Searchlight New Mexico

12/30/2025

Keep truth alive in New Mexico. Visit https://gqr.sh/6xVx to make a donation today.

12/22/2025

Our community has spoken. Join them in making an impact in New Mexico by donating today! Visit https://gqr.sh/6xVx to learn more.

12/17/2025

Join our cause by donating at https://gqr.sh/6xVx. Together, we can make a difference in New Mexico.

12/11/2025

Leave your mark on New Mexico today. Visit https://gqr.sh/6xVx to make a contribution.

07/31/2025

Western New Mexico University's new Board of Regents unanimously voted to void former President Joseph Shepard's $1.9 million severance and 5-year teaching contract

Whether — or how — the school recovers that money remains to be seen.

Unanimously, the newly appointed regents at Western New Mexico University have approved a plan to strike down former President Joseph Shepard’s previously

07/24/2025

Blandina Segale, a nun who spent time in New Mexico during the territory's Wild West days, became a legend for steering outlaws away from violence, saving a man from a lynch mob and founding schools and hospitals. She was an immigrant who created a settlement house and classes for immigrants. She died in 1941, but recently she has reportedly been active from beyond the grave: 51 miracles have been attributed to her by believers. The Vatican is currently examining whether Blandina should be recognized as a saint. If she's canonized, she’ll be the patron saint of immigrant children.

The sainthood process is extremely complicated: it can take decades, sometimes centuries, and cost many thousands of dollars. Read on to find out about what the process means for New Mexicans — including Catholics, of course, but also anybody who is fascinated by a life that positively affected so many others. https://searchlightnm.org/new-mexico-catholic-church-sister-blandina-segale-vatican-sainthood-canonization-faith-archdiocese-of-santa-fe-archbishop-john-wester/?fbclid=IwY2xjawLvS2JleHRuA2FlbQIxMQABHtqsAEuqiK0nHbbrpVPlKYw-b7faOqXNb8cJwk7a1hSLJOwQEW6qWYs2u93k_aem_oKKjjMzHVSoAEp79NFuEfg

The Vatican may grant sainthood to a nun who knew Billy the Kid, tended the sick, taught children and advocated for immigrants. Making that happen requires a unique blend of faith and boots-on-the-ground dedication.

07/16/2025

Eighty years ago today (July 16), the U.S. detonated the first atomic bomb at the Trinity Site, without warning New Mexican citizens that radioactive fallout was heading their way. Some people were only 12 miles from the detonation. The federal government has never apologized for this, and continues to regard the Trinity blast as a contained moment in history.

At 1 P.M. Eastern, members of the Tularosa Basin Downwinders Consortium will unveil the first permanent public memorial to the many New Mexicans who lost their lives from cancer and other illnesses in the wake of the detonation. The event will take place on the roadside of U.S. Route 380, by the Stallion Gate Entrance to the Trinity Site, and is open to the public.

New Mexican downwinders, receiving financial compensation for the first time, reckon with the ongoing tragedy of the Trinity bomb detonation — and fight to ensure remembrance

07/10/2025

Just over a month after the death of Jaydun Garcia at a CYFD facility, another teenager in foster care, 17-year-old Makamy Anderson, took her own life. It's the most recent tragedy to come to light for a state agency that’s under intense scrutiny for how it handles kids in its custody.

Makamy Anderson’s death is the most recent tragedy to come to light amid a string of deaths of children in the state’s care.

07/03/2025

A new lawsuit in the 2024 fatal police shooting of teenager Elijah Hadley could shed light on a persistent problem in New Mexico: an outsized portion of police violence begins with a welfare check.

A new lawsuit in the 2024 fatal police shooting of teenager Elijah Hadley could shed light on a persistent problem in New Mexico: an outsized portion of police violence begins with a welfare check

07/01/2025

NEW: In a lawsuit quietly filed Friday, the New Mexico State Ethics Commission accused former Western New Mexico University President Joseph Shepard of misappropriating $177,000 meant for an ADA-compliant project and spending it on an outdoor venue for his daughter's wedding reception.

The new civil action claims that the former WNMU president misappropriated at least $177,000 meant for ADA compliance and used it on a patio to host his daughter’s wedding reception

06/24/2025

Searchlight New Mexico's Molly Montgomery conducted a great interview with Mariah Blake, author of “They Poisoned the World,” an important new book about the history and toxic legacy of “forever chemicals.” (Also known as PFAS.)

Mariah, who grew up in Taos, is appearing at Collected Works bookstore on Thursday, June 26, 6 p.m., to discuss this important and disturbing subject.

A new book by New Mexico-born author Mariah Blake explains how a previously unknown Manhattan Project program ushered in the age of toxic “forever chemicals”