Cultura, Life, Love & Community

By M.E. Avila On August 28, 2026, a severe storm moved through San Antonio, bringing destructive winds, heavy rain, flooding, downed trees and power lines, and widespread power outages. More than 100,000 CPS Energy customers lost electricity at the height of the event. Among the hardest hit areas was ZIP code 78207 on San Antonio's Westside, where more than 15,000 customers were reportedly affected. In the hours and days that followed, families needed electricity, food, water

By M.E. Avila Twenty-nine years have passed since the West French Place massacre, but when I think of Christopher Tobias, August 1997 does not feel very far away. Christopher was someone I had a middle school crush on. To the world, his name became one of five listed in news reports about one of San Antonio’s most notorious crimes. To those of us who knew him, he was not just a name, a victim, or a young man described as being in the wrong place at the wrong time. He was a pe

By M. E. Avila There is something about Sunday on San Antonio's West Side that feels like coming home. Maybe it's the smell of barbacoa or the bottles of Big Red waiting on the table, the familiar church bells calling families to Mass, or the streets that hold generations of memories. Every Sunday reminds me that I am exactly where I belong. Living on the West Side is more than having an address. It is living among the stories of my family. It is walking streets that my grand

By M.E. Avila Look, I ain’t no saint, and I sure as hell never claimed to be. So if you showed up looking for purity, perfection, or someone to make you feel better about your own judgments, you might as well close this shit now. Maybe it’s time to bring back a little 1950s advice with a Puta twist. I still believe in gender roles, just not the ones rooted in obligation. I believe in choosing them. I still believe Prince Charming exists. He just doesn’t ride in on a white hor