¡Fuera gringos!

anti-gentrification movement, huarache-gate & singles events

Author

Rocio L
August 20, 2025

¡Hola hola queridos lectores! 

Ay ay ay… the latest news highlights from Mexico City have been wild. First, Adidas stumbled into a Oaxacan huarache scandal after skipping over actual artisans — the plagiarism backlash was swift, and now both the designer and Adidas have issued apologies. The fate of the sandal? TBD.

Then came Tlaloc’s fury. Torrential rains that shut down the airport for two days straight, with flooding so bad the city went into purple alert. And in the latest episode of the Trump vs. Mexico telenovela: the U.S. president called CDMX the most unsafe city in Latin America, slapped travel restrictions on 30 of 32 Mexican states, and claimed Mexico “does what we tell them to.” Oh, what a time to be alive.

But! Today’s newsletter is not about any of that. Instead, we’re digging into the city’s growing anti-gentrification movement, which saw three protests in July. I first wrote about this back in March, so consider that edition your prequel before diving into today’s issue.

If you love CDMX IYKYK, find it helpful, or just appreciate someone doing the cultural decoding (and meme-worthy curating) for you, consider sending me a $5 coffee or two. This is pure love work, and your support keeps it running—and caffeinated.

Without further ado…

– Rocio
Founder, Life of Leisure 
Writer, Mexico News Daily 

TOP NEWS

CDMX Anti-Gentrification Movement: Beyond the Graffiti

Throughout July, Mexico City saw three marches against gentrification and mass tourism. Some protesters walked peacefully with signs like “Gringos, stop stealing our home” and “You’re a colonizer, not an expat.” Others went further — smashing windows of cafés and boutiques in Roma and Condesa, yelling at tourists, and leaving behind graffiti that read “Get out of Mexico.”

The images made global headlines, but if you ask locals, this isn’t about hating foreigners. It’s about class, housing, and a government that seems far more interested in developers and profits than residents’ right to a home.

Why people are angry

Rents in Mexico City have risen 45% in just five years, with half of residents now reporting trouble paying. Middle-class Americans arrive and suddenly live like the upper class — “the true American dream,” as one protester put it.

Meanwhile, more than 26,000 Airbnb listings have flooded the city, and over half are concentrated in Roma and Condesa. That’s no accident: in 2022, Claudia Sheinbaum (then mayor, now president) struck a partnership with Airbnb to brand CDMX as a “global digital nomad hub.” The deal supercharged evictions and conversions, pushing out locals for short-term rentals.

This isn’t just about Americans. Upper-class Mexicans also play a role. But the result is the same: longtime residents priced out of their own neighborhoods.

Not just Mexico City

CDMX is the latest flashpoint in a global pattern. Barcelona has seen water-gun protests against tourists, Lisbon and Venice have clamped down on vacation rentals, and activists in Mallorca even urged visitors not to come this summer. Puerto Rico, Hawaii, Vancouver, Toronto. Everywhere you look, locals are fighting overtourism, rising rents, and cultural erasure.

The difference here? In Europe, the target is short-term tourism. In Mexico City, it’s long-term foreign residents reshaping neighborhoods permanently.

“Expat” vs. “Immigrant”

The protests also shine a light on language. Why are Americans in Mexico called expats, while Mexicans in the U.S. are called immigrants?

“Immigrant” usually implies working-class people moving north for low-wage jobs. “Expat” implies privilege — white professionals from the global north moving south for lifestyle. Language isn’t neutral; it encodes class and race.

That’s why signs read “You’re not an expat, you’re a colonizer.” It’s not skin color being called out — it’s wealth, entitlement, and bubble-living. The perception is that many foreigners don’t bother with Spanish, stick to their own social circles, and treat CDMX like “the next Tulum.”

Who’s really to blame?

Activists agree on one thing: foreigners are the symptom, not the root.

The deeper issues are systemic:

  • Government complicity: politicians benefit from tourism dollars and cozy ties with developers.

  • Housing scarcity: CDMX built fewer new homes in the past decade than any other state in Mexico. With such limited supply, anyone with money, whether a foreigner or an upper-class Mexican, drives prices up.

  • Unregulated capitalism: wages are stagnant, while rents and costs soar.

As one planner put it: “If there’s no housing, then of course the few people who can afford it will push up prices, whether foreign or local.”

Political theater

Sheinbaum condemned the xenophobia in protests, saying you can’t shout “out” at any nationality. Meanwhile, the new mayor, Clara Brugada, launched Bando 1: a plan to freeze rents, regulate Airbnbs, and build affordable housing.

On paper, it sounds like a win. In practice, residents are skeptical. Past administrations have made similar promises,  like 20,000 affordable homes by 2030, that never materialized. As one displaced tenant put it: “We don’t want free housing, we just want laws that let us afford to live here.

Why this matters here

One of the goals of this newsletter has always been to make foreigners/digital nomads/exptas/immigrants more aware of these tensions. Many of the frustrations locals voice come from a sense that digital nomads live in blissful bubbles: not learning Spanish, only hanging out with other foreigners, and ignoring the reality that their presence plays into a larger housing crisis.

Being mindful of privilege matters. Gentrification is a structural problem, but awareness — and choices — can make a difference.

The bigger picture

Mexico City is at a boiling point. The July marches show just how much anger is bubbling beneath the surface, and the coming years — with projects like the 2026 World Cup — will only add pressure.

This isn’t just about gringos with laptops. It’s about who gets to live in the city, whose culture is preserved, and whether housing is treated as a right or just another capitalist commodity.

🚫 Anti-tourism protests hit CDMX: how not to be part of the problem

🤣 Gringo In Mexico City says he’s not part of gentrification problem

💥 Backlash over Adidas’ Oaxacan huarache leads to apology

⚠️ Americans issued new urgent travel warning for Mexico

⚔️ Mexico issues retaliatory travel advisory for every single inch of U.S.

🎬 Netflix doubles down on Mexican cinema with 6 new films in the pipeline

CULTURE & HAPPENINGS

Want your event featured? IYKYK is published around the 15th and 30th of each month. Please send the internet link to the specific event you would like to include 3 days prior to these dates.

DID YOU KNOW?

Color TV has Mexican roots. Back in 1940, engineer Guillermo González Camarena invented the “tricolor sequential system” that made broadcasting in color possible. So next time you binge-watch Netflix or yell at a fútbol match in full HD, you can thank a Mexican mind for bringing the screen to life.

ODE TO MEXICO

I recently dove into Mentiras, la serie, a show that’s actually based on the hit theater musical, itself inspired by the unforgettable pop icons of the 80s. Think big hair, even bigger drama, and music that makes you want to belt out every lyric. It’s campy, colorful, and sneakily deep beneath all the glitter. The best part? Watching my childhood icon Belinda light up the screen — pure nostalgia with a fabulous soundtrack to match.

VIRAL VAULT

Why CDMX IYKYK?
Because staying in the know shouldn’t require 12 tabs, 5 group chats, and a rabbit hole of IG accounts. I created this newsletter to help fellow expats, digital nomads, and the Mexican diaspora feel more connected to life in Mexico—not just the highlights, but the context behind them too.

As someone who spent her childhood in Mexico and came of age across borders, I bring cultural insight that goes beyond translation. This isn’t just curated info; it’s grounded in lived experience, curiosity, and cariño for the motherland.

Whether you’re in Mexico City for a few months or forever, I hope this space helps you navigate, appreciate, and engage more deeply with the city we’re lucky to call home.

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Until next time!