Poet and attorney Tomás Gayton, born in Seattle, has investigated the history of his slave forbears and traveled extensively in Mexico, Africa and elsewhere. In this excerpt from his book, “Sojourn on the Bohemian Highway,” he details one of his trips to Mexico and his research into the little-known history of Africans here.

The fact that the majority of girls’ bathrooms in San Juan Cosala schools are void of trash receptacles may not seem like a big deal to most, but for menstruating girls, it can be a dealbreaker as to whether they attend school during their monthly cycles or not.

For Lakesiders who don’t get their fill of Day of the Dead happenings going on Friday, November 2, in north shore communities, the nearby towns of Ixtlahuacán de los Membrillos and Zapotlanejo are holding extended festivities showcasing the holiday’s entrancing customs and traditions.

We are deeply saddened to report that Winnie Hunt, one of the artists interviewed in this article, died suddenly but peacefully on the morning of October 17. Both her passion for art and the important work she did to advance reproductive rights and freedom for women through her work with Women’s Way and Choice in Philadelphia, will be commemorated and honored in an event at her home on November 13.

Private and international organizations that focus on migrants entering Mexico have put their attention on the two groups of several thousand mostly Honduran people who banded together for safety as they fled their home nations to seek refuge in countries farther north.

When you come to next weekend’s Feria Maestros del Arte at lakeside, you will be seeing more than Mexican folk art and colorful costumes.