Tsaile/Wheatfields, Ariz. – On July 6, Navajo Nation President Jonathan Nez was joined by 24th Navajo Nation Council Delegate Carl Slater, Tsalie/Wheatfields Chapter officials and community members during a July 6 ribbon cutting ceremony to mark the completion of Navajo Route 12, a primary route for Tsaile/Wheatfields residents, Diné College students, and first responders. In 2019, Nez and Vice President Myron Lizer approved funding for the project with the support of the late Council Delegate Nelson S. BeGaye.

The N12 project in Tsaile/Wheatfields includes 10.7 miles of new paving, asphalt placement, roadway excavation and embankment, subgrade treatment where needed, placement of...

Curley Taylor, Zydeco Trouble introduce music genre to Gallup

According to Louisanatravels.com, the early Zydeco music genre is a blend of Louisiana-French accordion music and Afro-Caribbean beats. It takes influence from Creole, Cajun, gospel and the blues, along with other genres. It almost always includes an accordion.

And now, Gallup citizens will be able to witness this style of music on July 2 at the Levitt Amp Concert Series, when Curley Taylor and Zydeco Trouble come to town.

Louisiana native Taylor has been around music all his life. In an interview with the Sun, he explained that he was born into a musical family and that the drums was his first instrument. He began playing...

Teaching kids the art of circus performance

Meek Watchman (Bit’ahnii, born for Ts’ah yisk’idnii) is a mother, aerialist, poet, and painter. She received her M.F.A. in Creative Writing from the Institute of American Indian Arts in May 2016, and now she’s gallupARTS’s Summer 2022 Social Justice Creative-in-Residence.

From June through August, Watchman will be working at ART123 Gallery to develop a  youth-focused Indigenous social circus curriculum that brings together aerial arts, creative writing, and the principles of  K’e to help pre-teens and teens build self-esteem, develop trust, and establish a sense of belonging.

In an interview with the Sun, Watchman explained...

Federal legislators shoot down committee reviewing clinics for closure

Veterans in Gallup, Las Vegas, N.M.; Raton, N.M.; and Española N.M. can breathe a sigh of relief today after a bipartisan group of senators said they won’t support appointments to the committee studying closure of their VA community-based outpatient clinics, effectively scuttling the mission.

“From day one, I’ve been clear that the process to close four veteran health clinics in New Mexico didn’t have my support,” Sen. Ben Ray Lujan, D-N.M., said. “It’s not what’s best for our veterans or those who support them. I’m proud to announce the Senate won’t be moving forward with the process. Our...