General News

Two men belonging to the indigenous Wirrarika (Huichol) people of Jalisco and Nayarit have been arrested at the Guadalajara International Airport after being discovered in possession of peyote, a plant known for its psychoactive properties.

Activists marching in support of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender rights took to the streets of Guadalajara Saturday, May 30. 

The National Forestry Commission (Conafor) is reporting only 177 forest fires this year in Jalisco compared with 420 at the same time in 2014.  Despite this, two firefighting planes, one owned by Conafor and the other rented by the municipality of Zapopan, have made nearly 200 flyovers to dump water loads on fires raging during the hot season.

With the doorstep conversations, leaflet distribution, banner hanging, umbrella gifting, TV coverage and endless photos of raised thumbs, it would be hard not to notice that the Mexican elections are coming up. Yet what is most striking about the fervent, impassioned campaigning is the sheer lack of politics on show in the run up to the June 7 national and legislative elections.

The rector of the Universidad de Guadalajara (UdG) is committed to strengthening the quality of English-language tracking in his institution, at both high school and university levels.  Tonatiuh Bravo Padilla admitted this week that 97 percent of students leaving public secondary schools (secundarias) in Jalisco have virtually no knowledge of English, despite significant investment by education authorities in recent years to develop English-language learning skills in junior schools. 

Although the upcoming elections are occupying the minds of most Mexicans and media outlets, activists in Guadalajara seeking answers over the disappearance of 43 students in the state of Guerrero last year made sure this week that the eight-month anniversary of the incident was not forgotten.

The U.S. Consulate in Guadalajara has launched a campaign warning Mexicans about “coyotes” hawking their services they say will help them process visa and immigration paperwork. The Consulate stresses that such services are fraudulent and in no way linked to the official procedure. The campaign is titled “No a los coyotes.”  The consulate points out that such scam artists have no influence on immigration policies and simply prey on unsuspecting Mexicans who are unaware of the correct process.

Canadians heading home to Ontario this summer can live the same emotional experience that Guadalajara basked in back in October 2011, when this city hosted the XVI Pan American Games.