Mexico City coexists with data and emotion, numeralia and the crowd. Its ability to summon thousands to enjoy without tension and recognize in public space a reason for shared pride contrasts with the perception data.
While the National Urban Public Security Survey (ENSU) of the INEGI indicates an uptick in the perception of insecurity, the city shows a social, tourist and economic force that does not fit with the idea of an unsafe city.
The phenomenon is not new. The national capital is going through a stage of civic, institutional and business coordination translated into global scale events, among them the Formula 1 Grand Prix, which once again filled hotels, restaurants and streets with economic energy.
How is this duality explained? The answer lies in the difference between statistical perception and practical confidence. The philosopher Jürgen Habermas maintained that the public sphere is not reduced to opinion, but is built on communicative action, on the agreements between citizens and institutions to coexist in the same space. Large events are not simple spectacles, but exercises in social trust. Thousands of people in a peaceful mass event imply a tacit pact between the government, citizens and the private sector.
Clara Brugada’s management at the head of the capital government has inherited a city with a more consolidated security infrastructure. Formula 1, every year, puts the capital to the test and, every year, it also overcomes the challenge. There is no more accurate indicator of satisfaction than the return of visitors.
In addition to the economic benefit estimated at nearly 21 billion pesos, there is a benefit of confidence. The Grand Prix not only generates income, it produces a story: that of a city capable of organizing, protecting and exhibiting its diversity.
The images of the parade of pilots, the ordered accesses to the Hermanos Rodríguez Autódromo, The thousands of people passing through calmly, the emergency services ready without incident, the video surveillance from one of the two mobile units of the C5 constitute a visual narrative of stability. This narrative is contrasted with the ENSU’s dry figure, which does not capture the collective experience. There is a substantial difference between what people fear and what they actually experience.
The future of CDMX as a global capital does not depend on denying the ENSU data, but on interpreting it in its context. The survey measures individual fears, the events measure trust that can be translated into investment: when people go out, participate and enjoy, they activate the local economy and legitimize public action. The Grand Prix is one of the most sophisticated expressions of urban wellness economics.
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