Opposite types can thrive together, with work

Feminist activist Susana Chávez Castillo from Ciudad Juárez — who was strangled to death in 2011 — coined the phrase: “Not one woman less, not one more death.”

But murders of women and girls in Mexico have continued unabated. In fact, they have been on the rise in recent years. The lion’s share of these women are Indigenous or mixed race, poor and unskilled labourers and migrant factory workers who are viewed as worthless, subhuman and, ultimately, disposable.

In May, 23 year-old Valeria Marquez, a noted Mexican influencer, was shot and killed while livestreaming on TikTok. Days later, Yesenia Lara Gutiérrez, a candidate for mayor in Veracruz state, was also fatally shot (along with three others) as she livestreamed a campaign event.

Not surprisingly, the Mexican government does a poor job of collecting data on the precise number of women murdered every year. An undated report by Mexico’s National Institute of Statistics and Geography states that 22,482 women were murdered during the years of 2007-2016, which translates into a violent death of an adult woman or young girl every four hours.

This is not a column about my minor medical woes, but it does begin with one.

In the summer of 2022, I noticed a small lump growing in the middle of my arm. It was the size of a large pea, and hard and uncomfortable to the touch. Thankfully, my general practitioner had good news: the growth was quite benign, just unsightly. He froze it off with liquid nitrogen; it left a small, flat scar.

But three years later, the growth had come back. Early this year, I arranged a referral to a dermatologist for that lump and another concern; I was booked in for six months later. I tacked the appointment letter on my fridge, and checked it almost every day.

Many Canadians are all too familiar with the fear of forgetting a specialist appointment still half-a-year or more away.

The Bishnoi Gang, which is run by a convicted gangster from his prison cell in India, appears to have gained a foothold in Manitoba.

A civil forfeiture lawsuit filed in the Court of King’s Bench this month has revealed a 36-year-old man, who was arrested this year, had claimed he is a member of the Bishnoi Gang when he tried to extort cash from a Winnipeg resident.

Arshdeep Singh Brar was arrested by Winnipeg Police Service officers in Headingley on March 3 and charged with extortion and two firearms offences, says the claim.

The victim, identified in the court documents as a man of South Asian descent, had gone to police.

The RCMP and Opaskwayak Cree Nation leaders are trying to identify the mother of a newborn baby or fetus found deceased in Umpherville on Monday.

RCMP said the remains were found between two homes and on Friday, a news release from leadership of the northern First Nation called for anyone with information to come forward.

“The RCMP has advised leadership that it is continuing its investigation and seeks to identify the mother and family of the deceased newborn and determine the surrounding circumstances,” said Chief Michael Constant, in the release.

Recognizing the discovery is “deeply troubling” for the community, band leadership expressed its concern and said it is “exploring the need for additional supports for the health of mothers and families.”