CULIACAN, Mexico — Thousands of residents dressed in white swarmed the streets of Culiacan on Sunday, transforming the capital of Sinaloa into a sea of peaceful defiance against a brutal cartel war that has paralyzed the region. Carrying banners and chanting “We want peace,” protesters marched toward the city’s historic cathedral to demand an end to a conflict that has held the state hostage for months.
The demonstration, organized by a coalition of the Catholic Church, local business leaders, and families of the missing, served as a poignant rejection of the daily violence that has become the city’s new, grim normal. Since September 2024, Culiacan has been the epicenter of a vicious power struggle between factions loyal to the families of imprisoned Sinaloa Cartel co-founders Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman and Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada. The feud, ignited by internal accusations of betrayal, has left over 3,000 people dead in the last two years, many of them civilians caught in the crossfire.
“We don’t want any more deaths like this, any more murders,” said 62-year-old Maricela Perez, who marched while clutching a framed photograph of her 36-year-old son, Miguel, who was gunned down on a local volleyball court in May.
The atmosphere in the city is one of deep exhaustion. As the marchers released white balloons into the sky, the sense of abandonment was palpable. “We feel abandoned, and we believe this march is a way to express that, despite the passage of time, we have not normalized the violence,” said 33-year-old Marlene Leon.
Culiacan’s Bishop, Jesus Jose Herrera, issued a desperate plea to the warring factions during the procession. “No territory and no ambition is worth more than a human life,” he declared, echoing the sentiments of a population reeling from the closure of over 5,000 businesses and the indefinite suspension of school classes.
The security crisis has put immense pressure on the administration of President Claudia Sheinbaum. Despite the deployment of thousands of federal soldiers, the government has struggled to regain control, with at least seven people killed as recently as Saturday. The frustration with the state’s response reached a boiling point during the protest, where some marchers directed slogans at the President and burned a cardboard effigy in her likeness.
The humanitarian catastrophe has also gained international attention. U.S. President Donald Trump has officially designated the Sinaloa Cartel a “foreign terrorist organization,” threatening direct intervention on Mexican soil if the violence continues to fester. With the local economy—a vital hub for corn and tomato production—in steep decline, the people of Sinaloa are caught between the iron grip of cartels, the ineffective reach of the federal government, and the looming threat of foreign intervention, praying simply for a return to safety.
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