At her inauguration, President Sheinbaum wore a dress designed by Oaxaca artisan Claudia Vásquez Aquino. (Edgar Negrete Lira/Cuartoscuro)
Claudia Sheinbaum, Mexico’s first female president, took office on Tuesday wearing a dress designed by embroiderer Claudia Vásquez Aquino.
Originally from Santa María Xadani in the southern state of Oaxaca, Vázquez, 41, told the newspaper El País that about a year ago, she met some people from Sheinbaum’s team, but didn’t know who they were at the time.
Sheinbaum’s team gave Vázquez guidelines for the design but did not reveal that it would be worn by Sheinbaum during her inaugural ceremony. (Lari guie’ Arte hecho moda/Facebook)
“They asked me for a dress, they gave me guidelines so I could decide on the embroidery and the flower design. But I didn’t know it would be for [Sheinbaum],” she said.
The president’s ivory inauguration-day dress, trimmed with colorful floral details, was made using the hand-knitting technique of crocheting on cotton fabric and elastane. “The embroidery features more than 100 flowers on the skirt and on the cuffs,” Vásquez explained.
“I feel very proud,” Vázques remarked of her design.
Vásquez told El Páis that she learned to embroider at the age of 10. “Just as I was born with Zapotec [her native language], I was born with embroidery,” she said proudly. “My mother taught me, first with needlework and then with weaving. My brothers Carlos and María also learned and together we have undertaken a small textile project.”
Sheinbaum wearing another piece by Lari Guie’, in 2023. (Lari guie’ Arte hecho moda/Facebook)
The project is called Lari Guie’, which means embroidered fabric in Zapotec. The designer’s Facebook page indicates that they sell online and at sales expos, and can be reached in Oaxaca city.
Vásquez is currently president of the Association of Indigenous Artisan Communities of the State of Oaxaca, which represents eight regions in the state.
This is not the first time that Claudia Sheinbaum has worn traditional clothing from the region. “From what I understand, the Doctor [Sheinbaum] obtains her pieces directly from artisans,” Vásquez said, adding that it is a “privilege” that the new president wears “typical clothing” from the different regions of Mexico.
“I am very excited that this piece of textile, woven by my hands, my heart and my mind, will be worn by the president. It is a very strong commitment, so we ask her to also defend our textiles. She is the voice of the people,” Vásquez said in a separate interview to news outlet Aristegui Noticias.
“I hope one day I can meet her personally and shake her hand,” Vásquez said. “I admire her a lot and I wish Mexico well with the first female president.”
The gold-colored national emblem on the presidential sash was also hand-embroidered. This work was carried out by First Auxiliary Soldier Evangelina Rentería de la Cruz, who also embroidered the sash bestowed on Sheinbaum’s predecessor, Andrés Manuel López Obrador, on Dec. 1, 2018.
A memorial to the victims of a Pemex pipeline explosion in January 2019 that killed 137. (Cuartoscuro)
Andrés Manuel López Obrador’s term as president has concluded, and Mexico now has its first female president, Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo, who was sworn in on Tuesday.
AMLO, as the ex-president is best known, led the country for five years and 10 months after taking office on Dec. 1, 2018.
President López Obrador was the last Mexican president to be sworn in on Dec. 1. (Cuartoscuro)
His term as president was an eventful one, marked by a range of significant events, including the COVID pandemic, during which the deaths of hundreds of thousands of Mexicans were attributed to the infectious disease.
On Jan. 18, 2019, less than two months after López Obrador was sworn in as president, the explosion of a petroleum pipeline in Tlahuelilpan, Hidalgo, claimed 137 lives.
The explosion killed scores of local residents who were collecting gasoline that was gushing from the pipeline, which had been illegally tapped by fuel thieves.
The tragedy occurred amid a federal government crackdown on fuel theft.
AMLO created the security force as a replacement for the Federal Police, which he argued was riddled with corruption.
The creation of the GN gave the president a security force he could truly call his own.
López Obrador set about molding the force to his liking, backing a bill passed by Congress in 2022 that allowed the civilian-led GN to be put under the control of the military.
As part of an agreement with the United States that ended a threat from then-president Donald Trump to impose tariffs on all Mexican goods, the federal government, in June 2019, deployed a total of more than 20,000 federal security force members to detain undocumented migrants at Mexico’s southern and northern borders.
The deployment marked the commencement of a more vigorous enforcement policy against migrants traveling northward through Mexico toward the United States. The policy was widely seen as an attempt to stay on the right side of the U.S., Mexico’s largest trade partner.
But it didn’t please everyone.
Mexico’s former immigration chief, Tonatiuh Guillén López, resigned a week after the government reached the agreement with the United States.
On Oct. 17, 2019, security forces dealt a significant blow to the Sinaloa Cartel by capturing accused cartel leader Ovidio Guzmán López, one of the sons of convicted drug lord Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán.
Mexico never enforced a strict lockdown and the restrictions it did impose were much more relaxed than those of many other countries. The nation’s borders never closed to foreign travelers, making Mexico a popular tourism destination during the pandemic years. Among the visitors were people seeking to escape stringent COVID restrictions at home.
All the while, AMLO defended his government’s pandemic response, and early in the crisis he even claimed to have “tamed” the disease, only for it to go on and claim hundreds of thousands of lives.
The life of the North American Free Trade Agreement, or NAFTA, officially came to an end on July 1, 2020, when a new pact, the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement, or USMCA, went into force.
A week after the USMCA took effect, López Obrador traveled to Washington D.C., where he met with then-president Trump in the White House.
During his visit to the United States capital, AMLO described the USMCA as a “great achievement” and declared that it would help to generate more jobs and thus stem migration from Mexico to its northern neighbor.
Morena thus became the undisputed leading political force in Mexico, no mean feat for a party founded by López Obrador less than a decade before the 2021 elections were held.
Morena’s victories in state elections during AMLO’s presidency not only cemented Morena as the nation’s foremost political power, but also ensured that constitutional reforms recently approved by federal Congress, including the controversial judicial reform, would be ratified by a majority of state legislatures — a prerequisite for the promulgation of constitutional bills.
2022-2024: The electoral reform fight
One of López Obrador’s major legislative initiatives was his attempt to redesign Mexico’s electoral system, including by replacing the National Electoral Institute (INE) and state-based electoral authorities with one centralized body.
The constitutional reform proposal failed to pass Congress, prompting AMLO to put forward a “Plan B” proposal that did win approval in early 2023. Critics of the legislation said that it would significantly weaken the INE, and more protests against electoral reform and in defense of the electoral authority were held.
There is a good chance that the electoral reform proposal sent to Congress in February will be approved early in the Sheinbaum era, given that the ruling Morena party and its allies are a dominant force in both the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate.
March 2023: Detention center fire kills 40 migrants
López Obrador said in March 2023 that the death of the migrants in the Ciudad Juárez fire took a heavy emotional toll on him.
“This case has been very painful for a lot of people. And I confess it has pained me a lot, it has hurt me. I’ve had difficult moments [as president], the most difficult was the explosion in Tlahuelilpan,” he said.
“That was the hardest event, the one that affected me the most emotionally. And then this, this moved me, it broke my soul,” López Obrador said.
October 2023: Hurricane Otis devastates Acapulco
Hurricane Otis, a Category 5 storm that made landfall near Acapulco on Oct. 25, 2023, was the most destructive natural disaster during López Obrador’s presidency.
The hurricane — the strongest ever to hit Mexico’s Pacific coast — devastated Acapulco and claimed more than 50 lives, according to the disputed official count, with dozens more missing.
Sheinbaum — who was widely considered AMLO’s preferred successor — received almost 60% of the vote, demonstrating that a large majority of Mexico’s citizens want the so-called “fourth transformation” of Mexico to continue.
The new president has pledged to continue and strengthen all of the López Obrador era programs and policies, and has given her full backing to the constitutional reform proposals AMLO sent to Congress earlier this year.
López Obrador has asserted that Sheinbaum is well prepared to take on the nation’s top job and reiterated that he will have no involvement in politics during his retirement at his ranch in Chiapas.
However, some observers believe that the ex-president will continue to exert influence on the government from behind the scenes, and attempt to ensure that his successor doesn’t deviate too far from the course he set the country on during his six years in power.
But the arrest of Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada García in the United States on July 25 was arguably the highest-profile detention of a Mexican citizen during López Obrador’s presidency.
Zambada’s arrest at an airport near El Paso, and the alleged kidnapping that preceded it, has added tension to the relationship between Mexico and the United States, with López Obrador accusing the U.S. of involvement in — or at least knowledge of — a “completely illegal” operation to kidnap El Mayo and deliver him to U.S. law enforcement authorities.
In that context, AMLO asserted last month that the United States government is partly to blame for the wave of violence that has claimed scores of lives in Sinaloa in recent weeks as competing factions of the Sinaloa Cartel battle each other in a war that was sparked by the alleged kidnapping and arrest of Zambada.
President Sheinbaum, who has heaped praise on AMLO’s legacy and called him “Mexico’s best president,” will be left to deal with the precarious situation in Sinaloa and various other parts of Mexico that are plagued by violent crime.
Compared to its closing position on Monday, the peso depreciated on Tuesday morning to trade at 19.81 to the US dollar, according to currency website xe.com. However, the currency strengthened after Sheinbaum was sworn in as Mexico’s first woman president at around 11:30 a.m. Mexico City time.
Despite attempts by the opposition to dissuade the Senate, the judicial reform passed 86 to 41 on September 11 and was ratified by the required amount of state legislatures within hours. The reform has reportedly spooked several potential foreign companies about investing in a Mexico whose judicial system will soon be overhauled. (Cuartoscuro)
Shortly after 6 p.m., the peso was trading at 19.63 to the greenback, an appreciation of almost 1% compared to its weakest position on Tuesday.
Investors are also concerned about other constitutional reform proposals that López Obrador sent to Congress in February and which are likely to be approved in the near future given that Lopez Obrador’s Morena party is still the ruling party under Sheinbaum and, with its allies, has a supermajority in the Chamber of Deputies and a virtual supermajority in the Senate.
In her first speech as president, Sheinbaum once again sought to reassure investors that they have nothing to worry about.
“I say with complete clarity: be assured that investments of national and foreign shareholders are safe in our country,” she said.
The president also pledged to “take advantage of the [USMCA] trade agreement with the United States and Canada to continue promoting the relocation of companies” to Mexico.
Former president Andrés Manuel López Obrador at the last press conference of his presidency Monday. Major governmental reforms he sent to the legislature in February could become law after he’s gone. (Government of Mexico)
Among other remarks, Sheinbaum said that her government will respect the autonomy of the Bank of Mexico and implement a “responsible” fiscal policy.
Sheinbaum has expressed support for all the proposals put forth by her predecessor and has rejected claims by opponents that their implementation poses a risk to Mexican democracy and the country’s capacity to prosper in the coming years.
Shortly after she was proclaimed presidenta, the 62-year-old former Mexico City mayor delivered her first speech as Mexico’s head of state.
President Claudia Sheinbaum was sworn in as Mexico’s first female head of state on Tuesday morning and then gave a speech to the nation. (PRESIDENCIA/CUARTOSCURO.COM)
Below is a selection of remarks Sheinbaum made in her speech on Tuesday at the Legislative Palace of San Lazáro in Mexico City.
On her election victory
“On June 2 of this year, the people of Mexico, in a democratic and peaceful way, said loud and clear: it’s time for transformation and it’s time for women.”
On taking power as a Mexican woman
“After 200 years of the republic and 300 years as a [Spanish] colony … for the first time, women are arriving to direct the destiny of our beautiful nation. And I say we’re arriving, because I’m not arriving [to power] on my own, all women are arriving.”
On the continuation of the ‘transformation’ of Mexico
“Today, Oct. 1, 2024, the second stage, the second story of the fourth transformation of public life in Mexico begins.”
On the country she will lead
“Mexico is a marvelous country with extraordinary people. We are a great nation. Original cultures that gave corn, cacao and tomatoes to the world, that built monumental pyramids, thrived here.”
“… Mexico is a marvelous country because of our cultural mosaic, because of our biodiversity. Mexico is marvelous thanks to our countrymen and countrywomen, [thanks to] heroes and heroines who live in the United States and who, because of their love or their family and homeland, send [monetary] support [home] every month.”
Sheinbaum described her predecessor, Andrés Manuel López Obrador, as one of the country’s great leaders and one of the most “important” in Mexico’s modern history. (Cuartoscuro)
On AMLO, her political mentor
“Today, we say with certainty and without fear of being wrong – history and the people have judged him – Andrés Manuel López Obrador [is] one of the greats. The most important political leader and social fighter in modern history. The most beloved president, only comparable to Lázaro Cárdenas. … [López Obrador is] he who began the peaceful revolution of the fourth transformation.”
On the reason for AMLO’s success as president
“How is is that 9.5 million Mexicans, according to the World Bank, were lifted out of poverty in just six years?
How is it that without raising taxes, inequality was reduced?
How is it that we’re among the least indebted OECD countries and we have a strong currency?
How is it that we’re among the countries with the least unemployment?
How is it that there is more well-being and at the same time business people and banks earned more?
How is it that we have record foreign direct investment and salaries increased at the same time?
How is it that the minimum wage increased and inflation didn’t?
The answer is the model for development of the country changed for the better.”
On the tenets of AMLO’s political doctrine
“We’re going to continue with Mexican Humanism, with the fourth transformation.
I’ll summarize some of what I believe to be its main principals:
… For the good of all the poor come first.
There can’t be a rich government with poor people.
… Leaders must be honorable and honest.
The use of government structures for personal benefit … sullies the public service.
Corruption must be combated with ethics and by principals.
… Moral authority is the most important thing and that can’t be bought on the corner.
… Democracy is government of the people, for the people and by the people.
… With the people everything [can be done], without the people nothing.”
On the principles of the new federal government
“We will guarantee all freedoms, those of speech, of the press, of assembly, of protest.”
“Human rights will be respected and we will never use the force of the state to repress the people.”
“We will respect and guarantee the religious, political, social, cultural and sexual diversity of our society.”
“Health care and education are rights of the people of Mexico, not privileges or goods [to be sold].”
On claims that Mexico is heading toward authoritarianism
“Anyone who says there will be authoritarianism is lying.”
On her economic plans
“The autonomy of the Bank of Mexico will be maintained.”
“[We will implement] a responsible fiscal policy.
“We will promote public and private investment”
A message to investors
“I say with complete clarity. Be assured that investments of national and foreign shareholders are safe in our country.”
On the USMCA and the nearshoring opportunity
“We will take advantage of the trade agreement with the United States and Canada to continue promoting the relocation of companies [to Mexico].”
On Mexico’s relationships with the US and Canada
“The United States, Canada and Mexico know that economic cooperation strengthens the three nations. It is clear that we don’t compete with each other, we complement each other and [together] we create the conditions to further consolidate the economy of the entire continent.”
On Mexico’s relations with other countries
“We will continue strengthening our economic and cultural relationships with the countries of Latin America and the Caribbean. History and engagement bind us.”
Sheinbaum emphasized the importance of Mexico’s relationships with other countries, most importantly, the United States, represented at the inauguration by first lady Jill Biden. (Claudia Sheinbaum/X)
“[We will continue strengthening our relationships] with the different countries and regions of the world as well.”
On the judicial reform
“There will be rule of law. The recent constitutional reform to the judicial power, characterized by the election of judges, magistrates and Supreme Court justices by popular vote, means more autonomy and independence for the judicial power.”
On taking the government into the future
“We will carry out the most ambitious digitalization program in history to facilitate the payment of taxes and other [bureaucratic] procedures, and to incentivize investment.”
On government welfare programs
“All the [current] welfare programs will be maintained and we will ensure that their annual increases are never below [the level of] inflation.”
“… We will make three new welfare programs a reality: All women aged 60-64 will have bimonthly support in recognition of the [unpaid] work of Mexican women. All boys and girls who go to public schools … will have a scholarship. … We will take health care to the homes of senior citizens.”
On the electricity market
“As we said in the campaign, we will maintain the current proportion of public and private electricity generation, 54% and 46%, respectively.”
“… We’re going to promote energy efficiency and the transition to renewable sources of energy.”
On her water plans
“We will develop strategic projects for the storage and recycling of water. We’re also going to clean up the country’s most contaminated rivers.”
On her security objectives and strategy
“We will guarantee the reduction of high impact crimes [such as murder]. The irresponsible war against narcos of [former president Felipe Calderón] that continues to cause a lot of harm to Mexico won’t return.”
Sheinbaum gave her first speech to Mexico’s armed forces a few weeks ago. (Cuartoscuro)
“Our conviction is that security and peace are the fruit of justice and our [security] strategy has four core tenets: attention to the causes [of crime]; … intelligence and investigation; the strengthening of the National Guard; … zero impunity.”
Sheinbaum concludes her first speech as president
“I’m a mother, grandmother, scientist and woman of faith. And as of today, because of the will of the people, I’m the constitutional president of the United Mexican States. I will govern for everyone and be assured that I will put my knowledge, my strength, my history and my life itself at the service of the people and the homeland.
Be assured that we will together consolidate a more prosperous, free, democratic, sovereign and just Mexico. I will not disappoint you. … Long live the fourth transformation! ¡Que viva México, viva México, viva México!”
The newly sworn-in president, who turned 62 on June 24, has one adult daughter from a nearly 30-year marriage that lasted from 1987 to 2016.
In the early 2000s, Carlos Ímaz Gispert was president of the Democratic Revolution Party (PRD) for Mexico City and also served as Delegation Head of the capital’s Tlalpan borough. (Susanna Navarrete/Cuartoscuro)
After meeting Mexican academic-turned-politician Carlos Ímaz Gispert in 1986, Sheinbaum married him in 1987 when she was 25. Two years later, Ímaz helped found the Democratic Revolution Party (PRD) and in the 2000s served as the party’s Mexico City head and also the Delegation Chief for the capital’s Tlalpan borough. During the same period in the 2000s, Sheinbaum was serving as Mexico City’s environmental minister under then Mexico City mayor Andrés Manuel López Obrador.
In 1988, Sheinbaum and Ímaz had a daughter, Mariana. Mariana and Rodrigo — Ímaz’s young son from a previous marriage — were raised as brother and sister, and Sheinbaum continues to have a very close relationship with both; most of her biographies list her as having two children.
Sheinbaum has also been a grandmother for the past 16 months — as Rodrigo Ímaz Alarcón and his partner had a son, Pablo, in May 2023.
Mariana Ímaz Sheinbaum, 36, followed her parents on an academic path that included a master’s degree in literary theory and comparative literature from the University of Barcelona. She then taught history and sociology at the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM) and went on to earn a Ph.D. in philosophy at the University of California-Santa Cruz.
Mariana was already familiar with Northern California, having lived with her parents in the San Francisco Bay Area while her mother earned a doctorate in energy engineering at University of California-Berkeley. Sheinbaum’s doctorate analyzed the use of energy engineering in the Mexican transportation sector.
Mariana is now the academic coordinator of humanities at UNAM-Boston, which organizes lectures and other programs to foster ties between UNAM and Boston-area academic institutions. She has kept a low profile regarding her mother’s political work, apart from a few brief appearances in “Claudia: The Documentary,” a 2023 film directed by her stepbrother, Rodrigo.
Sheinbaum’s daughter, Mariana Ímaz Sheinbaum and stepson, Rodrigo Ímaz Alarcón appeared together in a documentary about Sheinbaum directed by Rodrigo. (Screen capture)
Rodrigo Ímaz Alarcón, 42, was very young when his father divorced his mother, Sandra Alarcón. He has studied at UNAM in Mexico City and earned a master’s degree in the arts in Valencia, Spain. He is now a visual artist who “uses drawing, printmaking, painting, photography, sculpture, film and installation as a means to critically question and represent contemporary events,” according to his personal biography.
His debut film, “Juan Perros,” is a 34-minute documentary about a forgotten man who lives with his pigs and a pack of dogs next to a garbage dump in the Mexican desert. It was shown in the 2016 Morelia International Film Festival. A reel of his film highlights can be seen on his website.
Claudia Sheinbaum was born in 1962 to a Mexican Jewish family in Mexico City, the second of three children. Her older brother, Julio, is a physicist and oceanography researcher, and her younger sister, Adriana, is a teacher living in the United States.
Adriana is married to Rodrigo García Barcha, son of the late legendary Latin American writer Gabriel García Márquez.
Their father, Carlos Sheinbaum Yoselevitz, was a chemical engineer and businessman involved in producing chemicals for curing leather. He died in 2013 at age 80.
Sheinbaum’s mother, Annie Pardo Cemo, 84, is a molecular biologist who received Mexico’s National Prize for Arts and Sciences in 2023. Earlier this year, she was part of the 2nd International Symposium on Experimental and Translational Medicine.
Sheinbaum’s paternal Ashkenazi Jewish grandparents immigrated to Mexico in the 1920s from Lithuania, and her maternal Sephardic Jewish grandparents came from Sofia, Bulgaria, in the early 1940s to escape the Holocaust.
In a 2018 NPR profile, Claudia says she celebrated major Jewish holidays at her grandparents’ homes, but that “her home life was secular.”
At the same time that she legally separated from Carlos Ímaz in 2016, she began dating and eventually married Jesús María Tarriba Unger, a mathematician and financial risk specialist at the Bank of Mexico since 2017. The Sinaloa native turned 62 on Sept. 1.
Sheinbaum and Tarriba had reconnected in 2016 — rekindling a romantic relationship they had cut short during their student years — and were married in a small civil ceremony in November 2023 in Mexico City.
Sheinbaum’s second and current husband, whom she married in 2023, is Jesús María Tarriba, a mathematician and financial risk analyst. (Sheinbaum/X)
Tarriba holds a Ph.D. from UNAM and completed a doctoral stay at the University of California-Irvine. In 1994, he received the Weizmann Prize in Exact Sciences for the best doctoral thesis, awarded by the Mexican Academy of Sciences.
He worked as a quantitative analyst at Banamex from 1994 to 1997, then moved to Madrid, Spain, where he lived and worked in the banking industry for 18 years.
The writer Dahlia de la Cerda has drawn attention for writing about what others are afraid to write about, and what people feel uncomfortable looking at: the reality of millions of women in Mexico. (Dahlia de la Cerda/Facebook)
In Mexico, as in much of the world, feminism has taken center stage in the political agenda at the same time as femicide and gender violence have escalated to unprecedented levels.
Feminist struggles have permeated all areas of daily life and literature is no exception. For years, Mexico has been home to a long list of women writers who discuss feminism and gender violence. Many of them have had international success in translations, including the great baroque-era poet Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz and the more contemporary Fernanda Melchor, Gabriela Jáuregui and Dahlia de la Cerda, among many others.
Dahlia de la Cerda at the Feria del Libro de Aguascalientes in 2022. (Luis Alvaz/CC-BY-SA 4.0)
Let’s talk about the latter. In the last year, de la Cerda has been a topic of conversation for the rawness of her texts and the forcefulness of her political position. Above all, she draws attention for writing about what others are afraid to write about, what people feel uncomfortable looking at: the reality of millions of women in this country.
Dahlia de la Cerda was born in the city of Aguascalientes. She studied philosophy and worked for years selling second-hand clothes in a flea market and roses on the street, answering calls in a call center, selling Avon products, and working in bars and in a candy factory. While doing all of these jobs and without a room of her own, de la Cerda wrote and participated in literary contests and cultural scholarships in the hope of earning extra money that would allow her to continue writing, studying and defending causes such as free, legal and safe abortion for all people able to gestate.
In 2009 she won the Los Arquitos Cultural Center’s Letras de la Memoria contest and in 2015 received a PECDA artist grant from the State of Aguascalientes. De la Cerda won the National Endowment for Culture and Arts’ (Fonca) coveted Jóvenes Creadores (Young Creators) grant in 2016 and 2018.
De la Cerda burst into prominence with her 2022 short story collection “Perras de Reserva,” a book of short stories that tear at the crudeness of gender violence, marginalization, racialization, clandestine abortion and femicide.
Co-translated into English by Julia Sanches and Heather Cleary, “Reservoir Bitches” won a PEN Translates award this July. (Scribe UK)
In her “Perras de Reserva” — which has since been translated into five languages and recently won a PEN Translates award as “Reservoir Bitches,” in Julia Sanches and Heather Cleary’s English translation — de la Cerda makes no concessions. She knows the violent reality of the country she lives in because she has experienced it firsthand and is confident that only by narrating the reality with which it exists can she really make those who are more privileged understand that this violence is systemic in our country, and that it puts thousands of lives at risk every day.
Discussing the stories and the women she gives voice to, the writer from Aguascalientes said in an interview with Excelsior that her goal “was to show a variety of diverse women, in very adverse, complex contexts, and to have them different voices from those that had been heard in literature.”In an interview with the newspaper El Universal, de la Cerda remarked, “In the case of women who come from precarious backgrounds, we needed to mirror ourselves in literature.”
In her 2023 book “Desde los Zulos,” de la Cerda is even more irreverent and contentious, exposing disputes for power and economic resources between different social movements, the erasure of women and above all, the imperative need to articulate a feminist movement that transcends the traditional concepts of white feminism. She is in favor of a movement that centers women who fight from the margins: racialized women who fight against classism and racism.
In addition to her literary work, de la Cerda is co-founder and co-director of Morras help Morras, an organization that advocates for legal abortion and the dissemination of information on this issue so that it can be available to everyone.
Camila Sánchez Bolaño is a journalist, feminist, bookseller, lecturer, and cultural promoter and is Editor in Chief of Newsweek en Español magazine.
With cutting-edge technology and state-of-the-art accomodations, Mexico City's hospitals are some of the best in the country. (Hospitales Ángeles - Lomas)
What makes a good hospital? In dealing with human vulnerability, healthcare services are one of the most delicate and important parts of our lives. In this sense, a hospital’s philosophy, care style, technology, accessibility and cleanliness, to name a few factors, are crucial in their capacity to provide good service.
In Mexico, there are at least two significant rankings that focus on the quality of hospitals. One is compiled by Newsweek in collaboration with market and opinion research company Statista, based on parameters such as hygiene, doctor-patient ratios and user opinions. The other is a collaboration between the Mexican Health Foundation (Funsalud), which represents health industry interests, and consulting firm Blutitude, along with news outlet Expansion.
The few Mexican doctors who get past the opaque bureaucratic hurdles to work in the public health system often face low pay, uncertain employment and a lack of medical equipment and medicines. (Cuartoscuro)
Based on these studies as well as Google user ratings, we present the best hospitals in Mexico City, taking into account aspects such as specialties, technology and upgrades.
Hospital Médica Sur
Located in one of Mexico City’s most renowned medical districts, this hospital is a classic in the city. Founded 43 years ago, Médica Sur was the Mayo Clinic’s first partner outside of the United States and is the only one of its kind in Mexico. The hospital’s facilities are spread out across three towers with beautiful lighting.
One of Médica Sur’s advantages is that it accepts most major medical insurance plans and offers discounts on parking and meals for those who enter through an insurance company. The hospital rooms are similar to private suites, and if you don’t want to pay for an additional room, a companion can access a free sofa bed.
Hospital Médica Sur has won, for consecutive years, first place as the best hospital in CDMX. (Hospital Medica Sur)
For foreigners or those visiting Mexico for medical reasons, the hospital has a Department of International Medicine that provides support, transportation services and even accommodations in a hotel. Additionally, the hospital houses highly specialized clinics and offers a robotic surgery program.
IMSS – Centro Médico Nacional Siglo XXI
Siglo XXI is one of the most historic and influential institutions in Mexican medicine. Located next to the Centro Médico Metro station in Roma Sur, its facilities are adorned with beautiful murals and artwork by the renowned David Alfaro Siqueiros.
This medical center receives patients from all over Mexico who require specialized care for complex diseases, such as cancer, and has served 12 million people. The complex’s Specialties Hospital is 60 years old and holds the rank of High Specialty Medical Unit (UMAE).
Siglo XXI is known for the quality of its staff and its specialization in areas such as oncology, cardiology and pediatrics. Known for its excellence and vast facilities, it also offers libraries, computer areas, cafeterias, restaurants, banks and an Oxxo.
IMSS – Centro Médico Nacional Siglo XXI is also known for being an important medical research center (CC BY-SA 4.0)
Centro Médico ABC Campus Santa Fe
Also known as theAmerican British Cowdray Medical Center, it was the first hospital in Mexico to achieve Magnet status, a prestigious recognition from the American Nurses Credentialing Center. ABC, whose main campus is located in Santa Fe, is known for its highly specialized centers and its emphasis on preventive medicine programs.
ABC’s facilities include insurance modules, bank branches and restaurants. Its technology is first class, and one of its unique features is a robot that will guide you to the office or area of the hospital that you need.
Centro Médico ABC Campus Santa Fe is known for its emphasis on preventive medicine programs. (Centro Médico ABC)
IMSS – Centro Médico Nacional La Raza
Located in the neighborhood of the same name in Azcapotzalco, this medical complexis characterized by its highly specialized units that offer medical procedures exclusive to this center: its heart transplantation program, for example, has become the most successful and productive in the country and Latin America. The research and pioneering work in Mexican medicine conducted here make La Raza an extremely important institution.
Among its advantages, La Raza is the only hospital in the country with a Clinical Toxicology Department and the only one with a Corneal Tissue Bank. Additionally, it offers 47 specialties and is a pioneer and leader in the treatment of rare diseases, such as spinal dystrophy, with multidisciplinary care from various specialties. The facilities offer state-of-the-art technology and house murals of historic value by renowned Mexican artists David Alfaro Siqueiros and Diego Rivera.
IMSS—Centro Médico Nacional La Raza has performed historical medical procedures that are exclusive to this center. (IMSS)
Hospital San Ángel Inn
This five-campus hospital network is known for offering “surgical packages” for procedures such as general surgery, laparoscopy, obstetrics and gynecology and oncology, among many others. In addition, they run promotions each year for services such as ultrasounds, cardiac physiology assessments, endoscopies and CT and MRI scans.
This hospital network offers 50 specialties and is also known for its advanced technology used in its surgical, imaging, intensive care, emergency and inpatient departments and the modernness of its facilities. It offers first-class facilities, highly sanitized, modern and first-class technological equipment, in addition to comfortable bedrooms.
Hospital San Angel Inn Universidad and Chapultepec are known for their advanced technology. (Hospital San Angel Inn)
Hospitales Ángeles
The network is known for its surgical specialties, which include cardiovascular, plastic and reconstructive surgery, as well as pediatric specialties such as neonatology, pediatric oncology and pediatric surgery. Of the 27 Ángeles hospitals nationwide, 10 are located in Mexico City.
The network stands out as one of the few facilities with robotic surgery centers and is famous for its Mexican Institute of Neurosciences, located at the Hospital Ángeles de las Lomas. This hospital is a place of excellence worldwide with great neurologists and psychiatrists. With state-of-the-art technology and modern installations, its rooms are very pleasant and full of light.
Hospital Español de México
The Hospital Español de México has a school of nursing and offers online professionalization programs for bachelor’s degrees. (Hospital Español de México)
With historical roots dating back to 1842, this hospital in Polanco was originally established to help “truly needy” Spaniards. It has high-quality certifications and employs doctors with distinguished careers. The Hospital Español offers services ranging from a maternity ward to a nursing home for the elderly. With nearly 500 beds, it is one of the largest hospitals in Mexico. There is also ample space for visitors, who can request a room or stay in the patient’s room.
Ana Paula de la Torre is a Mexican journalist and collaborator for various outlets including Milenio, Animal Político, Vice, Newsweek en Español, Televisa and Mexico News Daily.
Mexico's President Claudia Sheinbaum, the nation's first-ever woman president, arriving at Mexico's National Palace Tuesday, after being sworn in at the Chamber of Deputies. (Daniel Augusto/Cuartoscuro)
Mexico’s new president, Claudia Sheinbaum, who took office on Tuesday, has revealed the official emblem of her administration: an image of a young woman with Indigenous features and wearing Indigenous clothing, carrying Mexico’s flag.
“A young Mexican woman will be the emblem of Mexico’s government,” Sheinbaum wrote Monday in a post on her social media channels.
Una joven mexicana será el emblema del Gobierno de México. Aquí les comparto la imagen. pic.twitter.com/KTph2sWkG3
President Sheinbaum revealed the new presidential logo on her account on the social media platform X on Monday evening.
According to Mexico’s Graphic Identity Manual 2024–2030, a document that provides visual guidelines for the consistent application of the official logo throughout government offices, the young woman in the emblem is looking to the left, “symbolizing the people’s struggle to achieve justice and freedom.”
The woman’s hair, blowing in the wind, evokes the country’s “firm progress toward a future of well-being and prosperity,” the manual also said.
The document, which will be shared with all federal public entities, explains that the young woman’s features recognize women of Indigenous heritage, expressing what the document says is Sheinbaum’s respect and admiration for Mexico’s Indigenous peoples.
Sheinbaum’s emblem differs from the emblem of her predecessor, former president Andrés Manuel López Obrador, in that it features only one person: a woman.
López Obrador’s emblem featured illustrations of José Maria Morelos y Pavón, Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla, Benito Juárez, Francisco I. Madero and Lázaro Cárdenas — all male Mexican historical figures that represent the stages in Mexico’s history that López Obrador refers to as “the three great transformations of Mexico:” the War of Independence, the Reform War, and the Mexican Revolution.
López Obrador consistently dubbed his administration as Mexico’s “fourth transformation,” commonly known as the “4T.” Sheinbaum has promised to continue López Obrador’s political movement.
Outgoing ex-president Andrés Manuel López Obrador’s logo, which featured images of historical figures meant to symbolize his concept of Mexico having undergone three important “transformations” in history, initially came under fire in 2018 for excluding women historical figures. (Government of Mexico)
What do Mexicans think about the emblem?
Reactions to Sheinbaum’s emblem have been varied, with most pointing out that the young woman’s head covers the flag’s national coat of arms.
“What a terrible design, and what a lack of respect for the flag by covering the characteristic symbol with the head of that woman,” one user responded to Sheinbaum’s post, while another pointed out that the covered flag “could be from any country.”
“The Mexican flag is to be shown off, not hidden,” someone else said.
Others, however, supported the president’s choice with emojis representing applause and hearts.
“Congratulations Madam President. This is very beautiful and represents the reality of our country,” one user wrote.
Another wrote, “Great! Just as you broke the glass ceiling, break the patriarchal yoke, and elevate women in Mexico!”
After having 65 male presidents since Mexico’s independence from Spain over 200 years ago, Sheinbaum is Mexico’s first-ever female president.
Mexico's women's and men's teams won at the Homeless World Cup 2024 in Seoul. (Anita Milas, Angelica Ibarra Rodriguez/Homeless World Cup on X)
Though it has never come close to winning the World Cup in soccer, Mexico once again dominated the competition in the Homeless World Cup 2024, capturing both the women’s and men’s titles over the weekend in Seoul, South Korea.
In the women’s final, Mexico used an awesome second half to turn a 1-1 halftime tie into an easy 5-2 victory over Romania for its unprecedented ninth title overall — and eighth in a row.
Mexico’s men’s team beat England 6-5 in the tournament. (Anita Milas/Homeless Word Cup on X)
In the men’s final, Mexico scored with 30 seconds remaining to beat England 6-5 for its fifth title overall, and third in the last four tournaments.
Founded in 2002 in Scotland, the Homeless World Cup is an annual weeklong competition that uses soccer to promote a sense of belonging among unhoused people and raise awareness about homelessness.
Teams are made up of 16-and-older players of any ability level who have been unhoused within the past year, though there are no strict eligibility criteria. However, players can represent their nation only once.
This year’s tournament included 36 men’s teams, 16 women’s teams and more than 400 players from 38 countries. For the first time, it was organized under the auspices of the International Federation of Association Football (FIFA).
The Homeless World Cup was played in 2012 in Mexico City. (Homeless World Cup)
Games are played on a mini field, and each eight-person squad has three players plus a goalkeeper in action at any given time. Games are short — two seven-minute halves — and rolling substitutions are allowed.
Rules modifications emphasize fair play and the personal development of participants over winning at all costs.
Mexico City hosted the tournament in 2012 and in 2018 at the Zócalo in the heart of the city. Last year’s tournament was held in Sacramento, California, following cancellations from 2020-22 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The 2024 Netflix film “The Beautiful Game” tells a story about the street soccer tournament. (Netflix)
There is also a documentary narrated by actor Colin Farrell, “Kicking It,” about the 2006 tournament in South Africa, and the South Korean movie “Dream,”a 2023 comedy-drama inspired by the tournament (available on Netflix with English or Spanish subtitles).
Overall, there were eight days of soccer in the Korean capital. FIFA’s backing included organizational support, equipment, free games online and trophies branded with “FIFA.”
“We are committed to ending homelessness by using soccer, and to have FIFA in our corner will only help us grow our reach and therefore our impact,” Homeless World Cup founder and president Mel Young told Korea JoongAng Daily. “We want to have Homeless World Cup member countries in more nations across the world — ultimately creating a bigger network and therefore helping more people change their lives.”
On Saturday, the Mexican women’s players, who had earlier in the day won their championship game, ran onto the field waving Mexican flags after the men beat England in a game that seemed destined for penalty kicks. In the final minute, Alan Posada Salas of Mexico deflected a shot into the net for a thriller of a win compared to Mexico’s 7-1 rout of England in the group stage.
““It’s a special feeling to win the match, but to also score the winning goal made it even more special,” Posada said. “I want to give a special mention to everyone back home in Aguascalientes. My mom, my dad and my brother and my girlfriend, who have always been there supporting me. I love them all.”
After the women’s final, Mexico captain Denis Chavarria Garrido said, “It was a very intense match. Romania played very well, but we got the win and now we are champions. Viva Mexico!”
First Lady of the United States Jill Biden arrives at President Sheinbaum's inauguration ceremony on Oct. 1, 2024. (Andrea Murcia/Cuartoscuro)
Sixteen heads of state and representatives from more than 100 countries were present at the Legislative Palace of San Lázaro in Mexico City on Tuesday when Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo was sworn in as Mexico’s first female president.
Sheinbaum, the former mayor of Mexico City, won the June 2 election with nearly 36 million votes, 5.8 million more than the outgoing president, Andrés Manuel López Obrador, and the most votes ever received by any presidential candidate in Mexican history.
Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo was sworn in as Mexico’s first female president on Tuesday. (Presidencia/Cuartoscuro)
The world leaders and dignitaries began arriving over the weekend, with Cuba’s president Miguel Díaz-Canel and Brazil’s Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva landing at Mexico City’s Felipe Ángeles International Airport (AIFA) on Sunday.
In addition to Lula, four other South American heads of state attended the historic inauguration: Gustavo Petro of Colombia; Gabriel Boric of Chile; Luis Alberto Arce of Bolivia; and Santiago Peña Palacios of Paraguay.
Colombia’s Petro provided big headlines on Monday with his declaration that Sheinbaum collaborated with the Movimiento 19 de Abril, an urban guerrilla group active in Colombia in the 1970s and 1980s, before it transitioned into a political party.
“Nobody believed that a member of M-19 could become president of Colombia,” he said in Mexico City. “And now M-19 has produced two presidents.”
President of Colombia Gustavo Petro (right) made headlines ahead of the inauguration after claiming that the president supported Colombia’s M19 movement from abroad. (Andrea Murcia/Cuartoscuro)
Sheinbaum has not commented on Petro’s statement, but the Colombian president said Sheinbaum collaborated with the movement from abroad in Mexico.
Three Central American leaders — President Xiomara Castro of Honduras, President Bernardo Arévalo of Guatemala and Prime Minister John Briceño of Belize — and three African leaders — President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo of Ghana, Prime Minister Bucharaya Hamudi Sidina of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic and President Mohamed Yunus Al-Menfi of Libya — were also in attendance.
Among the dignitaries seated in the gallery were Jill Biden, the first lady of the United States, and Ken Salazar, the U.S. ambassador to Mexico. They were joined by the Deputy Assistant to the President Carlos Elizondo, Health Secretary Xavier Becerra, Congresswoman Nanette Barragán of California, as well as Senator Chris Murphy of Connecticut, Mayor of Tucson, Arizona, Regina Romero and Isabel Casillas Guzmán, the president of the U.S. Small Business Administration.
Speaking from the U.S. Embassy in Mexico City on Monday, Jill Biden said she and her husband wish President Sheinbaum the best and look forward to her leadership.
“With Dr. Sheinbaum as president, I know we’ll continue to build a more prosperous, secure and democratic region,” Biden said, adding that “few relationships are as important to the daily life of U.S. citizens as the one we have with Mexico.”
Other nations sending top officials to the ceremony were Canada (Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland) and Germany (former president Christian Wulff).
Spain chose not to send a delegation after the official invitation from Sheinbaum’s team omitted King Felipe VI.
