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MND Local: A new chapter opens for San Miguel de Allende’s most iconic cultural landmark

By
Nayelli Sánchez
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Instituto Allende courtyard decorated for a wedding in San Miguel de Allende
Both art school and venue for weddings and social events, the Instituto Allende has been a cultural landmark in San Miguel de Allende for 75 years ... and it's not done growing. (Instituto Allende/Instagram)

When San Miguel de Allende comes to mind, so does the cultural and artistic richness that has long defined this UNESCO World Heritage city. That legacy is embodied by spaces that have existed for decades and helped forge the city’s cultural identity — none more so than Instituto Allende.

Instituto Allende’s roots are with the family of the Conde de la Canal, one of the most influential families in San Miguel de Allende’s history. The 18th-century mansion that houses it today once belonged to the Count, whose hacienda helped shape the city’s development. In 1951, American writer and adventurer Stirling Dickinson, alongside Mexican painter Alfredo Campanella and with the support of the Hernández Macías family, transformed the space into an art school affiliated with the University of Guanajuato.

The concept was radical for its time: a bohemian, open and multicultural environment in the heart of El Bajío. The school gained international recognition when it began welcoming World War II veterans using the G.I. Bill to study art abroad at low cost — turning the Instituto into a creative haven where Mexican and foreign artists lived and worked side by side, laying the groundwork for the cosmopolitan identity San Miguel de Allende carries to this day.

For years, Instituto Allende has served as both an art school and a venue for social events. This year, it opens a new chapter in its history with the launch of the Centro Cultural Instituto Allende.

A new project for a cultural touchstone in San Miguel

Eva Fernández Martínez Borden leads this new project, guided by the vision of her father, Rodolfo Fernández Martínez Harris, who devoted years of his life to maintaining the space as a cultural landmark — continuing, in turn, the legacy of his own father. Those now at the helm of this initiative aim to reclaim its open, community-focused spirit for the people of San Miguel.

The Centro Cultural Instituto Allende officially launched on a rainy Thursday in June, marked by live jazz saxophone from Rodrigo, a local San Miguel musician, and the opening of a visual exhibition titled “Autonomía del Vuelo” (“Autonomy of Flight”) by artist Erika Harrsch, who spent part of her artistic training at the Instituto. Eva’s remarks — heartfelt as she reflected on this new phase — were received by a large community that has closely followed the artistic life unfolding within the building and its gardens. The inaugural exhibition became a genuine gathering point for the local public: media outlets, artists, enthusiasts and art professionals came together to mark the beginning of a new era for the space.

The strength of a cultural center lies in its multidisciplinarity, and that is precisely what this space offers. The combination of areas for artistic education and professional development, an exhibition space — the gallery led by Cartografía Cultural — and the new Rodolfo Fernández Martínez auditorium seeks to unite artistic spirit with discipline, creative freedom and a renewed sense of the creative soul that sets San Miguel de Allende apart.

What does this mean for the World Heritage city?

Art permeates San Miguel de Allende at every level — from its picturesque streets and murals by local artists to its galleries and theaters. Independent cultural initiatives like this one require enormous effort, a commitment to the human spirit, and a passion sustained daily by the people behind them. It is work that deserves recognition, because everyone who calls a city home deserves places where they can create and belong.

This increasingly gentrified city faces a challenge that is growing quietly: spaces that once belonged to locals now cater primarily to tourism and the real estate market. San Miguel welcomes thousands of visitors and new residents each year, drawn by the very artistic and bohemian atmosphere its own community has built over decades. Yet that same appeal drives up the cost of living and gradually pushes out the local creators who give the city its soul. Initiatives like the Centro Cultural Instituto Allende offer a concrete response: accessible spaces where art is not a consumer product, but an act of community and belonging — a place where locals and the foreign residents who now call the city home can coexist around art.

That coexistence takes concrete shape through initiatives like the Lifelong Learning Program, led by John Wimberly, who has lived intermittently in San Miguel for several years. The program welcomes the foreign community that comes to San Miguel each spring and shares space with Visual Arts undergraduate students and other workshop participants at the Instituto — all of which are actively taking place within the Instituto Allende today. Together, these programs create an environment where foreigners and locals connect through a shared passion for art and learning, making the Instituto a living, breathing hub of creative exchange.

Providing artistic expression with a spiritual dimension

This diversity of experiences, voices and perspectives is precisely what makes cultural spaces indispensable. Cultural spaces in cities are not a basic necessity, but they are a spiritual one — much like art itself, which seeks to give meaning to human existence. Their value lies in being creative, social and communal gathering points. Whether a gallery, theater, cinema, library or cultural center, these are the places where art is born and communities with shared interests in personal and collective well-being come together. A city’s cultural richness is nourished daily by its creators and the spaces where creativity lives: worlds of possibility where disciplines intersect and communal visions elevate the artistic spirit of the city.

The Centro Cultural Instituto Allende embraces that vision from the very start. While the full events and exhibitions calendar is still taking shape, local artists will begin joining the Instituto’s community this fall, finding a space to develop and present their work under the curatorial direction of Mary Paz Cervera, coordinator of Cartografía Cultural.

The Centro Cultural Instituto Allende opens its doors at a pivotal moment for the city — one in which the question of who San Miguel de Allende truly belongs to has never felt more urgent. As Eva Fernández puts it: whether you live here permanently or are just passing through, the art and culture of this space welcome you to live your own artistic story. Because the answer, at least from within these walls, is clear: San Miguel belongs to those who create it, inhabit it and feel it as their own.

Nayelli Sánchez is a contributor to Mexico News Daily. 

Inflation in Mexico is now lower than in the United States — why that’s such a big deal: A perspective from our CEO

By
Travis Bembenek
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red downward arrow inside a magnifying glass placed over a U.S. dollar banknote symbolizes economic decline, financial crisis, or recession in the United States.
Mexico's headline inflation rate is currently 3.37% while in the United States, the latest reading (May 2026) was 4.20%. (Shutterstock)

Inflation matters. The famous economist John Maynard Keynes has described it as a “method for governments to secretly confiscate citizen wealth.” Warren Buffett called it a “tax more devastating than any legislative action.” Milton Friedman labeled it “taxation without legislation.” And former U.S. President Ronald Reagan compared its impact on society to “that of a violent criminal.”

Inflation reduces the value of money, makes planning and investment harder and can destabilize an economy if it is high or unpredictable for long. The central banks of governments often set “target inflation rates.” The United States has a target inflation rate of 2%; Mexico‘s is 3%. These targets help individuals, businesses and investors plan accordingly based on the expected inflation rates in each country.

Inflation falls to 3.37%, just above Banxico’s target

Over the past 50+ years, Mexico has always had higher inflation than the U.S., except for a period of several months in 2022 during the COVID-19 post-pandemic period when inflation rapidly increased in both countries.

For a few months in 2022, the U.S. had inflation of 8.0% compared to Mexico‘s 7.9%. Other than that, inflation has never been lower in Mexico. Until now. The most recent inflation data from each country, published just this past week, has Mexican inflation at 3.37% and U.S. inflation at 4.2%. Interestingly enough, Mexico’s inflation rate is currently trending down, while in the U.S., it is trending up.

For added context, in the decades before the early 2000’s, Mexico always had much higher inflation than the U.S., oftentimes at least 10% higher. During the decade of the 2000’s, this gap lowered to Mexico being 5% higher on average each year. In the 2010’s, it lowered further to Mexico being about 3% higher on average each year. Since the pandemic, the gap has narrowed even further to the situation today in which Mexico actually has lower inflation than the U.S. by almost a full percentage point.

So why should we care? And what could this mean? When one country runs persistently higher inflation than another (as Mexico has done for decades versus the U.S. until now), it tends to end up with a weaker currency, higher interest rates, more volatility and a long-run loss of competitiveness and real incomes relative to the lower-inflation country. It is worth re-reading the previous sentence and thinking about it in the context of Mexico and the U.S. over the past decades.

Mexico has, in fact, almost always had a weaker currency than the U.S. (which made Americans feel “relatively wealthier” in Mexico and made Mexicans feel “relatively poorer” in the U.S.). Mexico has always had higher interest rates and more interest rate volatility (making individuals and businesses less likely to invest due to higher risk factors). And in part due to this difference in inflation rates, Mexico has continually had a long-run loss of real incomes relative to the U.S. The per-capita GDP in Mexico is still only about 1/7th of what it is in the U.S. and in fact, it has not improved from what it was decades ago! The relatively higher inflation in Mexico decade after decade, along with factors like lower productivity and lower rates of fixed investment, is in large part what is responsible for Mexicans’ inability to increase their wealth.

To illustrate, let me provide a very simple example. Imagine that inflation is 6% and wage growth is 5%. In that case, the average worker actually has lost purchasing power, and in effect is 1% poorer than they were a year earlier. Now imagine a scenario where inflation is 3% and wage growth is 4%. In that case, the average worker has gained purchasing power and, in effect, is 1% richer than they were a year earlier. The first example is almost always what has happened in Mexico year after year. The second example is almost always what has happened in the U.S. year after year. Until now. The U.S. right now is experiencing a decline in purchasing power (inflation is higher than wage growth), while Mexico right now is experiencing an increase in purchasing power (wage growth is higher than inflation).

So what’s the big picture and what could be expected for Mexico and Mexicans if this trend continues?

  1. In the near term, there is limited pressure on the Mexican peso to devalue further against the USD. It might actually gain in strength.
  2. Lower inflation will bring lower interest rates in Mexico, which could be a boost to the economy if more individuals use credit and more businesses are willing to invest in a more stable interest rate environment.
  3. Mexicans will likely see their purchasing power begin to improve.
  4. Even though inflation has moderated, foreigners and foreign companies in Mexico will likely feel that Mexico is getting more expensive (a dramatic change from the decades during which Mexico “always felt like it was getting cheaper” to foreigners).
  5. Relatively speaking, this hurts those in Mexico who depend on international tourism, but is good for those who depend on domestic tourism.
  6. For home buyers in Mexico, mortgage and loan instruments will likely become more affordable and accessible.
  7. Investment products in Mexico might become more readily available and more attractive to international investors.

It’s important to note that there are many, many factors that go into exchange rates, interest rates and economic data. Oil prices, war and policy changes can all quickly change economic outlooks and reverse trends. That being said, I think it is worth noting that Mexico has achieved lower inflation in spite of the Trump tariffs and the oil and other commodity price increases as a result of the Iranian and Ukrainian wars.

Mexico right now is in fact demonstrating impressive fiscal discipline. The country’s latest level of government debt to GDP is 45% and trending down. In the United States, it is 123% and trending up. Said differently, Mexico’s debt burden is relatively low and decreasing, while in the U.S., it is relatively high and increasing. The U.S. currently has a debt ratio that is almost 3 times higher than that of Mexico.

What does this mean for the two countries in the future? No one knows for sure, but it will certainly be fascinating to watch. The team at MND will help you make sense of it all every step of the way!

Travis Bembenek is the CEO of Mexico News Daily and has been living, working or playing in Mexico for nearly 30 years.

Inflation falls to 3.37%, just above Banxico’s target

By
MND Staff
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0
Tomatoes, which had been steadily rising in price since the beginning of 2026, were down 39% in June compared to May.
Tomatoes, which had been steadily rising in price since the beginning of 2026, were down 39% in June compared to May. (Daniel Augusto/Cuartoscuro)

Inflation in Mexico is now just above the central bank’s target after falling to its lowest level in more than five years in June.

The national statistics agency INEGI reported on Thursday that the annual headline inflation rate was 3.37% in June, down from 3.94% in May.

The rate — just 0.37 percentage points above the Bank of Mexico’s 3% target — is the lowest for any month in Mexico since December 2020, when annual headline inflation was 3.15%.

Inflation has now declined during three consecutive months in 2026 after the headline rate increased in each month of the first quarter.

On X, Alfredo Coutiño, director for Latin America at Moody’s Analytics, said that the third consecutive decline in annual headline inflation was “supported by disinflation in the volatile prices of agricultural products and fuel.”

“Most of the decline in inflation is explained by the normalization of the supply of agricultural products, combined with price agreements between producers and the government, as well as a normalization of fuel prices,” he wrote in a separate post.

INEGI reported that the annual core inflation rate, which excludes volatile fuel and energy prices, was 4.03% in June, down from 4.19% in May.

Both the headline and core rates in June were lower than the median estimates of analysts surveyed by Bloomberg.

On a month-over-month basis, consumer prices fell 0.27% in June, INEGI reported. It was the second consecutive month that prices fell on a sequential basis after a 0.21% decline in May compared to April. The El Economista newspaper reported that it was the first time in at least 10 years that inflation declined in the month of June compared to May.

Deflation in fresh food prices helps to slow inflation  

INEGI reported that prices for agricultural products were 1.72% lower in June than in the same month last year. Within that category, prices for meat fell 6.48% annually, while fruit and vegetable prices increased 5.56%.

Annual inflation for processed food, beverages and tobacco was 5.08% in June, while prices for non-food goods rose 2.24%.

Services were 4.49% more expensive in June than a year earlier while energy prices, including those for electricity and gasoline, rose 3.46%.

Compared to May, tomatoes were almost 39% cheaper in June while prices for poblano chilis plummeted more than 40%, according to INEGI. Tomato prices spiked sharply earlier this year, largely because crops in Florida were damaged by frost.

Grapes (-18.96%), cucumbers (-10.13%), limes (-8.94%) and eggs (-7.21%) were among the other products that were cheaper in June than in May. Among the products whose prices increased on a month-over-month basis in June were avocados (+24.53%), oranges (+9.55%), potatoes and other tubers (+9.32%) and onions (+6.87%).

Where is inflation headed?

The Bank of Mexico (Banxico) is currently forecasting an average headline inflation rate of 3.8% in the third quarter of 2026. In other words, the central bank expects inflation to increase from the 3.37% rate in June.

Mexico’s central bank holds interest rate at 6.50% while inflation continues to decline

Banxico anticipates average headline rates of 3.5% in the fourth quarter of 2026 and 3.2% in the first quarter of 2027. It forecasts that inflation will converge to its 3% target in the second quarter of next year.

In late June, the Banxico board voted in favor of maintaining the central bank’s benchmark rate at 6.50%. The bank has indicated that the key rate will remain at that level in the near future.

In its most recent monetary policy statement, Banxico said that its inflation forecasts were “subject to various risks,” including upside ones such as “disruptions due to foreign trade policies or to an inflationary impact from geopolitical conflicts”; “climate-related impacts”; and “a trend towards depreciation of the Mexican peso.”

On X, Gabriela Siller, director of economic analysis at Banco Base, pointed out that “unlike the previous four months,” Mexico’s trimmed mean inflation rate in June, at 3.53%, was higher than the headline rate.

That means that the “marked slowdown in general inflation was concentrated in generic items with extreme variations” that are excluded by the trimmed mean inflation measure, Siller said.

“… The bulk of prices showed a more gradual moderation. This means that inflation decelerated due to atypical events that aren’t expected to last, so inflation could rise,” she wrote without specifying the “atypical events” she referred to.

With reports from La Jornada, El Economista and López-Dóriga Digital

4 Americans among injured in multi-vehicle Jalisco crash that left 10 dead

By
MND Staff
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Seven vehicles were destroyed, while two other passenger cars and a National Guard vehicle were damaged in the crash and fire that occurred on a busy federal highway shared by cargo vehicles, commuters and tourists. (Secretaría de Seguridad Pública y Protección Ciudadana de Nayarit)

A multi-vehicle collision on a major highway in the western state of Jalisco on Sunday morning sparked a fire that left at least 10 people dead and 10 others injured, four of them Americans.

The tragedy occurred on Federal Highway 15D connecting Tepic and Guadalajara, the state capitals of Nayarit and Jalisco, respectively. 

Emergency personnel were on the scene attending to a collision between two cargo vehicles when a third tractor-trailer slammed into the wreckage. The second impact touched off an explosion and a conflagration that consumed the first two trucks and three passenger vehicles nearby.

Among the fatalities are two minors, while among the injured are two members of the National Guard who had responded to the original crash, both in serious condition, and four U.S. citizens. 

Videos shared on social media showed vehicles completely burned out on the highway, a route frequented by cargo transport, commuters and tourists. 

That afternoon, Jalisco Governor Pablo Lemus offered condolences in a social media post and said state government agencies will provide support to the families and victims.

“This is truly a great tragedy that plunges Jalisco and Nayarit into mourning; we are transferring the injured to private and public hospitals … and we will provide unlimited support” via the National Guard, state Civil Protection authorities, the Magdalena Fire Department and Jalisco’s emergency medical system, he said. 

The governor’s office coordinated the rescue efforts, making available helicopters, ambulances and various means of transportation for the injured.

The victims were transported to the Magdalena Regional Hospital in northern Jalisco, the Arboledas Hospital in Guadalajara and the Puerta de Hierro Hospital in Nayarit.

Jalisco authorities said the four U.S. citizens were transferred to Arboledas Hospital “in mild condition.”

Seven vehicles were destroyed by the resulting fire, while two other passenger cars and a National Guard vehicle were damaged.

The incident backed up traffic on the highway for several hours before the authorities completely shut down the northbound side to conduct their investigation in an effort to determine the cause of the accident and the fire.

Authorities had not released the identities of the deceased, nor had they established a definitive cause of the incident by Monday morning.

With reports from CNN en Español, Reuters, El Occidental, France 24 and Informador

10,000+ arrests, 50,000 guns seized: US ambassador touts anti-cartel firearms push

By
MND Staff
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The Charlotte branch of the ATF recently seized 140 firearms that investigators believe were intended to be delivered to a Mexican drug cartel.
The Charlotte, North Carolina, branch of the ATF recently seized 140 firearms that would likely have been delivered to a Mexican drug cartel. (@ATFCharlotte/X)

U.S. Ambassador to Mexico Ron Johnson touted on Friday the U.S. government’s actions against the illegal trafficking of firearms — weapons that often end up in the hands of members of Mexican cartels.

“The Trump Administration is delivering results to dismantle the cartels and stop illegal firearms trafficking: nearly 50,000 firearms seized, almost 2.9 million rounds of ammunition seized and more than 10,000 arrests linked to firearms trafficking,” Johnson wrote on social media.

“Under the leadership of @POTUS @realDonaldTrump and President @ClaudiaShein, our countries continue working together to make both our nations safer,” he wrote.

An infographic included in the post shows that the ambassador was referring to firearms trafficking-related arrests and seizures made by the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) between January 2025 — the month U.S. President Donald Trump began his second term — and July 2026. Not all of the approximately 50,000 firearms seized were bound for Mexico. Data published by the ATF in February indicated that around 12% of all firearms seized in the U.S. since Trump returned to the White House (4,359 of 36,277 at the time) were destined for Mexico.

The Mexican government has long called on U.S. authorities to do more to stop the flow of firearms to Mexico, where U.S.-sourced weapons are commonly used by criminal organizations to commit crimes including murder. Experts estimate that approximately 135,000 firearms were trafficked to Mexico in 2022.

During the second Trump administration, the ATF has ramped up its efforts to seize weapons before they leave the United States, leading what the U.S. Department of Justice has called “an aggressive nationwide effort to dismantle the domestic and international networks that arm violent criminals.”

Earlier this month, the ATF announced that in the week starting June 29, it “initiated a search warrant that led to the seizure of 140 firearms investigators believe were intended to be delivered to a Mexican drug cartel.”

“ATF received information that a Mexican cartel source had a large cache of weapons stored in the North Carolina area and was attempting to smuggle the firearms into Mexico on behalf of the Sinaloa cartel,” the agency said in a July 2 statement.

Last September, the Mexican and U.S. governments announced the launch of a new bilateral initiative, “Mission Firewall,” aimed at disrupting the southward flow of illicit weapons across the Mexico-U.S. border.

In March, President Claudia Sheinbaum said that “at least 75%” of the weapons in the possession of organized crime groups in Mexico come from the United States, citing a U.S. Department of Justice report to support her claim.

“If the entry of illegal weapons from the United States into Mexico is stopped, these groups will not have this type of high-powered weaponry to carry out their criminal activities,” she said at the time.

“So that is something the United States can help us with a lot,” added Sheinbaum, whose administration seized almost 30,000 firearms between October 2024 and May 2026.

Mexico News Daily 

Mexico initiates criminal cases in United States over ICE deaths: Monday’s mañanera recapped

By
MND Staff
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Sheinbaum at podium
President Claudia Sheinbaum revealed today that the government is acting expeditiously in its decision to file criminal complaints in the United States in connection with the deaths of 17 Mexicans who have died in U.S. Immigration and Customs (ICE) detention centers or in ICE operations since early 2025. (Moisés Pablo/Cuartoscuro)

Sheinbaum’s mañanera in 60 seconds

  • 🇺🇸 SRE to file criminal complaints in US over deaths of 17 Mexicans in ICE custody: Sheinbaum said the Foreign Affairs Ministry (SRE) would file complaints on Monday with the U.S. Department of Justice and state Attorneys General over the deaths of 17 Mexican nationals in ICE detention or ICE operations. She called the killing of Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, shot by an ICE officer in Houston last week, “practically murder,” and urged Mexican society and political parties to show solidarity with compatriots in the U.S.
  • ⚖️ Sheinbaum distances government from new Ayotzinapa report: Responding to a CNDH report that found the army wasn’t involved in the 2014 disappearance of 43 Ayotzinapa students, Sheinbaum said her government had no role in producing it and asked the Interior Ministry to review its findings before issuing an official position. She stressed that the priority remains solidarity with the students’ families and resolving the case.
  • 🚗 No concern about other automakers leaving Mexico, Sheinbaum says: Asked about Toyota’s move of Tacoma production from Tijuana to Texas, the president said she isn’t concerned other manufacturers will follow, and teased that one automaker — unnamed for now — is actually looking to open a new plant in Mexico, with details expected this week or next.

Why today’s mañanera matters

Today’s mañanera was significant as President Claudia Sheinbaum revealed that the government is acting expeditiously in its decision to file criminal complaints in the United States in connection with the deaths of 17 Mexicans who have died in U.S. Immigration and Customs (ICE) detention centers or in ICE operations since U.S. President Donald Trump returned to the White House in early 2025 and commenced an aggressive deportation campaign.

Sheinbaum speaking at a morning press conference on July 13, 2026
Sheinbaum said on Monday that the last Mexican to die in an ICE-related incident was “practically murdered.” (Juan Carlos Buenrostro/Presidencia)

Also of note was Sheinbaum’s response to a new National Human Rights Commission report that asserts that the Mexican army was not involved in the 2014 abduction and presumed murder of 43 young men who were studying to become teachers at a college in the southern state of Guerrero. The army has long been suspected of involvement in the case and soldiers and ex-soldiers have been arrested in connection with the crime, including a man who was detained in the United States last month.

Sheinbaum: SRE to file criminal complaints in US on Monday 

Sheinbaum told reporters that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (SRE) would file criminal complaints in the United States on Monday “due to the deaths of 17 compatriots” in the custody of ICE or in ICE operations.

She said that the SRE would file the complaints with the U.S. Department of Justice and with state Attorney General’s Offices. Foreign Affairs Minister Roberto Velasco first announced last Thursday that the SRE would file criminal complaints in the United States against “whoever is responsible” for the deaths of Mexicans under ICE custody or in ICE operations.

Sheinbaum said on Monday that the last Mexican to die in an ICE-related incident was “practically murdered.”

Lorenzo Salgado Araujo was shot by an ICE officer in Houston, Texas, last Tuesday.

Sheinbaum said that local authorities in Houston are investigating the incident, adding that “we understand” that the U.S. government is investigating as well.

She also said that Velasco had been in contact with U.S. Ambassador to Mexico Ron Johnson to inform him of what the Mexican government was planning to do to defend Mexicans in the United States.

“He was very understanding of our concern about alleged violations of human rights of Mexicans in detention centers, and also of three Mexicans who have died in ICE operations,” Sheinbaum said.

“… I think that this is an issue that isn’t just for the government of Mexico,” she said.

“I make a call to all the political parties, to all of society … to show solidarity with our compatriots in the United States,” Sheinbaum said.

“I don’t think that anyone thinks this situation is good,” she said.

“… I make this call and I hope you are receptive and all of us speak out in defense of Mexicans abroad.”

Sheinbaum distances Mexican government from new Ayotzinapa report 

A reporter asked the president about a new 867-page “recommendation” from the National Human Rights Commission (CNDH) related to the 2014 abduction and presumed murder in Guerrero of 43 students from the Ayotzinapa Rural Teachers’ College.

“What is your opinion? Because there is a lot of criticism, including from the parents [of the students] and civil society organizations that have pointed out [the CNDH] practically exonerates the army and dismisses the investigations that had already been carried out in relation to this case,” the reporter said.

Sheinbaum said she asked the Interior Ministry to carry out an “exhaustive review of the report in order to be able to present an opinion” on behalf of the government.

She stressed that the government “didn’t participate in any way in that report.”

“That has to be made very clear. The government of Mexico didn’t know [the CNHD] was going to publish last week. We didn’t participate in any way in the report. … We might agree, or might not agree, with parts of the report or its overall vision,” Sheinbaum said.

“That’s why I asked the Interior Ministry to do this analysis. What’s more important for us is obviously solidarity with the mothers and fathers and solving this case, which is a wound not just for the parents of the 43 Ayotzinapa students, but also for Mexico,” she said.

The president noted that various soldiers are detained in connection with the Ayotzinapa case and are subject to ongoing legal procedures.

“Maybe the question — which I don’t want to answer now — is whether these soldiers participated individually [in the crime] due to a link they may have had at this time with a group,” Sheinbaum said, apparently referring to the Guerreros Unidos crime gang.

She said that the alleged involvement of the army as an “institution” entailed “different questions.”

The CNDH asserted that Mexican soldiers didn’t participate in “any of the violent events against the students.”

Sheinbaum: No concerns about other automakers moving production out of Mexico 

In light of Toyota’s decision to move production of its Tacoma model from Tijuana to San Antonio, Texas, a reporter asked the president whether the government was concerned that other automakers with plants in Mexico could leave the country.

Toyota set to move production out of Tijuana and into Texas

Sheinbaum responded that the government wasn’t concerned, declaring that “on the contrary,” there is an automaker — which she didn’t name — that wants to establish a plant in Mexico. She said she would present information on that automaker’s plans either this week or next week.

Vehicles manufactured in Mexico are currently subject to a 25% tariff when shipped to the United States. However, U.S. content in Mexican vehicles is exempt from the duty, effectively lowering the tariff for virtually all vehicles shipped north.

By Mexico News Daily chief staff writer Peter Davies (peter.davies@mexiconewsdaily.com)

Road blockade drill scheduled for 1 pm in Guadalajara metro area

By
MND Staff
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Police standing in front of a road closure
Authorities have emphasized that although the road closures may cause slow traffic and delays across the city, they do not represent an actual risk to the public. (Gobierno de Michoacán/Cuartoscuro)

A road blockade drill will take place on Monday at seven access points to the Guadalajara metropolitan area, as part of a coordinated security and emergency response initiative involving authorities from all three levels of government. 

According to official notices, the drill will start at 1 p.m. and is expected to last for a couple of hours, though the duration may vary at each location.

Authorities will set up controlled roadblocks at the following entrances to the city to rehearse protocols for potential real closures due to violence, major accidents or other emergencies: 

  • Highway to Zacatecas
  • Highway to Saltillo
  • Highway to Lagos de Moreno
  • Highway to La Barca
  • Highway to Chapala
  • Highway to Colima
  • Highway to Vallarta

Authorities have emphasized that although the road closures may cause slow traffic and delays across the city, they do not represent an actual risk to the public.

Motorists are expected to allow emergency vehicles to pass during the operation and give them priority in locations where the drill will occur. They also request that residents remain calm, seek information through official channels and avoid sharing unverified information.  

Monday’s drill will take place almost five months after the road blockades that occurred on February 22 following a federal operation in Jalisco that led to the capture and death of Nemesio “El Mencho” Rubén Oseguera Cervantes, founder and top leader of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG)

During the operation, vehicles were set on fire and roads were closed in various parts of the state and the country. 

Mexico News Daily

The legacy of an icon: Frida Kahlo’s students

By
Lydia Leija
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Frida Kahlo with students circa 1943
Frida Kahlo wasn't just one of the greatest painters of the 20th century, she was also a teacher. She's pictured here with students, "Los Fridos," in Mexico City circa 1943. (@womensart1/X)

Mentioning a name as famous as Frida Kahlo’s can bring thousands of ideas to mind: from colors and flowers to art pieces. But there is a side of her that few people have seen, and even fewer have explored deeply. The artist, with her handful of passions and her unique way of seeing, couldn’t help but find herself on the path of teaching. This is the story.

Frida, the student

Kahlo was never an art student herself. Her terrible accident at age 18 prevented her from finishing high school, which she was attending at the National Preparatory School (Escuela Nacional Preparatoria) in Mexico City. She was one of the first female students to attend, one of 35 women among 2,000 men.

Regardless of what we know about her today, during her youth she wanted to go to a university to take a completely different path: medicine. Although she had no way of knowing what destiny was about to bring, she had been a child of ill health. Perhaps that made her interested in being a doctor. One day, coming home from school, an awful bus crash changed the course of her life. According to official medical records, Kahlo suffered from a “fracture of the third and fourth lumbar vertebrae; three pelvic fractures; fractures of the right foot; dislocation of the left elbow; a penetrating abdominal wound caused by an iron tube that entered through the left hip and exited through the vagina, tearing the left labium. Acute peritonitis. Cystitis with catheterization for several days.”

For a whole month, she stayed at the Red Cross facilities, waiting for her body to heal enough to go back home. After that, Kahlo had to stay at home for two years, which meant a brutal stop to her studies and a lot of time on her own. She felt asphyxiated by the plaster body casts and felt a growing desperation from not being able to leave her room. So, she began to paint.

From apprentice …

Having so much time alone became the seed for an activity that later became an obsession: the act of looking. At fruits, at animals, at herself. Even though she never attended a traditional art school, she had acquired skills from working at her father’s photographic workshop. She hand-painted black-and-white pictures and learned how light behaved on different surfaces.

Being in bed made Kahlo become the artist we know today. She turned her anxiety to know the world into a pictorial universe with a style so unique we are still trying to untangle it. While her self-portraits are her best-known artworks, there is a whole host of early still lifes that are entirely worth exploring.

… to master

Kahlo’s devotion to painting harnessed her passion into empirical knowledge that would later be passed down to her beloved students at the La Esmeralda School of Art. As with every other aspect of her life, her way of teaching was unconventional. She approached her students, affirming she was there to learn with them and that she had nothing to teach. According to them, this statement was far from the truth.

By 1942, when artist Antonio “El Corzito” Ruiz decided to create La Esmeralda, Kahlo had already lived many lives. She had divorced Diego Rivera once and married him twice; she had lived for periods of time in the U.S., and she had painted some of her most iconic pieces. To her, it was a surprise she was offered the teaching job; to everyone who knew her, it was not. She was in charge of “Pictorial Initiation” or, in other words, in charge of making students fall in love with painting.

‘Los Fridos’

Frida Kahlo with "Los Fridos"
Frida Kahlo taught her students the language of colors and shapes, and helped them to understand how artists look at life. (PBS)

If we said Kahlo created a school of painting, we would be wrong. Not that she wanted to, anyway. The first day she stepped into the classroom was going to change, unknowingly, the lives of some of her students.

From the start, Kahlo tried to make them speak the language of colors and shapes. Instead of giving them lectures filled with theory, she asked them questions: “How many colors do you see in this tree?” Throughout the lessons, she started unveiling her way of looking at life and transmitting it to her students. Unfortunately, her ill health made her unable to continue going to La Esmeralda, which was located in the Centro Histórico, far from her house in Coyoacán.

Lessons from ‘Casa Azul’

Nevertheless, Ruiz stopped her attempts to quit completely. “You have a really nice garden at home. Teach there.” At first, a modest number of students attended, but as classes went by, just four of them remained. Their presence in Kahlo’s famous “Casa Azul” gave Arturo Estrada, Arturo García Bustos, Guillermo Monroy and Fanny Rabel the nickname of “Los Fridos.”

When remembering these days in Coyoacán, all of them mention different details but the same feeling: the certainty that someone believed in their work as artists. Kahlo taught them much more than just painting. As they all came from less privileged backgrounds, she sometimes took them to the movies, gave them materials and even invited them on picnics with Rivera.

Estrada remembers the times Rivera and Kahlo took them to Teotihuacán in his memoir, written by Rodrigo Ortega Acoltzi:

“We went to Teotihuacán several times over the years. Our teacher used to say that to create modern art, we had to study our roots, understanding the past in order to portray the present and project the future.”

The mentor

Frida
Frida Kahlo’s legacy as a painter is forever secured, but her status as a teacher remains underrated. As of 2026, she still has one living student: 100-year-old Arturo Estrada. (Camila Ayala Benabib/Cuartoscuro.com)

She not only encouraged Los Fridos to see the world and paint it, but she also opened doors for them. Kahlo secured the walls of a “pulquería” (a place where pulque, an ancient alcoholic beverage, is sold) near her house. She made a deal with the owner: the materials would be provided by Rivera and her, but the work would be free. He agreed. When the murals were finally done, the owner threw a huge party attended by many Mexican intellectuals: Salvador Novo, Concha Michel, Carlos Pellicer and even Golden Age actress Dolores del Río. It was a party to remember.

Kahlo also helped García Bustos, Estrada and Monroy get funding to explore the Yucatán Peninsula and make drawings. The three of them had the opportunity to sleep in a yet-unexplored Uxmal and walk through the ruins next to field archaeologists. Their drawings became paintings that were later included in a collective art exhibition.

As for Fanny Rabel, Kahlo encouraged her by promoting her work since her first solo exhibition at the Liga Popular Israelita. She accompanied her and even participated in the curation of the event. For the exhibition’s introductory text, Kahlo wrote: “Fanny Rabinovich paints as she lives, with tremendous courage, intelligence and sharp sensitivity.”

Farewell to Frida

Frida Kahlo passed away on July 13, 1954, at age 47. Her funeral was held at the Palace of Fine Arts (Palacio de Bellas Artes) in Mexico City. During the ceremony, three of the four students were present. Reflecting her communist affiliation, García Bustos, Estrada and Monroy suggested to Rivera the idea of covering Kahlo’s coffin with the communist flag. This symbolic act was so controversial that André Iduarte, her lifelong friend and director of Bellas Artes, was fired after the ceremony.

Beyond the political drama and the grand funeral, Kahlo’s most enduring legacy walked out of Bellas Artes in the steps of her students. They spent the rest of their lives dedicated to the canvas. Decades later, Arturo Estrada — now 100 years old and the final living member of Los Fridos — is still actively creating art.

Lydia Leija is a linguist, journalist and visual storyteller. She has directed three feature films, and her audiovisual work has been featured in national and international media. She’s been part of National Geographic, Muy Interesante and Cosmopolitan.

Guadalajara’s water crisis reaches a boiling point

By
Tracy L. Barnett
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Woman holding up a sign protesting toxic Guadalajara tap water
The scope of Guadalajara's toxic water crisis has long been evident to residents, who have only to look at that's coming out of their taps to know it is toxic. (Victor Ibarra)

GUADALAJARA, Mexico — As the Jalisco government plans to spend more than 20 billion pesos to overhaul Guadalajara’s aging and long-neglected water system, residents across Mexico’s second-largest metropolitan area have launched an unprecedented effort to answer a more immediate question: What is coming out of their taps?

Working alongside university scientists, neighborhood volunteers have collected hundreds of water samples, documented hundreds of health complaints and built a citizen-led monitoring network that has become the public face of a water crisis authorities have yet to fully explain.

Water protests Guadalajara
Protests have continued in Guadalajara as city residents seek transparency and a voice in finding solutions. (Victor Ibarra)

Four months ago, under the banner “Mas Agua, Menos Mundial” (More Water, Less World Cup), hundreds of Guadalajara residents marched through the city center carrying bottles of murky tap water.

The citizen movement for transparency and accountability

Some held jars filled with brown sediment. Others described rashes, stomach illnesses and respiratory problems they believed were linked to the foul-smelling water flowing from their faucets. Children took turns smashing a piñata bearing the face of Jalisco Gov. Pablo Lemus as protesters chanted for accountability from SIAPA, the metropolitan water utility.

The next day, SIAPA’s director was gone.

Since March, the movement that hit the headlines with angry residents holding up bottles of dirty water has evolved into a broad citizen-led campaign that combines community science, public health advocacy, legal action and sustained public pressure. Through the citizen campaigns “The SIAPA We Want” and “Corrupt SIAPA,” neighborhood volunteers have trained as water monitors and collected hundreds of samples across the Guadalajara metropolitan area.

The effort is supported by the Mexican Institute for Community Development (IMDEC) and academics from ITESO, Guadalajara’s Jesuit university. Together, they have documented hundreds of health complaints, delivered technical reports to public health authorities and launched a coordinated legal campaign, all with the goal of forcing greater transparency about the quality of the water flowing from Guadalajara’s taps.

A collective complaint

In recent days, the coalition has filed a collective complaint backed by more than 1,500 signatures, along with a technical report, demanding that health authorities conduct independent testing and declare a preventive public health alert. Representatives of more than 30 neighborhood organizations, universities, environmental groups and labor unions delivered a technical report and petition to Jalisco’s health protection agency, COPRISJAL, as well as federal health authorities and Mexico’s National Institute of Public Health. Their demand was simple: stop asking citizens to trust reassurances and begin producing independent, transparent evidence about the quality of the water reaching people’s homes.

Water samples in Guadalajara to show the city's toxic water crisis
Water in Guadalajara comes in a variety of colors and consistencies, depending on the neighborhood from which it was sourced. Residents want answers on why it’s so dirty. (Victor Ibarra)

The campaign’s evolution mirrors a growing realization among many residents that replacing one official would not answer the questions that mattered most: Why was the water dirty? Was it making people sick? And why, months into the crisis, had authorities still not produced a comprehensive public diagnosis explaining what was happening throughout one of Mexico’s largest urban water systems?

Citizens become the water monitors

Perhaps the movement’s most remarkable achievement has been something few imagined only months ago. Residents have begun testing their own water.

Working with researchers from ITESO University, volunteers have trained as neighborhood water monitors and formed a Metropolitan Network of Community Water Monitors, learning how to collect samples, interpret results and document conditions across the Guadalajara Metropolitan Area (GMA).

Citizen science has become one of the movement’s defining characteristics. Rather than relying solely on protest or political pressure, residents have learned to gather evidence themselves. Volunteers receive training in standardized sampling methods and work alongside university researchers, not to replace accredited laboratories, but to identify potential risks, document patterns and press authorities to carry out the comprehensive testing that community groups argue should already be underway.

Their latest report analyzes 184 samples collected in 90 neighborhoods between March and June.

What testing results are showing

According to the citizen coalition organized under the banner, “El SIAPA que Queremos” (The SIAPA We Want), 93% of the samples showed no detectable residual chlorine — the disinfectant intended to provide a basic barrier against microbial contamination in drinking water. Community monitoring also detected lead, mercury, nitrates, fluorides and coliform bacteria in some samples, prompting demands for immediate testing by accredited laboratories.

 

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“We began these monitoring efforts because there is no official information from SIAPA, there is no transparency and we do not know what the water we are receiving contains,” Diego Rico of the Metropolitan Neighborhood Water Monitoring Network said during a press conference organized by the coalition at the state congress building this week.

The coalition emphasizes that it is not trying to replace government laboratories. Rather, organizers say citizen science has become necessary because residents have been left without reliable information about the water reaching their homes.

Environmental researcher Veyda Alcala of ITESO, who helped analyze the findings, put it this way: “Community evidence cannot be met with dismissal, silence or omission. It must be met with official verification, transparency, public health measures and accountability.”

She also warned that while boiling water can eliminate bacterial contamination, it does not remove heavy metals — and may actually concentrate them.

Two visions of the crisis

The citizen coalition’s demands come as the Jalisco government has publicly acknowledged the seriousness of the problem.

Earlier this week, Cabinet Chief Alberto Esquer acknowledged that water quality in Jalisco is “a real, historic problem” while unveiling a 30-point strategy involving more than 20 billion pesos (roughly $1 billion) in infrastructure investments.

The plan focuses on upgrading treatment plants, constructing a replacement Chapala-Guadalajara aqueduct, improving pumping systems and modernizing other parts of the metropolitan water network.

Critics say the government is proposing billion-peso engineering projects before answering a more immediate question: What is contaminating the water people are receiving today?

State Deputy Valeria Avila voiced that concern bluntly during Wednesday’s press conference.

“It seems the state government wants to solve everything through pipes and more money,” she said, arguing that lawmakers should not approve massive new investments until authorities fully explain the causes of the contamination and how residents will be protected in the meantime.

Systemic analysis is needed

Water engineer Arturo Gleason of the University of Guadalajara, who has written and spoken out extensively about the crisis, welcomed the fact that state officials have finally broken months of public silence.

But he argues that announcing major infrastructure projects without first conducting a comprehensive scientific diagnosis risks treating symptoms rather than causes. Authorities, he says, need to determine what is happening throughout the entire system — from Lake Chapala, the Calderon reservoir and groundwater wells to canals, treatment plants, storage tanks and Guadalajara’s 8,500-kilometer distribution network — before deciding which investments are needed.

From protest to public participation

"We want clean water" sign in Guadalajara protest
Guadalajara Metro Area residents want clean water, but they also want to know what’s in the water they’ve been drinking from the tap, and what the health consequences are. (Victor Ibarra)

The movement has also broadened beyond monitoring. Organizers say they have documented more than 900 citizen complaints since March, including reports of gastrointestinal, respiratory and skin ailments.

Their petition asks health authorities to establish a permanent working group on water quality and public health with citizen participation, conduct independent testing in affected neighborhoods, investigate why so many community samples lacked residual chlorine, determine the source of contaminants including lead and mercury, and declare a preventive public health alert under the precautionary principle rather than waiting for more people to become ill.

The campaign will continue throughout July with the so-called Citizen Mobilization Days for Clean Water and Health, including events at the state and national human rights commissions, a citizen evaluation of SIAPA’s new director and demonstrations calling for accountability in unresolved corruption cases involving former SIAPA directors.

Inviting more people into the process

Even SIAPA’s own workers acknowledge the depth of the problem.

“It is not the workers’ fault,” said Jose Gonzalez Gonzalez, secretary of the utility workers’ union. “We lack vehicles, materials and supplies. We are the ones who face the public every day, and we recognize that access to water is a human right. But if workers don’t have the tools they need, how can we guarantee that supply?”

The coalition insists it is not asking the public to accept its conclusions without question. Instead, organizers say they want government institutions to do what they believe should have happened months ago: conduct transparent testing, release the results publicly and invite independent experts and citizens into the process.

“If authorities insist the water is safe,” Maria Gonzalez of the Mexican Institute for Community Development (IMDEC), one of the movement’s organizers, said this week, “let them prove it with public data, independent sampling and verifiable results.”

Tracy L. Barnett is a Guadalajara-based freelance writer and the founder of The Esperanza Project.

The complete summer guide to Mexican beer, from premium producers to economic impacts

By
MND Staff
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2
The top 10 best-selling Mexicn beers
Mexico's is the world's biggest beer exporter, and sells some of the globe's most instantly recognizable brands. (Created with Gemini)

Mexico has built a global beer empire, turning a historic brewing tradition into massive economic power. From sun-drenched ads to the top of U.S. sales charts, Mexican beers have grown from local refreshments into global cultural and financial powerhouses.

This guide dives into the vibrant world of Mexican beer. We explore local drinking habits, decode quirky bottle names and highlight major sales milestones. We also look at how mega-events like the FIFA World Cup trigger record-breaking local retail booms, and track century-old favorites like Corona, Modelo and Victoria that continue to remain relevant.

Finally, we look at the shifting population trends and smart marketing moves that helped brands like Modelo Especial win over international drinkers, crowning Mexico as the undisputed king of beer exports.

The numbers that define the Mexican beer industry

Mexico in Numbers: Mexican beer from coronitas to caguamones

Impressive data backs Mexico’s status as the world’s top beer exporter, a position that brought in US $6.72 billion in 2024 alone. At home, beer easily wins as the country’s favorite alcoholic drink. In fact, 69% of adult Mexicans choose beer over other alcohol, drinking an average of nearly 80 liters per person every year.

Mexican drinkers also use a colorful local vocabulary for bottle sizes. Locals choose between 210-ml mini bottles (called coronitas or ampolletas) and standard 355-ml medias. For bigger parties, drinkers buy massive 940-ml bottles called caguamas (named after loggerhead turtles) or giant 1.2-liter caguamones.

Despite this deep local identity, two foreign brewing giants dominate Mexico’s commercial market: AB InBev (which bought Grupo Modelo) and Heineken México (which runs famous brands like Tecate and Dos Equis).

A taste-quenching World Cup windfall

More than half of Mexico’s expected economic windfall from the World Cup will be from beer sales

The ongoing 2026 FIFA World Cup has triggered a massive retail boom across Mexico, and beer sales are leading the charge. Data from Deloitte shows that beer sales will drive a staggering 55% to 65% of the tournament’s total economic boost. Major host cities like Mexico City, Guadalajara and Monterrey expected a 10% spike in sales — or triple the normal profits.

However, delivering enough beer to eager locals and tourists created a massive shipping challenge. Wholesalers and supply chain networks had to react fast, expanding their delivery fleets by up to 25% to prevent empty shelves. Overall, the tournament pumped a projected US $2.73 billion into the economy, proving that beer acts as a main engine for Mexico’s hospitality industry.

Mexico’s most iconic beer

Made in Mexico: Corona

Corona Extra celebrated its 100th anniversary in 2025. Today, it stands as a global symbol of Mexican pride and brilliant marketing, holding the title of the world’s most valuable beer brand at US $13.4 billion.

Cervecería Modelo launched Corona in 1925. Early brewers successfully convinced the public to switch from pulque (a traditional, pre-Hispanic drink) to light, European-style lagers by using smart, cleanliness-focused ad campaigns.

The company deliberately chose Corona’s famous clear-glass bottle to show off the beer’s bright golden color. Combined with great storytelling — including golden-age radio shows starring cultural icons like Pedro Infante — the brand wove itself into daily Mexican life. Today, even after an antitrust split forced AB InBev and Constellation Brands to divide U.S. and global distribution, Corona still dominates worldwide. It is also expanding into new areas, like the alcohol-free Corona Cero and freshwater cleanup projects.

Mexico’s brewing history: How it all started, and the oldest surviving brand

The oldest beer in Mexico – and still one of the best

Established by Agustín Marendaz in 1865, Victoria holds the prestigious crown as Mexico’s oldest continuously brewed beer brand. Unlike the lighter pilseners that dominate much of the modern market, Victoria is a traditional Vienna-style lager characterized by its rich amber hue, smooth texture and deep, crisp flavor profile. This historic style was originally brought to Mexico by Swiss and German immigrants during the 19th century, heavily influencing the country’s evolving palate before disappearing in its native Europe.

Acquired by Grupo Modelo in 1935, Victoria has maintained immense popularity for over a century and a half through savvy marketing campaigns celebrating Mexico’s unique mestizo heritage, diversity and cultural inclusion. Instantly recognizable by its classic yellow label featuring King Gambrinus, Victoria remains a dominant domestic force and a sentimental favorite that seamlessly bridges Mexico’s deep historical brewing roots with modern beachside relaxation.

How Modelo conquered the US market

How Mexico’s Modelo Especial became the most popular beer in the US

In a historic shift for the beverage industry, Modelo Especial passed Bud Light to become the number-one best-selling beer in the United States in 2024, maintaining its crown through a combination of cultural momentum and strategic execution. While a highly publicized political backlash heavily impacted Bud Light’s market share, Modelo’s ascension was already a long-term trend driven by powerful shifting demographics.

The steady growth of a younger, highly diverse Latino population in the United States created a robust consumer base that premium Mexican brands actively thirsted for. Furthermore, distributor Constellation Brands executed a masterclass in marketing by intentionally positioning Modelo toward a broader, multicultural audience, using high-profile sports sponsorships with the UFC and college football to highlight the brand’s core theme of “fighting spirit.”

Only brewed in Mexico, Modelo Especial passed its own centenary as a dual-market champion, leading in sales revenue both at home and abroad (although it has since been passed in volume by Michelob Ultra).

Mexico News Daily

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