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A large protest against insecurity and government corruption turned violent in Mexico City on Saturday as demonstrators clashed with riot police outside the National Palace.
Thousands of protesters marched from the Angel of Independence monument through several streets and avenues before reaching the Zocalo, the capital’s main square where the National Palace — the home and office of President Claudia Sheinbaum — is located.
Tensions exploded when masked protesters tore down metal barriers protecting the palace, prompting riot police to respond with tear gas and smoke bombs. Demonstrators pushed and kicked the fences while some hurled stones at officers.
The demonstration, organized primarily by Generation Z youth groups, drew citizens protesting specific cases of violence, including the assassination of Uruapan Mayor Carlos Manzo. Participants waving Mexican flags voiced frustration over deteriorating security conditions and government corruption.
“We need more security,” said Andres Massa, a 29-year-old business consultant who carried the pirate skull flag that has become a global symbol of Gen Z protests.
In several countries this year, members of the demographic group born between the late 1990s and early 2010s have organized protests against inequality, democratic backsliding and corruption.
The largest Gen Z protests took place in Nepal in September following a ban on social media, and led to the resignation of that nation’s prime minister. In Mexico, many young people say they are frustrated with systemic problems like corruption and impunity for violent crimes.
Sheinbaum still has high approval ratings despite a recent spate of high-profile murders that include the assassination of Manzo, a popular mayor in the western state of Michoacán.
In the days leading up to Saturday’s protest, Sheinbaum accused right-wing parties of trying to infiltrate the Gen Z movement and of using bots on social media to try to increase attendance.
This week, some Gen Z social media influencers said they no longer backed Saturday’s protests — while elderly figures like former president Vicente Fox and Mexican billionaire Ricardo Salinas Pliego published messages in support of the protests.
Saturday’s march was attended by people from several age groups, with supporters of Manzo attending the protest wearing the straw hats that symbolize his political movement.
