STORY: Hundreds of demonstrators gathered on Friday (July 4) in Mexico City to protest against gentrification. Protesters highlighted the struggles faced by locals due to soaring rents and neighbourhood transformations.

The influx of U.S. migrants in districts like Colonia Condesa, has exacerbated gentrification issues, prompting calls for legal migration and contributions from them.

Affluent foreigners, particularly Americans, are increasingly working remotely in Mexico City due to its lower cost of living compared to most American cities. This trend has sparked backlash because many Americans can stay in Mexico for up to 180 days without a visa, often choosing to leave only when they reach this six-month limit.

According to Eduardo Alanis, government policies favour wealthier newcomers, causing displacement of residents who've lived in these areas for decades.

Demonstrators expressed concerns about the rising cost of living, noting rents have surged by 47% in five years, according to Alanis.

DESCRIPCIÓN DE IMÁGENES

SHOWS: MEXICO CITY, MEXICO (JULY 4 2025) (REUTERS - Access all)

1. PROTESTORS BREAKING A LUXURY STORE

2. PHOTOGRAPH OF U.S. PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP, WITH A MESSAGE READING (Spanish) "Shut up white"

3. BANNER READING (Spanish) "No more helpful Mexican."

4. BANNERS PROTESTING GENTRIFICATION, READING (English): (LEFT) “You are a colonizer, not a fucking ‘Expat’” and (RIGHT) “Your new home is an invasion”

5. HUNDREDS OF DEMONSTRATORS AT PARQUE MEXICO, IN ONE OF THE NEIGHBORHOODS MORE IMPACTED BY GENTRIFICATION

6. PROTESTER WITH BANNER READING (English) “Pay taxes, speak Spanish, use pesos or get out of here!!”

7. MEMBER OF THE FRENTE ANTI-GENTRIFICACION CDMX, EDUARDO ALANIS CHANTING OVER THE MICROPHONE

8. (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) MEMBER OF THE FRENTE ANTI-GENTRIFICACION CDMX, EDUARDO ALANIS, SAYING:

"The reason we've gathered here is precisely to hear the thoughts of many victims, mainly young people today for whom it's almost impossible to live, to find housing. It's not just that; we're living the consequences of gentrification, which is the government directing its public policies towards people with higher purchasing power, often illegally displacing local populations who have lived in these neighborhoods for 40, 50, and we have documented cases of up to 60 years."

9. GROUP OF YOUNG PROTESTERS HOLDING BANNER AGAINST GENTRIFICATION READING (Spanish): “To gentrification is not progress, it’s spoliation”.

10. (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) MEMBER OF THE FRENTE ANTI-GENTRIFICACION CDMX, EDUARDO ALANIS, SAYING:

"The main issues are precisely the rising rent costs, which is the only housing model the government provides. In five years, rents have increased by 47%. This is violent for the local population. We are debating whether to pay for electricity, water, or food. Of course, we choose to eat."

11. PROTESTER HOLDING BANNER READING (Spanish): “Mexico is not ‘cheap’”

12. GROUP OF PROTESTERS HOLDING BANNER

13. DEMONSTRATORS AT MEXICO CITY PARK

14. BANNER READING (Spanish): “Mexico for Mexicans”

15. PROTESTERS HOLDING SIGNS READING (Spanish): (LEFT) “Gentrification = Neo Colonization = Population displacement” (RIGHT) “Regeneration, not gentrification”

16. PROTESTERS HOLDING BANNERS, ONE WITH A MASK OF FORMER MEXICAN PRESIDENT ANDRES MANUEL LOPEZ OBRADOR

17. (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) PROTESTER, MANUEL ANDRES (NO SURNAME GIVEN), SAYING:

"Primarily, if they're going to live, come to live in a country, they have to contribute to that country. The first and simplest issue is legal migration. They come here with visas or no visas, and still the change and purchasing power generates these problems of gentrification and displacement."

18. PROTESTER PLASTERING ANTI GENTRIFICATION PAPERS OVER THE WALL

19. DEMONSTRATOR PAINTING "GRINGO GO HOME"