Respect Mexican Culture! Wear a Mask!

Over the last few years since Covid started, you've had plenty of people bitching about foreigners coming to Mexico City for various reasons.

While some of the complaints are more valid, others are just meant to be "bitching points" simply because said Mexican or foreigner doesn't like the sight of other foreigners in the area at all.

One of the "bitching points" though has to do with the use of the face mask in public when walking outside.

It's this idea that only foreigners don't wear masks in Mexico City and that it is "Mexican culture" to wear a mask as I have seen some (only non-Mexicans) argue.

Which I find a bit ironic because over half of those bitching about this are left-leaning foreigners themselves.

And, when a Mexican bitches about it, I find it even more ironic because they don't realize that Mexico won't give the vaccine to non-resident foreigners who live in Mexico (call them illegal immigrants or not, they live here and so you can't bitch about the mask if your country won't give them a vaccine).

Which isn't to say those vaccinated don't spread Covid. They do!

But with over 62% of Mexico's population now vaccinated and 91% of the population in CDMX having gotten the first shot as of August 17, 2021 you can read here (and likely many more since then), shouldn't we be thinking of a future where people don't wear a mask anymore?

But, if we're being honest, those bitching the most about the mask don't want us to drop it at all ever.

I guarantee you that.

You could have 100% of everyone vaccinated by Fauci personally and they'd still bitch about "the mask."

In part because it's a way for some folks to sit on a high horse judging others and also, when it comes to foreigners, it serves as a good "bitching point" to cover a deeper xenophobia where those bitching just don't want to see us in their country period.

Regardless, I figured I would tackle this issue a handful of days ago.

Last Monday, I was running around Mexico City looking for TRT.

Oddly enough, there seems to be a shortage of a particular brand of TRT where the company hasn't sent any new doses in for two months now.

You can get the more expensive shit at more expensive pharmacies but you can't get the cheap shit sold at the cheapest brand pharmacies in Mexico City.

And I went all over the city looking for the cheaper shit only to have the bad luck of having to go for the expensive brand.

No pharmacy I went to (about 12) had what I was looking for regardless of the neighborhood I went to (poor or rich).

Anyway, one lady told me that they might have it in a few weeks (sometime in May, she said).

We'll see!

Meanwhile, as I was walking around, I noticed something particular as it relates to the topic of this article today.

That is how many Mexicans I saw not wearing a mask!

Not only that but I also saw Mexicans entering shops without a mask, big malls not giving me hand gel anymore or requiring I only enter or exit through certain doors, etc.

In effect, it makes you wonder why people are bitching about us foreigners not wearing a mask when so many Mexicans are not either!

Granted, the "compliance" that Mexicans show for the mask depends on the neighborhood you are in.

While I don't personally give a shit if you wear a mask or not, I figured I might as well start counting the amount of Mexicans not wearing a mask since I saw ANOTHER post on Facebook by another snobby foreigner saying it's only us not wearing a mask.

And, keep in mind, as I was counting the amount of people not wearing a mask, there were some difficulties.

For one, I wasn't able to count every single person because some areas just had A LOT of people not wearing one that it was hard to keep track.

Second, I obviously don't have a tool to tell me who is Mexican or not but it's easier to guess so when you are in a neighborhood that typically doesn't have other foreigners.

On that point, I also just assumed anyone I saw who was "too white" (being hair that wasn't black), anyone who was black or Asian, anyone "dressing like a tourist" or speaking a foreign language as not a Mexican.

For the most part, guessing who is Mexican or not was easy enough (especially in areas with no foreigners).

Third, I didn't count the Mexicans who had a mask on but were not covering their nose. While I guess I should have, I didn't feel like taking easy shots like that (no need to, plenty others were not wearing one).

Fourth, at some point I started counting the number of people who were wearing a mask to compare that number to those who were not. When I did that, I didn't count taxi drivers or bus drivers because I assumed they are forced to.

But if I saw a driver in his own vehicle with the windows shut and nobody else inside driving with a mask on, I thought "fucking pussy."

That's the type of man who asks his wife "may I thrust again?"

Anyway, let's get into the four different neighborhoods I walked through.

A Walk by Metro Insurgentes: Roma & Rosa

So as I was looking for TRT, I got onto the metro to ride over to Metro Insurgentes.

Along the way over, I did notice a few Mexicans on the ride up north that were not wearing a mask inside the train.

Which has been a minor and pleasant surprise to me because, for a while now, everyone was wearing a mask on the train.

It's still technically "required" but, once you are on the train, nobody gives you shit for not wearing a mask (unless a cop gets on the train maybe but even then some of them don't wear a mask).

Hopefully they do drop the fucking mask from the train because of how hot it makes you when thrown inside with a hundred people.

Though, when they drop it, I'm sure they'll try to save money by dropping the extra air ventilation they've been using in the metro the last few years but that's beside the point!

Anyway, I finally arrived to Metro Insurgentes.

Went to one pharmacy in Rosa area and they said that they didn't have TRT.

Along the walk back to Metro Insurgentes, I figured to check out the 3 pharmacies I know of that sell them cheaply in Roma Norte area.

Along the walk back, I noticed how many Mexicans were not wearing a mask (street vendors, locals walking by, a nearby band getting ready to play, etc) that it reminded me of that Facebook post I saw recently of a foreigner bitching about foreigners not wearing a mask.

So it struck me in this moment to begin counting all the people not wearing a mask as I walked by a Starbucks in Rosa area while heading towards Metro Insurgentes.

It was this particular area closer to Metro Insurgentes where it got harder to count every single person not wearing a mask because there were quite a few and LOTS of people walking all around me.

To be fair, the vendors were the easiest to count not wearing a mask because 1) they're obviously not foreigners and 2) they almost never wore a mask.

Among the walking population, you had more folks wearing one but plenty who were not.

And, as I got to Metro Insurgentes again, I noticed some folks who were obviously foreigners.

Like this one blonde looking chick who looked like Penny Pax (a porn gal who, in this one video, gets her holes fucked by an apartment burglar. Highly recommended!).

Obviously, she's not a Mexican!

But I didn't really see that many other "obvious non-Mexicans" in the spot between Rosa and Metro Insurgentes.

Once I got to Roma Norte, I saw a few here and there but they didn't make up most of the people I saw.

Despite all the talk about how "foreigners have invaded Roma Norte," I didn't see it in this area.

I have lived there and saw foreigners and that's one of the places to be to see them but I didn't see many outside in public on that day.

Among those I did see, I remember seeing one random Asian chick, a gay looking black dude, a black woman who could've been in her 40s and a small group of 3 white looking dudes.

Among all of those foreigners, the only ones wearing a mask was the gay black dude and the mature black woman.

Though the gay looking black dude technically wasn't wearing his since the mask was down to his chin.

There was also one chick who kinda looked like a potential foreigner in the distance but, as I walked closer to her, I heard her speaking in Spanish in a local accent that didn't sound like a typical gringo accent.

So who knows!

She was not wearing a mask.

Mexican?

Shit, maybe she was Argentine or Colombian!

I don't know.

Anyway, to cut the foreplay, let's get to it.

I probably spent about 30 minutes total walking in this area as I checked out various pharmacies and bought some tea at a nearby OXXO.

In short, I counted 583 people who "passed as Mexican" that were not wearing a mask.

Which, while there are Mexicans of various skin colors, you know what I mean.

None that looked or sounded "obviously foreigner."

One trend I saw anyway was that those who looked like they had less money tended to not wear the mask as much as those who did (not counting those who were sitting down to eat).

Perhaps a bit ironic there because those bitching at us for not wearing a mask often frame it as "you are hurting the poor Mexicans who can't afford a hospital visit!!!"

Meanwhile, it's more often those who look like they carry more change than paper that are not wearing a mask.

Though you had plenty of those who looked "more comfortable" not wearing one either.

But no shortage anyway of street vendors, local "tacos de pastor" dudes and whoever else not wearing a mask.

So are you all just speaking for a group of people who don't give a fuck about Covid either?

Can some of you shut the fuck up now about how "we are hurting poor people" when it's more often the poorer ones who choose not to wear it?

Anyway, during my walk, I also noticed more people not wearing a mask inside stores either.

In one of the pharmacies I went to, one of the ladies behind the counter had her mask on her chin as she took me in.

No hand gel given to me either.

No fucks given about Covid by someone in a job focused on healthcare.

Nor fucks given by those walking into an OXXO as I saw a few here and there not wearing a mask inside either as I went to buy some tea.

And when it comes to the metro...

As I returned to Metro Insurgentes to ride south, some of them on the metro also where even some metro cops I saw and some more folks not wearing a mask inside the metro.

Some of whom took the mask off right in front of the cops as they used their metro card to get inside.

Got to wear that mask to use your card but take it off once you get passed them.

And the metro cops didn't give a fuck.

Now, having said that, this is just two areas of Mexico City: Rosa & Roma.

What about an area with less foreigners?

Santo Domingo & Ajusco

Both of these areas are in the south side of Mexico City of Coyoacan.

They are neighborhoods that border right each other.

I know both areas quite well and I don't need to start counting heads to tell you that a lot of people here don't give a flying fuck about Covid.

While you MIGHT get told to wear a mask in an OXXO in Roma Norte (though not last Monday, I suppose), basically almost nobody in Santo Domingo will tell you to put it on before entering a store.

A few might have a "put on a mask" sign at the front but they don't enforce it and quite often don't have a mask on themselves.

You might find one or two stores that enforce a "mask rule" though but I've never been told to put on a mask down here by anyone.

In fact, when Covid started, I returned to Mexico City after living in a city called Pachuca as I wrote here.

First arrived to Roma Norte before moving to Santo Domingo for the first time.

They were complete opposites.

Areas like Roma Norte or Centro Historico had 95% or more of the locals wearing a mask while maybe 50% to 60% of the locals in Santo Domingo were.

Stores closed in Roma Norte (except for taking out) but plenty of places open initially in Santo Domingo.

They eventually started to get "a tiny bit stricter" in Santo Domingo and health authorities started focusing on the area due to rising Covid numbers but half of the locals still didn't have many fucks to give.

Nowadays about a year and a half later since I first arrived to the area, what is it like now?

Again, I don't have to count heads to tell you that a good number of folks don't give a fuck about Covid but I counted heads for you anyway.

I ended up walking from Metro CU area to a Soriana located on Avenida Aztecas in Ajusco.

I walk fast so the walk was maybe 40 minutes more or less.

Probably a little less.

As I was walking, I found it a tiny bit easier to count heads because I didn't have to take a wild guess as to who is a foreigner or not.

This area doesn't get many gringos.

In fact, I maybe see another "gringo looking suspect" here once every 5 months.

Which means I might have seen 2 in total.

Out of anyone who could be a foreigner here, you might have some Latin Americans of other countries like Colombia who are young and are students given the university UNAM is nearby but they're not as common as the locals obviously.

And you can't really tell them apart from others unless you hear their accent or something but they are not worth bringing up.

Otherwise, the only "obvious looking" foreigner are the Haitians and Jamaicans.

Which, as I wrote here, moved into the area but, over the last few months, I have seen less and less of them.

Still, if you hear someone speaking English in a funny accent (Jamaican) or who is black in general in this area, you can guess that it's a foreigner.

But they're not much to think about as most are locals obviously.

So it was a tiny bit easier to count heads walking to Soriana (especially as I got to Ajusco where you don't see black folks).

Anyway, what's the damage?

First, like I said before, absolutely no fucks are given if you enter any store without a mask (except MAYBE one or two but that's it).

Second, a lot more store employees and owners don't wear masks either.

Third, when I got to the Soriana and the mall it is inside of, I didn't go through the usual "anti-Covid" measures they had me go through before.

That means no temperature checks, nothing to clean my shoes with, no hand gel and nobody telling me to only enter and exit through certain doors.

Also, when inside the mall, it was a lot more common to see people inside the mall not wearing a mask (even if they have some official rule saying people are required to).

Fourth, you saw a lot more grandmas and grandpas (99 year old looking people) without a mask on.

No fucks given.

Even grandmas of Santo Domingo have less fucks to give than your left-leaning foreigner scared shitless of Covid and who uses the issue to bludgeon others.

Fifth, I also go to a gym in this area. I can tell you a vast majority of people (including the employees and owner) don't wear a mask inside.

OBVIOUSLY MOST DON'T WEAR A MASK INSIDE A GYM.

But it wouldn't surprise me if gyms of Roma Norte still requiring it.

Gyms that probably play Taylor Swift instead of Tego Calderon...

Finally, what were the numbers?

Well, I counted a total of 724 people who were not wearing a mask during the 35 to 40 minute walk.

As a side point -- since part of this story involves TRT -- I wasn't able to find TRT at the pharmacy next to the Soriana either.

I ended up looking for black tea also in the Soriana but they ran out of that also.

Ah Latin America -- a place where people run out of shit all the fucking time.

Though I guess I can't be shitting on Latin America for always running out of things when the US is having issues with baby formula in 2022.

At least not for right now!

Anyway, after my failure to get either TRT or black tea (what an adventure!), I took a walk back to my apartment.

Along the walk back, I also ordered some chimichangas.

Which involved waiting a total of 10 to 15 minutes more sitting on a chair.

Therefore, as I walked back to my place, it probably took me closer to 45 to 55 minutes.

During that entire time, I decided to do the opposite: count the people with a mask on!

Like I said before, I didn't count those driving a bus or a taxi that had passengers because I can only assume that they are required to do so.

And, if I saw someone with a mask on their chin but they lifted it back up to their mouth as we crossed paths, I didn't count that either.

People wearing a mask incorrectly by not covering the nose? ALSO INCLUDED IN THE MASK GROUP.

So how many people had the mask on during the 45 to 55 minute trip back home?

About 402.

And, keep in mind, that's within a 45 to 55 minute trip versus the 724 who were not wearing a mask within the 35 to 40 minute trip.

So it's not fair to compare both numbers as to what the exact percentage is of those not wearing a mask in this general area from Santo Domingo to Ajusco because assumingly I'd have seen even more people not wearing a mask if I had walked for an extra 10 minutes or so. 

Mathematics

If I were to do the math though, it'd mean 35.7% were wearing a mask and 64.3% were not wearing a mask (402 divided by 1126 and then x 100).

Which, to be fair, "sounds a bit low."

If I had to take a guess as to how many people are wearing a mask outside, I'd say it probably leans more in the range of 40% to 45%.

At most, 50% but that is being generous.

Still, like I said, I gave the "mask group" an extra 10 to 15 minutes of exposure time so maybe that 35.7% should be lower actually.

When it comes to Roma Norte for comparison sakes, I didn't count how many were wearing a mask but, if I had to guess based on what I saw and what "feels" accurate, maybe 60% of the population was?

Of course, when it comes to Roma Norte, one could argue it's a little bit unfair to be counting the street vendors, employees and street food cooks because they come don't likely live in Roma Norte and are not residents of the neighborhood.

Whereas, in contrast to Santo Domingo, I'd say most people I saw in my neighborhood PROBABLY live here or close to here as you'd have more people commuting to work to Roma Norte due to the higher abundance of better paying jobs.

After all, if you walk around Roma Norte, it is more common to see "more normal folks" with less money not wearing a mask (be it the street vendors, street food cooks, the cleaning people sweeping the streets, etc).

Even when you go back to Santo Domingo and Ajusco, it is known that Ajusco is a nicer area to live in than Santo Domingo.

More developed.

It's not a "fresa" area by any stretch of the imagination but it is nicer than Santo Domingo.

And, to my lack of surprise, obviously the percentage of people wearing a mask in Ajusco felt a tiny bit higher than what I saw in Santo Domingo.

Though, even in Ajusco, obviously the amount of fucks given about Covid has dropped a bit as we saw in Soriana and the shopping mall it's located in.

Anyway, let's bring up one last thing.

Moving Outside of Santo Domingo: Other Areas of Mexico City

Loyal readers know I'm no stranger to other parts of Mexico City and I no longer live in Santo Domingo. 

In fact, I spend most of my time in non-touristy areas around the city.

Be it Pantitlan, Tepito, Gustavo A. Madero, Azcapotzalco, Metro La Viga area, etc

Just not too long ago, I went to some event in Agricola Oriental of Mexico City.

And as I also do not live in Santo Domingo anymore and have moved onto another non-touristy area of the city (somewhere up north), I also see a smaller number of locals wearing a mask.

While I haven't done "head counting" for these other areas as to how many people wear a mask or not, I'd say that other areas kinda resemble Ajusco in this sense.

In that more and more Mexicans are having less fucks to give about Covid and maybe not even following the "Covid recommendations" on mask and all with nobody trying to enforce it on them.

Be it on the metro in other parts of the city with metro cops or the occasional person not wearing a mask.

Places (even pharmacies) no longer making me use hand gel or temperature check to get inside.

Employees not wearing a mask.

Though, in some places, they might put on one as they see you walking in (even though they had it off while talking to other employees who also had a mask off).

More and more people outside (who obviously are not foreigners) that are not wearing a mask.

Still, let's wrap this up.

Final Thoughts

So let's get to it: are foreigners guilty of not wearing a mask?

Are they terrible in comparison to Mexicans?

In fact, with all the Facebook comments I have seen over the last two years about this, I have even seen left-leaning foreigners claim that -- with these EXACT words -- "wearing a mask is Mexican culture."

You ain't even Mexican and you claiming that this is Mexican culture?

Regardless, while I wasn't able to get a strong "informal" sample size of the amount of foreigners outside given most folks I saw were not "obvious looking" foreigners, I will say that, out of the less than a dozen foreigners I saw, two of them had a mask on (with one wearing it at his chin actually).

Still, I didn't count the heads of hundreds of foreigners to get an idea of how many don't wear a mask.

Given all of the ones bitching about us not wearing a mask, you'd think it's a decent percentage of the foreigner population?

When I last lived in Roma Norte over a year ago, it wasn't uncommon to find both groups of people though.

Foreigners choosing to wear a mask outside always and those who left for Mexico City to avoid Covid restrictions back home.

Anyway, I can't tell you what percentages wear a mask or not constantly outside (and I'm not counting those eating at a restaurant because how the fuck do you eat while wearing a mask? Plenty of Mexicans eat out too).

And, among my social circle of friends, it mostly involves Mexicans but a few foreigners I hang with personally.

None of the foreigners I hang with wear a mask but none of the Mexicans I hang with wear one either.

Both groups hate the mask.

And, as we saw with the numbers above, it is obviously not "Mexican culture" to be wearing a mask.

It's not that I judge you for wearing a mask as I'm only judging those who can't stop using this issue as a way to bludgeon those they hate to feel better about themselves.

Wear a mask. Or don't. I don't actually give a fuck. Just leave me alone.

And, more importantly, stop using this talking point about how it's only us foreigners not wearing a mask when:

1. Be it  you like it or not, the mask is going away someday.

2. Mexico doesn't even give non-residents the vaccine even though a strong majority of those in CDMX and broader Mexico have been vaccinated and non-residents live here too and can spread it or go to the hospital like anyone else.

3. You cry out against the foreigners not wearing a mask because it hurts poor people but, very clearly from what I saw that day and ever since Covid started, those who have the least fucks to give about Covid are from more humble backgrounds (and, to be fair, young people of most socioeconomic backgrounds that like to party also don't care too much).

4. And wearing a mask is not "Mexican culture" as there's no shortage of Mexicans not wearing a mask. In fact, I saw a total of 1,307 not wear one within an hour and 20 minutes of walking more or less. And let's not forget those not enforcing anymore certain "anti-Covid" rules to fight the spread (like hand gel usage, temperature checks, etc).

Above all, wear the mask. Don't wear the mask. Go snort cocaine off a hooker's ass (illegal activity not encouraged here).

HOOKERS AND COCAINE LOTTERY VIDEO HERE

Do whatever you want!

Leave me alone and drop the xenophobia (for the few Mexicans out there) or the self-hatred (for some of the gringos also).

And thanks for reading.

Follow my Twitter here.

Best regards,

Matt