuquerque, which sent dozens of federal agents into the city to fight violent crime alongside local law enforcement. 

Host: Gene Grant     

In Focus Interviews:
Coping With COVID Pandemic During Labor Day Weekend 
Correspondent: Matt Grubs 
Guest: Dr. David R. Scrase, Cabinet Secretary for Human Services Department

New Mexico and Climate Change
Correspondent: Matt Grubs 
Guests: Laura Paskus, environmental reporter and author, At the Precipice: New Mexico’s Changing Climate 

The Line Opinion Panel:    
Host: Gene Grant 
Panelists: 
Justine Fox-Young, former NM state representative   
Serge Martinez, professor, UNM School of Law’s Economic Justice Clinic   
Kristelle Siarza, Siarza Social Digital