The Crescent Ball was meant as a safe space to exist, share a meal, listen to music, spoken word, and meet other CT Muslims.
Mariana Navarrete Villegas
Mariana Navarrete Villegas was a Community Engagement Reporter for The Connecticut Mirror, covering Hartford from 2025 to 2026. She graduated from the Craig Newmark Graduate School of Journalism with a master’s degree in Bilingual Journalism. Before joining CT Mirror, she was the Community Engagement and Video Assistant at Epicenter-NYC and a Podcast Intern at The Take, Al Jazeera English’s daily news podcast. As a reporter, she has covered stories from New York to Florida, California, Panama, and Mexico, focusing on labor rights, immigration, and community care. She also hosts 'La Chismesita,' a community radio show in New York that archives oral histories through conversations with women community leaders. Originally from Mexico, Mariana spent her teenage years in Panama. She holds a B.A. in Global Studies with a minor in Psychology from Saint Leo University, where she interned at the International Rescue Committee.
Posted inBriefs
Does CT charge a cannabis tax for medical marijuana?
To obtain medical marijuana, patients’ health care providers must certify that they have an approved condition and patients register with CT.
Posted inBriefs
Did the US Postal Service change its postmark rules?
Some people have raised concerns about the mailing of bills, absentee ballots and other items that require a specific postmark date.
Posted inBriefs
Did homelessness in Connecticut increase by more than 40% in 2025?
CT provides a point-in-time count of the sheltered and unsheltered people in the state every year. The census is completed in January.
Posted inBriefs
Are CT vaccine requirements the same for private, public schools?
In 2021, lawmakers passed Public Act 21-6, which removed the option for new students to claim a religious exemption.
Posted inHartford
What is a doula and how can I get one in Hartford?
Here’s what you need to know about what a doula is, how much their services can cost and how to find one in Hartford.
Posted inBriefs
Did the flu variant H3N2/K emerge before this year’s vaccine was formulated?
The World Health Organization selected the components for the northern hemisphere influenza vaccine between February and March of this year.
Posted inHartford
New ‘People’s Migrant School’ in Hartford connects UConn to community
UConn and the Hartford Deportation Defense launched the ‘People’s Migrant School’ to build bridges with the city’s immigrants.
Posted inEspañol
La nueva ‘Escuela Popular Migrante’ en Hartford conecta UConn con la comunidad
UConn, junto con el Colectivo de Defensa de Hartford, inauguró el sábado en Hartford la primera sesión de la nueva “Escuela Popular Migrante”.
Posted inHartford
Hartford’s Caribbean Museum offers chance to ‘tell our own story’
The new Caribbean Museum is the result of the West Indian Social Club’s organizing, mutual aid and cultural work in Hartford.
Posted inBriefs
Does Connecticut fine people who don’t clear snow, ice from their vehicle?
There are laws about removing snow and ice from commercial and noncommercial vehicles, with exceptions for very specific instances.
Posted inEspañol
¿Por qué detuvieron las renovaciones de las escuelas públicas de Hartford?
Las renovaciones de seis escuelas formaron parte de un esfuerzo para que los residentes de Hartford regresaran a estudiar al distrito.
Posted inHartford
Why did Hartford public school renovations get paused?
Hartford’s mayor paused state-funded renovations for six public schools in September, surprising key school officials. Here’s what to know.
Posted inBriefs
Can health care providers in CT require you to keep a credit or debit card on file to receive care?
Revisions to the law, which went into effect in October 2025, do not affect the patient’s obligation to pay for services.
Posted inBriefs
Does Connecticut have the third-highest residential electricity rates in the U.S.?
Customers in CT pay more than $200 per month for electricity, or more than twice as much as customers in states such as New Mexico and Utah.