A protest against gentrification and mass tourism that began peacefully in Mexico City on Friday turned violent when a small number of people began smashing storefronts and harassing foreigners.
Masked protesters smashed through the windows and looted high-end businesses in the touristic areas of Condesa and Roma.
Some screamed at tourists in the area.
Marchers then continued on to protest outside the U.S. Embassy. Graffiti on glass shattered glass being smashed through with rocks read: “get out of Mexico.”
Police reinforcements gathered outside the Embassy building as police sirens rung out in the city center Friday evening.
It marked a violent end to a more peaceful march throughout the day calling out against masses of American tourists who have flooded into Mexico’s capital in recent years.
Tension had been mounting in the city since American “digital nomads” flocked to Mexico City in 2020, many to escape coronavirus lockdowns in the U.S. Since, rents have soared and locals have increasingly gotten pushed out of their neighborhoods, particularly areas like Condesa and Roma, lush areas packed with coffee shops and restaurants.
The Mexico City protest comes at the same time other European cities like Barcelona, Madrid, Paris, Rome and more are also facing mounting protests railing against mass-tourism.
Last year, 747 million international travellers visited Europe, far outnumbering any other region in the world, according to the U.N.’s World Tourism Barometer. Southern and Western Europe welcomed more than 70 per cent of them.
Among factors driving the record numbers are cheap flights, social media, the ease of travel planning using artificial intelligence and what U.N. tourism officials call a strong economic outlook for many rich countries that send tourists despite some geopolitical and economic tensions.
Citizens of countries like the U.S., Japan, China and the U.K. generate the most international trips, especially to popular destinations, such as Barcelona in Spain and Venice in Italy.
Protests have erupted against the growing tide of travellers because, critics say, it strains housing and water.
At the most Instagrammable hotspots in the region, protests and measures to lessen the effects of overtourism have proliferated.
