A masculinity summit promoting traditional gender roles and Catholic ideals is set to proceed in Jalisco despite backlash over alleged public funding, making it one of the sharper political and cultural flashpoints to emerge in Mexico under President Claudia Sheinbaum.
The three-day “Fearless Masculinity” event is going ahead in Guadalajara on April 18, even after criticism over who helped fund it and why it is being hosted in a state already under intense scrutiny for violence against women.
The lineup includes Jordan Peterson and Mexican actor and right-wing activist Eduardo Verastegui, both of whom have promoted traditional gender roles for women. Other announced speakers include former FC Barcelona captain Carles Puyol, with former Brazilian midfielder Ricardo Kaka listed but still unconfirmed. The event brands itself as Latin America’s largest masculinity congress and says it is responding to “the attack on masculinity,” language that has helped turn the conference into a proxy fight over feminism, religion, and public institutions.
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Reuters reported that a local committee approved 400,000 pesos, about $23,170, to cover speaker fees, lodging, and advertising, according to local media citing an internal report and unnamed sources. Tickets for the event cost as much as $430, which makes the subsidy issue politically explosive because the summit is being marketed as a for-profit conference rather than a public-service program.
Local government entities whose logos initially appeared on the summit’s sponsor list later said they were not funding the event, and those logos subsequently disappeared from promotional materials.
Mexico is a secular state and its constitution restricts sponsorship of religious events. Sheinbaum said last week that Jalisco’s governor should explain himself.
Jalisco is described as one of Mexico’s most violent states for women. In the first two months of 2026 alone, 756 women were violently killed across Mexico, while 2,812 rapes were recorded and emergency services received more than 162,000 calls related to gender and domestic violence, according to government data cited by Reuters.
Rights groups are explicitly linking those conditions to the spending controversy. Advocacy group Balance and 35 other associations filed a formal complaint calling on authorities to explain what happened with the funding and investigate officials involved.
Guadalajara is also hosting several World Cup matches in June, which raises the profile of any local controversy involving public priorities, gender violence, and the use of government resources.
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