Gen Z-Led Mexico March Draws Thousands Amid Clashes

Protesters charge on police during a youth anti-government march in Mexico City, Saturday, Nov. 15, 2025.

Several thousand people marched through Mexico City on Saturday to denounce rising crime, corruption and pervasive impunity, in a rally first initiated by Generation Z activists but later strengthened by a significant turnout from older opposition supporters.

The demonstration remained peaceful for most of the route before turning tense in its final stretch, when a group of young protesters clashed with police. They threw stones, fireworks, sticks and chains, and seized shields and other police equipment.

Capital Security Secretary Pablo Vázquez said 120 people were injured — 100 of them police officers — while 20 demonstrators were detained.

Generation Z — those born from the late 1990s to early 2010s — has spearheaded protests in several countries this year over inequality, corruption and democratic backsliding. The largest of these took place in Nepal in September following a social media ban, which ultimately forced the prime minister to resign.

In Mexico, many young people say endemic corruption and rampant violence have left them feeling increasingly powerless. “We need more security,” said 29-year-old business consultant Andres Massa, waving the pirate-skull flag that has become an international symbol of Gen Z activism.

Others joined with different concerns. Arizbeth Garcia, a 43-year-old physician, said she marched for better public health funding and because doctors “are also exposed to the insecurity gripping the country.”

President Claudia Sheinbaum remains widely popular despite a series of high-profile killings, including the recent assassination of a well-known mayor in Michoacan state. Ahead of the rally, she accused right-wing parties of attempting to appropriate the Gen Z movement and using social media bots to inflate turnout.

Some influencers distanced themselves from the protest during the week, but prominent older figures — including former President Vicente Fox and billionaire Ricardo Salinas Pliego — publicly endorsed it.

People from several generations joined Saturday’s march, including supporters of slain Michoacan Mayor Carlos Manzo, who wore the straw hats emblematic of his movement.

“The state is dying,” said 65-year-old real estate agent Rosa Maria Avila, who travelled from Patzcuaro. Manzo “was killed because he sent officers into the mountains to confront criminals. He had the courage to face them,” she said.