A group of anti-gentrification protesters vandalized the contemporary art museum at the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM) on Sunday, July 20, as demonstrations against rising housing costs and the displacement of local residents continue throughout Mexico City. The incident has sparked widespread debate about protest tactics and the broader housing crisis affecting the capital.
Black bloc protesters first vandalized campus buildings with graffiti and broke windows before making their way to the cultural center that houses the Museo Universitario Arte Contemporáneo (MUAC), along with a concert hall, several theaters, and other facilities including the Julio Torri Bookstore. The demonstrators broke into and ransacked the bookstore during their protest.
The protesters caused significant damage to the museum's exterior, smashing the glass balustrade that surrounds the building's distinctive angled facade and cracking approximately six tempered glass panels. The damaged glass panels hung dangerously near a small pile of burning books on the esplanade. The demonstrators also spray-painted graffiti on Rufino Tamayo's monumental outdoor sculpture "La Espiga" from 1980, which stands outside the museum. Despite the extensive exterior damage, protesters did not manage to enter the museum building itself, and no artworks inside the facility were harmed.
According to Náme Villa del Ángel, one of the protest organizers, the demonstration was not originally intended to reach the UNAM campus. The protesters had deviated from their planned route after being harassed and surrounded by riot police using kettling tactics. The day before the incident, organizers had specifically called for a peaceful protest on social media platforms, expressing concern that the march might face attempts to discredit their cause.
The timing of the protest coincided with UNAM's three-week summer break, leaving the campus largely deserted. Police officers, who typically do not enter the university campus due to UNAM's self-governing status—though they are not legally prohibited from doing so—were no longer present when the demonstrators arrived at the MUAC. This autonomous status has historically protected the university from outside interference.
The extent of the damage and the perceived disconnect between the protesters' cause and the museum's public mission generated extensive local media coverage. On July 22, a group of prominent academics and artists issued a statement condemning the vandalism and demanding clarification about the origins of these destructive acts. Among the signatories was Graciela de la Torre, a former director of MUAC.
Artist Magali Lara, whose career retrospective exhibition is currently on display at MUAC and visible from gallery windows facing the damaged esplanade, also signed the statement. Lara expressed skepticism about the protesters' true motives, stating, "It looks more like shock groups than a real protest." She was referring to Mexico's historical use of paid agitator groups designed to undermine legitimate social causes. "I think it is very dangerous that the UNAM or any other public institution be exposed in this manner to groups that are bent, it appears to me, on destruction," Lara added.
The reference to "shock groups" carries particular weight in Mexican history. The most notorious of these groups was the Halcones (Falcons), a paramilitary organization involved in the Corpus Christi massacre of June 10, 1971. During that incident, a student protest advocating for university self-governance ended in bloodshed. The event, known as the Halconazo, marked the beginning of Mexico's "dirty wars" period, characterized by increased social repression throughout the country.
However, supporters of the anti-gentrification movement defended the protests within the broader context of citywide disputes over public space, water access, and housing availability. "There is a lot of anger, there is a lot of outrage," Villa del Ángel explained. "Contemporary art represents elitism and an elitization of spaces that were initially created for the working class, like the UNAM."
The impact of gentrification in Mexico City has profoundly affected many residents, though the root causes remain a subject of intense political debate. A measurable increase in demand for short-term rentals, particularly through platforms like Airbnb, in centrally located trendy neighborhoods has fueled perceptions that digital nomads are driving the crisis. These remote workers, who earn salaries in stronger currencies than the Mexican peso while living in the city, are often blamed for displacing less affluent renters to the city's periphery.
Graffiti left by protesters included messages such as "Mexico for Mexicans" on the floor and slogans on the bookstore windows reading "Housing is a right, not a business" and "Dignified housing for workers." One protest sign visible in photographs read, "We are fighting for dignified housing for Mexicans."
This incident marks the second time in less than a year that the MUAC building has been targeted during demonstrations. Last fall, an exhibition by Argentine artist Ana Gallardo generated protests due to its inclusion of derogatory language toward elderly sex workers. In response to those protests, the museum issued an apology, removed two artworks from public view, and organized a series of public programs in collaboration with the offended parties.
While expressing sympathy for the anti-gentrification movement's goals, Lara remained skeptical that the recent protests would effectively advance the cause. "We live in a complicated moment. But that does not justify the destruction of an institution whose function has to do with learning, connection, critique, and dialogue," she said. "The MUAC may have many flaws, but not these."
The aftermath of the protest left caution tape surrounding the area near Tamayo's sculpture, and workers began assessing the full extent of the damage to the building's glass facade and other vandalized areas. The incident has reignited discussions about appropriate protest tactics, the relationship between cultural institutions and social movements, and the ongoing housing crisis that continues to reshape Mexico City's urban landscape.
