With white flags from the anime one piece y de México With the face of Carlos Manzo instead of the shield, the Generation Z demonstration began since the Angel of Independence. There was an abundance of white clothes and sporting hats imitating the attire of the mayor of Uruapan. The majority of assistants, after 17,000 seconds of calculations by the metropolitan government, were people over 30 years old and young people were in the minority. Except for the last stage in the Zocalo, when a group of masked youths threw stones and bottles at the National Palace, which is closed as usual during the protests. They started demolishing some trenches and confronted the police.
The total number of incidents reached 120 victims, 100 police officers, and 20 detainees. Until the last quarrel, the trip passed peacefully. Among the most frequently repeated slogans are insults directed at the president, the claim “We are not artificial intelligence” and the demands of “fuera morena.”
The president, Claudia Sheinbaum, spoke on stage about what happened in the Zocalo during a performance in Tabasco: “Hobo demonstration in Mexico City, they said that young people came out but in reality there were very few young people and that in a violent way they left some ditches and smashed the windows. We decided: no to violence.”
Saturday’s movement, the first major protest against Sheinbaum’s government, was rife with controversy. During the week, the government denounced the opposition’s exploitation and appropriation of the supposed spontaneous call of younger generations, a movement that toppled governments in countries as diverse as Nepal, Peru or Madagascar last month. Sheinbaum presented a detailed report aimed at a “clear digital strategy.” The report puts it behind him Influencersopposition figures, Robots and accounts associated with the Atlas Network, an organization with a large presence in many countries.
Fernanda, 29, explains why she helps. “I’m here because I love Mexico. I’m tired of so much violence and insecurity on our streets.” The young man criticizes the Infodemic report submitted to the government. “Claudia is afraid. We are not a little Degeron, nor are we robots. We are real people, tired people, students, workers, and people who want a better Mexico.” For her, El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele is an example of an international leader. He considers himself non-partisan, against the Sheinbaum government, but supports Ricardo Salinas-Pliego’s future candidacy: “He has different ideas because he is a businessman who does not know politics, but if he gets there he will have all my support.”
The entrepreneur was one of the first to amplify messages from Generation Z movements around the world. In the midst of disagreement with the government and millionaires, he publicly supported the march. This youth, after a judicial failure that required the businessman to pay a tax debt of 50,000 million pesos, the Generation Z account posts a card depicting Sheinbaum attacking and pointing at a person with a gun with SAT written on it. Since the government said this pole is part of an organized campaign of wear and tear, with an estimated expenditure of 90 million pesos.
The march, under the name Generación Z México, emerged as a networked movement, driven by AI-generated messages, cartoon references and anti-government slogans, which within weeks morphed into a national movement. Uruapan Mayor Carlos Manzo accelerated the call, which was presented as a nationwide youth protest. Cities such as Puebla, Monterrey or Guadalajara also witnessed protests under the same flag.
On social media, where the call came from, there is an abundance of AI-generated videos encouraging people to watch posts by teenagers denouncing political manipulation. Among the promoters Influencers Such as Timash, Chomel Torres, and Arturo Herrera, as well as portals and opposition figures. The movement appeals to young people aged 15-20 who are not experiencing movements like #YoSoy132 and shares advice for those walking for the first time. For its part, the government insisted on unveiling the invitation. The president supports the fact that the origin of the movement is “not real” and that business and media actors led the protest from abroad.
When the march reached the Zocalo, a group of hundreds of young men began throwing objects at the ditches protecting the National Palace. People dispersed at the entrances due to pepper gas, which the police responded with. Masked youths arrived to break up some trenches and set off fireworks as white-clad protesters, mostly families and larger people, watched from a distance. Some even encouraged others to enter the palace: “So we must attack the drug dealers” “We are bad” “Palacio Nacional is the city.”
Mexico’s generation petition includes the abolition of mandates, judicial reforms, and demands for transparency, although messages related to safety, security, and corruption predominate in the networks. The character Carlos Manzo was used as a touchstone despite his family being separated from the protest. The report presented by the government traces the origin of the call to action at the beginning of October, with a report from Azteca Noticias, from the Salinas Pliego television station, followed by posts from influencers and the creation of coordinated accounts on various social media networks. Between October 16 and November 1, there was only one “peaceful” protest against AI-generated images shown of the National Palace in flames.
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