Disappearing Acts

This week, we get into what has disappeared from our lives—good or bad—during the pandemic. Episode 2 is all about what’s going, going, gone, maybe for good. We learn of attempts to erase people from the Census. We talk to Sen. Martin Heinrich about the erosion of our civil liberties. We reflect on what’s fading from our relationships and mental wellness. We hear from a COVID-19 survivor, so the realities of the virus don’t slip away. We examine the consciousness of community and the loss of a collective future with an international futurist. We reflect on a disappearing chicken and what life was like pre-pandemic. And we try to see and hear a vanishing Rio Grande.

Sen. Martin Heinrich talks about what the Trump administration is calling Operation Legend, a deployment of federal agents to Albuquerque that officials say is meant to combat violent crime. But many people here fear this is another crackdown akin to what we’re seeing on the streets of Portland, as demonstrators stand against racial injustice and deadly police violence.

Environmental journalist Laura Paskus wrote an article that’s a love letter to the Rio Grande, called “Memory of a River” for the Santa Fe Reporter. She reads excerpts on the riverbank throughout the episode.

Tricklock Company’s Executive Director Juli Hendren and collaborator / Revolutions Marketing Director Marya Errin Jones work through Tricklock’s closing after 27 years. And they talk about why we need art—especially in tumultuous times.

Local comedian Sarah Kennedy tells a before-times-y story about a disappearing chicken.

Isaac De Luna from the Center for Civic Policy explains why the push to exclude undocumented immigrants from population counts as the country’s voting districts are redrawn is a racist move from federal government.

Megan Kamerick interviews COVID-survivor Gwen Samuels for New Mexico PBS. Samuels is an artist,and explained the experience of the illness, including the potential long-term consequences for even people who aren't killed by coronavirus.

Dr. Gerald Chavez, a psychologist, shares his observations of our relationships with one another and why our patience might be disintegrating. He also unpacks the shared mental health challenges any of us could be facing, and encourages us to do a “checkup from the neck up.”

And futurist Puruesh Chaudhary, founder and CEO of nonprofit Agahi in Islamabad, Pakistan, explores media distrust and the loss of a future.

Next week: The Feds Are Here

No More Normal is a new show brought to you by the same crew behind YNMG. Hear the show on KUNM’s airwaves Sundays at 11 a.m., or find it wherever you get your podcasts.

Special thanks to:

• Artist Leslie Granda-Hill and 516 ARTS. For more art from their show “The resilience Project,” head over to their virtual gallery: 516museumfromhome.org
• Jeremy Jasper and the crew at Oh Lawd Records, as well as Dahm Life, for hooking us up with music for the show. Khaki, Pope Yes Yes Y’all, and Bigawatt composed the show’s theme music.
• Composer Eric G. Nord who wrote “Wate Heart.” And Dylan McLaughlin, Jessica Zeglin and Marisa Demarco, who composed “There Must Be Other Names For The River.”
• River singers: Ryan Dennison, Antonia Montoya, Kenn Cornell, Monica Demarco, Jessica Chao, Mauro Woody, Marya Errin Jones, Ana Alonso-Minutti, Rebecca Jones, Austin Fisher, Tanya Nuñez, Celia Ameline, Maggie Siebert, Quela Robinson, Hannah Colton, Anna Rutins, Keegan Kloer, Peri Pakroo, Nicholas Jacobsen, Lazarus Letcher and Laura Carlson.
• Kaveh Mowahed and Bryce Dix for the big-time editing help.
• Vanessa Bowen of Bowen Creative, who designed our logo.