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Monday, Januar y 11, 2021 | Vo l u m e 1 2 5 | I s s u e 1 7
After establishment, Asian Pacific American Culture Center looks to future By Gabriel Biadora @gabrielbiadora
The Asian Pacific American Culture Center (APACC) is still laying the groundwork for how it plans to serve the Asian community at the University of New Mexico. Formalized last year by the Student Fee Review Board, the APACC was conceived in response to the absence of an on-campus resource center for Asian American students. Directors Jacob Olaguir and Emma Hotz and the APACC Student Board, which includes the current Asian American Students Association (AASA) president Helen Zhao, are now laying the foundation to “create a home and resource center for students of APIDA (Asian Americans, Pacific Islanders and Desi Americans) heritage during their studies at the University,” according to the
funding application submitted in the fall of last year. The emergent APACC, whose directors are currently looking to opt for a more inclusive title, is dedicated to all APIDA students and is seeking to model itself after established resource centers on campus like El Centro de la Raza and the LGBTQ Resource Center. “I hope eventually (APACC) will mirror the same structure and we’ll be able to do a lot of the same things that they’re doing right now like work opportunities, internships, scholarship opportunities and having that sense of community,” Hotz said. Hotz, an Asian American student, insisted on building a community among those of a similar ethnic background to ensure a sense of belonging in college. Olaguir, on a similar note, credited the creation of APACC to a promise he made to under-
represented minorities during his ASUNM campaign earlier last year. “For me, it’s about representation and making sure the University acknowledges us,” Olaguir said in an interview with the Daily Lobo. “Asian students need to be celebrated for their accomplishments and supported during their learning.” Though the APACC would initiate student success services, Olaguir wants the APACC to reach beyond to “(bridge) the gap between all these different cultures and come to an understanding of what it means to build our identity in this nation.” According to UNM’s fall 2020 enrollment headcount, Asian students make up 4% of the student population, but the report fails to account for Middle Eastern and Arab American students who have to classify as white due
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APACC page 2
John Scott / Daily Lobo / @DailyLobo
ASUNM Senators Jacob Olaguir and Emma Hotz pictured outside Mesa Vista Hall, the future site of the Asian Pacific American Culture Center (APACC).
Will NM legislators abolish qualified immunity? By Nikita Jaiswal @NikitaJswl In the majority of police brutality cases, officers are not criminally prosecuted, and reform advocates contend that is in part because of something called “qualified immunity.” According to Merriam Webster, qualified immunity is “immunity from lawsuits that is granted to public officials (such as police officers) for acts that violate someone’s civil rights if it can be shown that the acts do not violate clearly established statutory or constitutional
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rights of which a reasonable person would be aware.” Eliminating qualified immunity emerged as a key demand during the protests that have swept the nation demanding justice for victims of police violence. The judicial doctrine is seen as a large obstacle for families of victims seeking justice for their loved ones. According to state legislators who spoke with the Daily Lobo, qualified immunity is expected to be a focal point of debate during the upcoming 55th state legislative session after steps were taken last year with an eye on future reform.
During the first special legislative session held in June of last year, legislators claimed to have responded to constituent concerns by establishing the New Mexico Civil Rights Commision with the passage of a bill by the same name. Since June, the commission has convened and specifically studied New Mexico’s qualified immunity statute. On Nov. 20, the commission made an unprecedented recommendation urging the legislature to enact a New Mexico Civil Rights Act to specify qualified immunity cannot be used as a defense claim in court.
As it stands, in order for law enforcement officers to be convicted of police brutality the plaintiff must show that their constitutional rights have been violated and that the violation is recognized in “clearly established law.” According to the commission, this means that even if a court recognizes that their rights have been violated, the victim will likely lose due to the strict requirements to find a virtually identical case to cite as precedent. The commission’s report points out that qualified immunity “leads to the bizarre
circumstance where, for example, someone who slips and falls on government property can (receive financial compensation) for their injuries, but a person who is denied any number of their fundamental rights under the state Constitution ... cannot.” Barron Jones, senior policy strategist at the American Civil Liberties Union of New Mexico, said that passing a state Civil Rights Act would allow victims of police violence and their families to seek meaningful redress. The Civil Rights Commission’s recommendation also offers
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Immunity page 2
loyalists decry election results at Roundhouse on Insurrection Day page 4
Nick Romero / Daily Lobo / @nicromerophoto
A pro-Trump supporter stands on the street outside of the Roundhouse in Santa Fe, New Mexico as riot police patrol the area.